COLLEGE PARK, MD - Maryland softball opened the 2021 fall ball slate with a victory over George Mason on Friday, coming out on top 5-1. The two teams played a seven-inning scrimmage, and finished the meeting running situational plays against one another.

The Terps got on the board first in the second after Ruby Butler singled on a 3-1 count, sending Merissa Borkowski home from second. George Mason answered back in the following frame, tying things up at one-a-piece after scoring on a wild pitch.

Maryland then pulled away for good with two runs in the third inning, with a Taylor Okada single sending Jaeda McFarland and Mikami home after hits from both Terps put them on base. In the bottom of the seventh, Micaela Jones singled to third, while Kamryn Davis advanced on the throw to put Maryland at a comfortable 4-1 over the Patriots. Haley Ellefson wrapped up the first game of the season with a ground ball to left field, bringing Jones back around and finishing the scrimmage 5-1. 

In the circle, Courtney Wyche got the start for Maryland Terrapins, allowing just one hit and one run over three innings, striking out seven. Trinity Schlotterbeck, Kyra Pittman, and Ellefson also made appearances on the rubber, with Shclotterbeck recording two strikeouts and the latter notching one each. 

Butler, Okada, Mikami, Taylor Liguori, Caitlyn Koenig, Jones, Ellefson, and McFarland each collected one hit during the fall opener. The Terps also tore up the base paths, with two players stealing at least two bases. 

Maryland will be back in action in College Park on Saturday, October 2 against Frostburg State at 1 p.m.