FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason softball team (11-7) were swept by Binghamton in Sunday's doubleheader. The Patriots lost the first game by the score of 4-6 and lost the second game 5-13. The four-game weekend home series was split two games a piece with the Bearcats.

MASON'S WEEKEND BY THE NUMBERS

• Junior second baseman Marlaina Bozek led the team's in average, hits and doubles. She went 8-for-13 (.615) with three doubles.
•  Senior Haley Taormina and redshirt junior Nicole Bechtel tied for the most RBI on the weekend, each batting in four runs. Taormina hit the team's only home run, which was a three-run shot in Sunday's second game.
• Graduate pitcher Aly Rayle led the pitching staff in strikeouts over the weekend, striking out ten Bearcats over two appearances.

GAME ONE: MASON (11-6) vs. BINGHAMTON (10-7)

In Game One, the Bearcats jumped to an early lead, scoring two runs in the top of the first inning. After beginning the game with a pair of walks and a stolen base, there were runners of second and third. Brianna Santos hit a single through the infield which drove in both runners. After the two quick runs, starting pitcher Carly Cooper was able to retire the next three batters, limiting the early damage.

The Bearcat lead would not last long, as in the bottom of the frame, after a Marlaina Bozek lead off double and an Alena Ball singe, catcher Nicole Bechtel hit a two-run double to left field. After Madi Williams came in to pinch run for Bechtel on second base, freshman left fielder Elyssa DeRosa knocked a single to left center, giving the Patriots their third run of the inning as well as the lead.

The Patriots, like the Bearcats earlier in the game, would not hold on to the lead for long either. Binghamton would score four runs in the inning. After Hailey Ehlers got on board with a one-out single, shortstop Akira Kopec hit a double which tied the game. Then, after the second out was recorded, a pair of Bearcat singles up the middle sent Kopec home, giving Binghamton the lead with runners on first and second. Right fielder Sarah Rende cleared the bases with a two-out double to left center. The inning ended with the Bearcats leading the Patriots 6-3.

One more Mason run would be scored in the game, which happened in the bottom of the fifth inning. After senior Maddy Myers led off with a single up the middle, Marlaina Bozek plugged the gap in right center with a double, scoring Myers from first base.

The Patriots mounted a late-game rally in the bottom of the seventh inning. After pinch hitter Hayley Shifflett drew a walk on a full count and Maddy Myers hit a single to shallow right, the Bearcats went to their closer Sophia Pappas. With one out and runners on first and second, Binghamton's Pappas recorded the final two outs, flying out both Bozek and Ball to the center fielder Fittry.

Mason's sophomore pitcher Jordan Tallman pitched a strong five innings in relief. She stopped the bleeding by not allowing any more runs in the game and only giving up three hits to go along with two strikeouts.

GAME TWO: MASON (11-7) vs. BINGHAMTON (11-7)
In Game Two, it was the Patriots this time who jumped to an early lead. In the top of the first, the Patriots led the game off with a Marlaina Bozek single, followed by an Alena Ball walk. Haley Taormina, who went 0-for-3 last game, turned on the first pitch she saw in Game Two and hit a no-doubter over the left field wall. The Patriots took 3-0 lead before the first out of the game was recorded.

The Patriots would score two more runs in the game, both by wild pitches. The first wild pitch came in the second inning when Haley Taormina was at the plate, which scored sophomore center fielder Sydney Blackwell from third. The second wild pitch score happened in the third inning during Maddy Myers' at-bat, which scored senior Rachel Warrens from third.

The sixth inning was when the game got out of control for the Patriots, as the snow began to fall and wet the field. With the Patriots leading 5-4 in the top of the sixth, Binghamton's Ehlers hit a game-tying solo shot just over the left field wall. After a hit by pitch, fielding error which resulted in the go-ahead run, and a passed ball that scored an additional run, the Bearcats knocked out starter Aly Rayle. Pitcher Jordan Anderson came in relief with the bases empty. Facing her first two batters, Anderson walked her first batter and recorded the first out of the inning. The wet snow began to make its presence known, as the following batters were walked, hit by pitch, doubled, and hit by pitch again. Unfortunately for the Patriots, the Bearcats batted around in just a third of an inning's work. Carly Cooper replaced Anderson, where Ehlers, who started off the inning with a home run, hit a two-run triple. Cooper would eventually get two strikeouts to end the 45-minute long, eight-run sixth inning.

One more Bearcat run would be scored in the seventh inning. The final score would be 5-13. This is the first weekend where the Patriots were outscored by their opponents. Mason scored 16 runs compared to Binghamton's 24.

UP NEXT
The Patriots will continue their homestand on Wednesday, March 15, when Coppin State comes to Fairfax for a midweek doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.