WHO: Softball vs Army @ Patriot Classic
WHERE: Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: Mason 2, Army 1
KEY PLAYERS: Marina Vitalich – no-hitter (1st in career); Liz Seymour – 3 hits (game-high), 1 RBI
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1st
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2nd
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3rd
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4th
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5th
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6th
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7th
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R
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H
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E
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Army (7-8)
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0
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1
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0
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0
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0
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0
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0
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1
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0
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2
|
|
George Mason (5-4)
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0
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0
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2
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0
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0
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0
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0
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2
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4
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1
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WHO: Softball vs Howard @ Patriot Classic
WHERE: Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: Mason 21, Howard 1
KEY PLAYERS: Casey Price – 6 RBI (game-high), 3 hits; Liz Seymour – 2 RBI, 2 hits, 5 assists (game-high); Sarah Kleinfelter - 5 strike-outs
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1st
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2nd
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3rd
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4th
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5th
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R
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H
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E
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Howard (0-10)
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0
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0
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0
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1
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0
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1
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5
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6
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George Mason (6-4)
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9
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1
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7
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4
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0
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21
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18
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0
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Fairfax, Va. – George Mason University's softball team had a lot to celebrate in day three of the Patriot Classic. in which freshman pitcher Marina Vitalich threw her first intercollegiate no-hitter. The team then scored 21 runs to defeat Howard for the second time this weekend.
After Vitalich struck out three Army players, in the top of the second inning Alee Rashenskas became the first Black Knight to reach first base. The Army second baseman then stole second base, shortly before capitalizing on a passed ball to score the opening run in the contest.
However, Army's lead was short-lived. After combining for one hit in the first two innings, the Patriots recorded two hits in the third via sophomore shortstop Liz Seymour and junior infielder McKenzie Jones. The Black Knights committed two errors in the inning, one of them allowing senior outfielder Julia Czarnecki and Jones to cross home plate and put Mason in the lead, 2-1.
Vitalich kept the bases clean in the following three innings and although Mason worked the count to make life tough for the Black Knight's pitcher, the Patriots could not increase their lead. Seymour made two big defensive plays late on to get Kristen McPeek and Rashenskas out before Vitalich culminated her memorable performance by striking out pinch hitter Carrie Reilly to seal Mason's win.
The Patriot Classic finale against Howard started in the best way possible for Mason, which capitalized on four early errors to open the scoring before freshman first baseman Samantha Zaccari's third RBI of the season. This opened the flood gates for the Patriots, who registered eight more runs before the Bison even got to bat pushing the lead to 9-0.
Things did not get any easier for Howard and by the time the Bison returned to bat in the bottom of the fourth, they trailed 21-0 with all but two Patriots – one of them senior pitcher Sarah Kleinfelter – producing at least one RBI. Freshman pinch hitter Taija Miller earned her first intercollegiate hit and then would score her first intercollegiate run in the inning.
Howard got on the board in the bottom of the fourth when Imani Ballard tripled to center field for an RBI single, but that had little effect over the mood of the Patriots, who still marked their largest-margin of victory since 2008 and finished the weekend with a tournament-best 4-1 record to improve to 6-4 on the season.
STAT BREAKDOWN
-Mason batted a .372 (22-59) on the last day of its first home weekend. Seymour hit 1.000 for three of the team's four hits against Army while Price and freshman catcher Hayley Hinton led the Patriots with .750 batting performances against the Bison.
-Vitalich's no-hitter set the pace for a rough day at bat for the Patriots' opponents, which was completed by Kleinfelter, who struck out five Howard batters and left five more on base to improve to 2-1 on the season.
-The Patriots committed only one error over the course of the two contests while forcing eight combined errors by Army and Howard.
POST-GAME QUOTES
“It was an outstanding team effort all weekend! Our pitching really set the tone on this final day. Marina and Sarah were both dominant. In the second [game,] the bats really got going to break the game open. Price and Seymour led the way and everyone chipped in.” – Mason's head coach Joe Verbanic
“[The no-hitter] felt like any other game, I was so concentrated on doing my best and hitting spots. I really had no idea that it would be a no-hitter.” – Mason's freshman pitcher Marina Vitalich
NEXT ON THE FIELD
The Patriots will travel to Jacksonville and Bethune-Cookman for doubleheaders on Tuesday and Wednesday before participating in the Stetson Classic in DeLand, Fla. over the weekend.
