Good morning! George Mason softball’s magical season came to an end this weekend—but not before one last play for the highlight reel. Watch Haley Taormina make this diving grab at third and launch it all the way over to first on her knees to secure the out.

What else are we tossing into today’s Brew?

⚾ Patriots earn No. 6 seed
🥎 As dauntless as they come
​⭐ And much, much more!

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Check Your Six. George Mason baseball will enter this week’s 2023 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship as the sixth seed and face third-seeded Dayton tomorrow evening with the first pitch scheduled for 7:00pm ET at The Diamond in Richmond, Virginia.

George Mason hosted Dayton for a three-game series last month at Spuhler Field—the Flyers won the first game and the series finale, while the Patriots took the middle game.

It’s the fourth time in the past seven seasons that George Mason has competed in the Atlantic 10 Championship, and the fifth time in program history.

🔼 Fearless. Determined. Resolute. The mantra for George Mason softball all season has been “Be Dauntless” and the way they played in their NCAA postseason debut showed they’ve got enough of that spirit to spare.

🔵 Game 1 vs. Duke

George Mason softball pushed the eighth-seeded Duke Blue Devils to the very end, ultimately falling 2-1 to the regional hosts. It was a strong NCAA postseason debut for the Patriots as they scored their first postseason run in school history, while forcing Duke to change pitchers twice.

Aly Rayle pitched another complete game for Mason, totaling four strikeouts while giving up five hits and two earned runs. She now has 246 strikeouts on the year

Three Patriots combined for four hits, led by Elyssa DeRosa who went 2-for-3 with two singles and a stolen base

One Shining Highlight: Nicole Betchel registered the very first NCAA postseason run in program history when she singled to right field to drive home Charlotte Montgomery to tie the game in the fifth.

🐪 Game 2 vs. Campbell

George Mason softball team's historic came to an end on Saturday evening as the Patriots fell to Campbell by a score of 7-1 in their elimination game of the NCAA Regionals at Duke Softball Stadium.

Despite the loss, the Patriots broke and set numerous records, both as a team and as individuals. Mason excelled on both sides of the ball—setting new records in home runs, doubles, RBIs, stolen bases, walks and strikeouts, to name a few, while winning the program's first ever Atlantic 10 tournament.

Aly Rayle started and pitched three innings for the Patriots, recording three strikeouts, pushing her season total to an incredible 249, a mark that ranks first in program history for single-season strikeouts

Sydney Bales led Mason at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two hits and an RBI

Rachel Warrens, Elyssa DeRosa, and Sydney Blackwell also recorded a hit each for the Patriots.

One Shining Highlight: The second run in George Mason softball NCAA postseason history? Sydney Bales knocked Sydney Blackwell home with a line drive up the center of the infield.

🤔 PATRIOT TRIVIA

Kept it close. It wasn’t the result that George Mason softball was looking for, but a one-run loss against Duke isn’t something that happened very often this past season. (After all, the Blue Devils came in this weekend as the No. 8 team in the country.)

How many teams other than George Mason kept it as close as a one-run margin against Duke this year?

Think you got it? Scroll on down to the bottom of this email for the answer!

⭐ ONE BIG THING

Under The Spotlight. It was a special season for George Mason softball, but before they headed out to the NCAA Tournament, the good people at NBC4 Sports checked in at practice, listened as players shared the impact that Coach Justin Walker has made on the team, and more.

📬 STICK WITH US

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📅 THE DAYS AHEAD

Monday 5/22

No scheduled events

Tuesday 5/23

⚾ Baseball vs. Dayton @ 7:00pm ET at A-10 Championship | Live Stats

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Seven!

Those teams? UCF, Notre Dame, Charlotte, Florida State, East Carolina, Georgia Tech, and Pitt.

Not a bad group of company to keep this season.

Have a great Monday, y’all.