WHO: Softball vs. George Washington
WHERE: George Mason Softball Complex, Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: George Washington 3, Mason 1
KEY PLAYERS: Casey Price – 3-4, 1 run; Samantha Zaccari – 2-3; Liz Seymour – 1-3, 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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George Washington (18-18, 6-4 A-10)
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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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1
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0
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3
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8
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0
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George Mason (16-17, 3-6 A-10)
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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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0
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1
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9
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3
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WHO: Softball vs. George Washington
WHERE: George Mason Softball Complex, Fairfax, Va.
FINAL SCORE: Mason 3, George Washington 0
KEY PLAYERS: Marina Vitalich – 7 IP, 11 strike-outs; Samantha Zaccari – 1-3, 1 run; Liz Seymour – 1-3, 1 run; Casey Price – 1-3, 1 run
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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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George Washington (18-19, 6-5 A-10)
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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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0
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0
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0
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5
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0
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George Mason (17-17, 4-6 A-10)
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2
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0
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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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3
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6
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1
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Fairfax, Va. – George Mason University's softball team rebounded perfectly from a loss in the first game against George Washington on Wednesday and shut out the Colonials in the second game at the George Mason Softball Complex to earn a split in the Revolutionary Rivalry.
George Washington combined for three hits in the top of the first two innings, including getting two players in scoring position, but Mason's senior pitcher Sarah Kleinfelter held off the pressure to keep the Colonials scoreless. George Washington's lead-off batter Megan Linn, however, tripled to center field to get the third inning going and opened the scoring soon after, when she crossed home plate on an RBI single by Morgan Rinehart. Rinehart then capitalized on Mason's first error of the game to double her team's lead with an unearned run, 2-0.
The Patriots responded with a double to right field by their lead-off batter, senior outfielder Casey Price. Although she did not produce a run in the bottom of the third, Price was the only Patriot to score in the first game, off of sophomore shortstop Liz Seymour's double to left field.
George Washington quickly restored its two-run lead at the top of the sixth when Morgan Matetic scored an unearned run off another Mason error. The Patriots put some pressure on pitcher Sarah Costlow with back-to-back doubles redshirt freshman third baseman Jess Middleton and freshman first baseman Samantha Zaccari, but the sophomore in the circle responded appropriately – by retiring the last four Patriot batters – to grab her 11th win of the season.
Mason's freshman pitcher Marina Vitalich started the second game for Mason and quickly struck out two of the three batters at the very top of the Colonial lineup. The Patriot batters carried the momentum into the top of the first and recorded four of the team's six hits in the game. Singles by Price, Seymour and Middleton led to a run by the senior that opened the scoring. Sophomore catcher Brooke Sullivan followed up with a RBI single to score Seymour and make it 2-0 Mason early on.
Vitalich and opposing pitcher Jayme Cone, also a freshman, took control of the game and recorded two clean innings apiece in the second and third innings. George Washington's best opportunity to score came in the top of the fourth, when the Colonials had the bases loaded with one out, but Mason's senior outfielder Julia Czarnecki had other things in mind. As one of Mason's most experienced players, she caught Matetic's rip to left field and hurled the ball home, where Sullivan applied the tag to prevent Alana Anderson from scoring. In the bottom of the inning, Mason added two more hits before junior outfielder Katherine Marsh fouled out to pick up an RBI and score Zaccari, increasing Mason's lead to 3-0. Strong pitching was the highlight of the remainder of the game, and this time it went in Mason's favor as the Patriots came back to .500 on the season with Vitalich's 10th win of the season.
STAT BREAKDOWN
-Mason slightly outhit its rival in both games for higher efficiency at bat on the day. The Patriots combined for 15-51 at the plate (.294), while the Colonials finished the doubleheader 13-53 as a team (.245).
-All three errors committed over the course of the two games were on Mason's account, leading to two unearned runs for George Washington in the first contest.
-Vitalich and Kleinfelter stranded 15 combined runners on base, five more than the Colonials' pitchers Costlow and Cone.
NEXT ON THE DIAMOND
The Patriots will hit the road over the weekend to play a three-game series at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia, Pa.
