FAIRFAX, Va. – George Mason University's softball team began the vital week ahead in the best possible manner but it let off some steam later in the evening to ultimately split the non-conference doubleheader against Virginia.

Mason dominated game one and deservedly won it 6-2 after outhitting its in-state rival 12-4. Sophomore starter Marina Vitalich (7-7) and freshman reliever Taylor Mayer kept the bases clean in five of the seven innings and struck out seven batters to put down all sparks of a Cavaliers run. Mayer's efforts in the success were rewarded with her first intercollegiate save.

The Patriots had a stellar offensive start, scoring four unanswered runs in the opening inning to set the tone for the rest of the game. Sophomore second baseman Erin Calpin was at the heart of Mason's fruitful offense, batting 2-3 in the game for four RBI and scoring one run herself. It was Calpin's double that scored Jess Middleton, Sydnee Wells, and Mary-Elizabeth Luttrell and forced a pitching change by UVA only one out into the game.

"I think I am seeing the ball really well right now," Calpin said after the game. "I've been putting up some work and feel very confident when I go up to the plate. I feel like the ball is coming right for me."

Lexi Mettler, who replaced Allison Davis (1-2) in the circle early on, did not last in it herself, because junior Brooke Sullivan, who played at the unorthodox for her right-field position Wednesday, and sophomore Samantha Zaccari, who batted 3-3, and both drove additional Mason runs with singles to center field by the end of the second inning, 5-0.

"We all worked together – we had solid defense, everyone hit the ball well, got on base, moved people around – I think it's one of the best wins we've had all year," Calpin added.

With two outs in the fourth inning, Kaitlin Fitzgerald finally got a hit for the Cavaliers and then covered three bases on a single from McKall Miller to put UVA on the board. The Patriots ensured that they stay in control of the game when Calpin scored Zaccari to restore the home team's five-run lead. An unearned run by Danni Ingraham on a single by Iyana Hughes in the sixth inning finalized the scoreline at 6-2.

The second game started promising as well thanks to three of the Patriots' freshmen. First, Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week Bekah Ansbro pitched a three-up-three-down inning to start the game. Then, center fielder Luttrell and designated hitter Wells picked up back-to-back hits, the second of which scored the former to open the scoring, 1-0 Mason.

"I can tell that my team is really having my back, defensively and offensively," Ansbro said. "It's really comforting, when you're pitching, to know that your defense is going to make place behind your back and your offense with some runs to give you some room."

Even though UVA found an immediate response this time around – a lead-off home run by Miller – the Patriots were not bothered at the slightest. The chances of a sweep remained very much alive and looked better than ever when a fourth-inning RBI single by sophomore catcher Hayley Hinton drove redshirt sophomore third baseman Middleton home to put Mason back in the lead, 2-1.

The introduction of a new Mason pitcher in the fifth inning renewed UVA's last chance to build some momentum and that is exactly what happened. The Cavaliers combined for eight hits in freshman Madison Larsen's (1-7) first two innings in the circle and capitalized on two defensive errors to score four fifth-inning runs and two sixth-inning runs that very much changed the landscape of the contest. Perhaps stunned by the abrupt change of momentum, Mason could not score a run in three consecutive innings for the first time on the day and the score remained 7-2 until the end.

"I think that, compared to the first game, our energy was really low," Ansbro added. "I think that we need to work on maintaining throughout the whole series because doubleheaders are long days for everyone, so if we are able to stay on our feet and stay loud, I think that will help us."

NEXT ON THE DIAMOND

Mason will not have long to ponder upon the second-game loss because A-10's four-time defending champion Fordham will be in town for a showdown series between the top two teams in the conference standings.

As Ansbro said, "We have a lot of passion for this series… I think our energy will be up the whole time and I know that we will work really hard this week to ensure that we can play a couple of good games this weekend."