HARRISONBURG, Va. – The George Mason softball team lost to both Villanova and James Madison on the final day of the Weiler Orthodontics Invitational in Harrisonburg, Va. In Game One, the Patriots' late-game comeback fell short, while in Game Two, they were shut out by the tournament hosts.
PATRIOT HIGHLIGHTS
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Kamryn Inman hit her first-career home run in the bottom of the fifth inning in Game #1 against Villanova. The sophomore from Chesapeake, Va., had a career-game as well, recording three RBI.
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The Patriots scored a season-high five runs in a single inning in Game #1.
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Haleigh Dellow made her pitching debut for the Patriots in Game #1.
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Emily Lampela recorded her first-career hit in Game #2 against James Madison. The freshman led the team in hits, going 2-for-3
- Harlowe Nigh made her first start as a Patriot in Game #2, pitching 3.1 innings. Kylie Wilkerson came in relief in the fourth inning and pitched the rest of the game.
GAME ONE: GEORGE MASON 7, VILLANOVA 10
In the afternoon's first game, which was delayed an hour due to the previous game running over, the Patriots matched up with the Wildcats for the second time this weekend. Both schools scored their runs in bunches throughout the game.
The Wildcats pulled ahead with a three-run lead by the end of the third inning, with all three runs being generated with two outs. In the top of the second inning, Tess Cites and Ava Franz hit back-to-back RBI singles. Chloe Smith added to the Wildcat lead the following inning with an RBI single to left.
Starting pitcher Carly Cooper (5.1 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 3 BB, 5 K) and the Patriot defense recorded their first 1-2-3 inning in the top of the fourth inning. The Wildcats would score one run in the top of the fifth inning, extending their lead to four.
Villanova's starting pitcher, Kat Gallant, had been tossing a perfect game until the bottom of the fifth inning, when Sydney Bales (1-3, 1 R, 2B) broke up the bid with a one-out double. The following at bat, sophomore shortstop Kamryn Inman (1-2, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB, HR) hit her first-career home run, halving the Patriot deficit.
In the top of the 6th, Villanova loaded the bases for Ally Jones, who hit a grand slam over the left center wall. At the end of the inning, the Patriots were down 8-2.
Freshman
Haleigh Dellow (1.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB) took to the circle for the first time in her collegiate career in the top of the sixth inning. The Westfield, N.Y., product came in relief for Cooper and was able to record the last out of the sixth inning.
Mason made a furious comeback in the bottom of the sixth, scoring a season-high five runs. With
Marlaina Bozek (1-4, R) on second and
Elyssa DeRosa (1-4, R) on first,
Maddy Myers (1-4, 1 R) hit an RBI single to center, scoring Bozek.
Logan Pickford (0-2, R, BB) was the next batter, who drew a walk and loaded the bases for
Kamryn Inman. Inman drew a 3-1 walk, scoring DeRosa and recording her career-high third RBI of the afternoon.
Next up to bat was
Emily Lampela (0-3, SB), who reached on an error, which scored both Myers and Pickford and advanced Inman all the way to third. The final run of the sixth inning occurred when Lampela stole second, which allowed Inman to score on the throw.
Unfortunately for Mason, Villanova hit a two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning to once again extend the Wildcat lead to three. The Patriots could only muster a two-out single by
Elyssa DeRosa before the Wildcats recorded the final out of the game.
GAME TWO: GEORGE MASON 0, JAMES MADISON 7
In the final game of the evening, the Patriots faced off against the tournament hosts James Madison. The Dukes scored first and never looked back.
Marlaina Bozek (1-3, 2B) led the game off with a double, but the Patriots were unable to capitalize and stranded the senior on the bases.
James Madison methodically scored their runs throughout the evening, scoring in the first, third, fifth and sixth innings. Reed Butler had the best outing at the plate for either side, going 3-for-4 with three RBI and hitting a two-run home run in the bottom of the third inning.
Freshman
Emily Lampela (2-3) not only recorded her first collegiate hit tonight, but also led the Patriots in hits against the Dukes, going 2-for-3. Both hits landed in left field.
UP NEXT
The Patriots will be on the road for the third consecutive week, this time from Thursday, Feb. 22 to Saturday, Feb. 24. The UNCW Tournament, hosted by the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, will feature games against the Seahawks, Merrimack, Kent State, Providence and UMBC.
