Freshman Heather Lohrman drove in the game-winning run vs. George Mason Friday.

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Niagara University softball team (3-2) split a pair of games on the first day of the Mason Dixon Classic Friday, beating host George Mason, 8-7, and then losing to James Madison, 4-0.

The Purple Eagles return to action Saturday when they play the University of Delaware at 11 a.m. and then Brown University at 3 p.m.

Niagara 8, George Mason 7

Niagara had to come from behind the entire game, but freshman Heather Lohrman’s (Newport Beach, Calif.) bunt single in the bottom of the seventh inning gave the Purple Eagles the win.

Trailing 6-5 entering the inning, junior Lisa Baker (West Seneca, N.Y.) led off with a single and then tied game when freshman Jennifer Yee (North Delta, B.C.) hit her second home run of the season.

Sophomore Tory Healy (Las Vegas, Nev.) singled in the next at bat and senior Shannon Mongalise (Bethel Park, Pa.) was brought in to pinch run. Junior Nicole Sum (Burnaby, B.C.) singled to put runners on first and second before Lohrman singled to right field for the game-winning RBI.

George Mason jumped out to a 5-0 lead before Niagara tied the game in the bottom of the fourth. Freshman Felicia Coffey (Mesa, Ariz.) singled, Yee doubled and Healy then hit a three-run home run.

Down 5-3, Lohrman and junior Ashley Bognar (Tonawanda, N.Y./Sacred Heart) got on with back-to-back Patriot errors before rookie Heidi Conlon (Lewiston, N.Y./Niagara Catholic) and senior Kelly Flaherty (Hasting, N.Y.) pulled off back-to-back squeeze plays.

On the mound, starter Brooke Viola (Los Alamitos, Calif.) went five innings and gave up five hits, five runs and four walks. Freshman Katie Gleiser (Cheektowaga, N.Y./Maryvale) got the win, throwing the last two winnings and giving up two hits.

James Madison 4, Niagara 0

Stranded base runners and a pair of fourth-inning errors helped in Niagara’s second loss of the season.

The Dukes scored one run in the third and three in the fourth despite a solid second outing for Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week Tiffany McCrory (Albuquerque, N.M.). The sophomore gave up six hits, four runs, and three walks, and was two shy of her career high with eight strike outs.

At the plate, Healy was 2 for 3 while Yee, Sum and Baker all had singles.