Photo courtesy of Mitchell Layton

Postgame Press Conference | Photos

RICHMOND, Va. – On the verge of exorcising some demons, the George Mason women's basketball team watched as momentum quickly swung the other way.

And the Patriots' chance to knock off a rival slipped away.

George Washington rallied late in the third quarter and into the final period as Mason suffered a 64-59 loss to George Washington in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship on Friday at the Richmond Coliseum. The Patriots (23-9) lost all three games against the Colonials this year and have dropped 13 straight in the rivalry.

George Washington (17-13) sunk a 3-pointer at the buzzer at the end of the third quarter to spark a 9-0 run that carried into the fourth quarter. The Colonials stayed in front from there. Mason had a chance to tie in the final minute but freshman Nicole Cardano-Hillary's jumper came up short and GW made six free throws in the final 26 seconds to seal the victory.

Graduate student and Atlantic 10 Player of the Year Natalie Butler posted her NCAA-leading 31st consecutive double-double with 27 points (on 13-of-18 shooting) and 12 rebounds. But George Washington (17-13) held the rest of the Patriots to just 26.3 percent (10 of 38) shooting.

Mason, which has won a program-best 23 wins this year and finished fourth in the A-10, will now await its postseason fate, hoping to get rewarded for one of the most successful seasons in program history.

Neither team led by more than six points in a game that featured seven ties and seven lead changes. But Mason appeared to grab control midway through the third quarter. The Patriots opened the second half on an 11-4 run, sparked by a Sarah Kaminski 3-pointer. Butler scored six straight points during the stretch, including tough turnaround jumper from about 15 feet away to give Mason its largest lead, 38-33, with 4:43 left in the period.

The Colonials fought back, tying the game late in the quarter but Mason sophomore Jacy Bolton answered with a 3-pointer. Sophomore Alexsis Grate knocked down a pair of free throws with four seconds left to keep the lead at three points.

It appeared Mason would go into the final period with the lead. But George Washington raced down the floor and found Kelsi Mahoney, who sunk one of her game-high four 3-pointers to pull the Colonials even.

The momentum spilled over into the final quarter as Brianna Cummings scored six straight points, boosting the lead to 51-45 with 7:21 to go. Mason twice pulled within two points but GW answered each time. Cardano-Hillary drained a 3 in the corner to cut it to two one last time, 58-56, with 1:46 left.

After a GW miss on the other end, the Patriots had a chance to tie or take the lead but Cardano-Hillary's pullup jumper hit the front of the rim. Mason then appeared to force a turnover with 27 seconds left when the ball dribbled off a Colonial player's foot and out of bounds. But an inadvertent whistle blew. After the officials consulted, they ruled a jump ball because of the inadvertent whistle. Possession was in GW's favor. Camila Tapias made both free throws and the Patriots faced an uphill battle the final 26 seconds.

The Patriots won the rebounding battle 39-24 and scored 23 second-chance points off 15 offensive rebounds. But they committed 17 turnovers, which GW turned into 15 points. Cardano-Hillary, the A-10 Rookie of the Year, scored a season-low six points on 2-of-12 shooting as she failed to reach double figures for the first time all season. Senior Tayler Dodson also added six points.