FAIRFAX, Va. – Despite falling to Saint Joseph's 21-9 in the regular season finale on Saturday afternoon, the George Mason women's lacrosse team still secured the No. 6-seed in the Atlantic 10 tournament next week.
 
The Patriots (10-7, 4-5) were led offensively by graduate student Shannon Tuozzo on Senior Day, as she tallied a game-high four goals. The hat trick marked the 12^th time this season that the midfielder eclipsed the three-goal mark. Her fourth goal of the game also marked her 60^th of the season, setting a new single-season record at George Mason.
 
The Hawks (10-6, 6-3) opened the game with the first four goals of the contest to lead 4-0 with just under nine minutes to go in the first quarter. However, Mason responded with the next three tallies to cut the lead to just one with four minutes remaining. SJU cashed in on one more to close the quarter and lead 5-3 at the break. 
 
Saint Joseph's scored the first two goals on the second before Tuozzo and Morgan Gunn teamed up for a fast break player-down tally to get within three. However, the Hawks scored the next five spanning the end of the second and beginning of the third to stretch the lead to 12-4. The Patriots would not back down however, scoring three of the next four to cut the lead to six, 13-7, halfway through the third. 
 
Despite two fourth quarter goals by Tuozzo and Dahlia Trippel, Saint Joe's bookended the two tallies with four goals to provide the final 21-9 tally.
 
PATRIOT POINTS

• Tuozzo also led Mason with four draw controls and five ground balls as the Patriots won the ground ball battle 19-17
• Dahlia Trippel also registered a hat trick on the day, her sixth time hitting that mark
• Grad student Morgan Gunn paced Mason with a team-high two assists
• Defensively, Tuozzo and senior Melanie Hutchinson both tallied two caused turnovers

 
POSTSEASON NOTES
After going 4-5 in Atlantic 10 play, the Patriots locked up the No. 6-seed in the postseason. Mason, VCU and St. Bonaventure finished the season at 4-5, but via the head-to-head tie-breaker, VCU earned the fifth seed and Mason secured the sixth. The Atlantic 10 tournament will begin on Thursday, May 2 at Duquesne. Visit championship central here!
 
UP NEXT
Mason will open the postseason on Thursday, May 2 at 3 p.m. in Pittsburgh, Pa. The Patriots will have a rematch with third-seeded Davidson, which downed Mason 16-6 earlier this season.