Box Score SPARTANBURG, S.C. ---- Despite the game being called in the middle of the seventh inning due to snow, Samford didn't need any help from Mother Nature in a convincing 12-4 win over George Washington Saturday at the Spartan Invitational.
 
Samford (3-4) was led at the plate by Caroline Seay, who had an incredible day at the plate going 4-5 while driving in four of the Bulldogs 12 runs with two singles, a double and a triple.  It is Seay's first career four-hit performance and the first for any Bulldog since April 1 of last season.  Kayla Shaffer and Callie Brister each earned a pair of hits and combined for four runs.  Madison Dickey went 1-4 on the day, scoring two and extending her hitting streak to four games.
 
Aldridge (1-0) earned the win in the circle, pitching the third and fourth innings before the Bulldogs took the lead in the top of the fifth.  Shelby Scott started the game, pitching the first 2.0 innings, while Mollie Hanson entered in the fifth and threw 2.0 as well.
 
George Washington (1-5) struggled with control on the mound throughout the game, allowing eight walks on top of 12 hits and three fielding errors.  Meghan Rico (1-3) started the game and exited after pitching 4.0 innings and loading the bases in the top of the fifth.
 
Defensive miscues hurt the Bulldogs early in the bottom of the first.  A leadoff walk and a passed ball put a runner on second base and the second batter reached on a throwing error, advancing all the way to third as the runner scored to make it 1-0.  A sacrifice fly brought another run home to make it 2-0, the second unearned run of the inning.  George Washington would get two more runners on base but a groundout to third ended the inning with Samford in an early two-run hole.
 
Luck started swinging the Bulldogs' way in the top of the second, as Shaffer extended her at-bat thanks to a dropped foul ball by the right fielder.  She was eventually walked as was Brister right behind her to put two on with nobody out.  Caroline Wilder dropped a bunt to sacrifice the pair into scoring position and, following an infield popup, Seay dropped a hit into left field to score Shaffer and move Brister to third, cutting the deficit in half and putting runners at the corners with two away.  Seay would be out on the force at second base the following play, leaving two stranded but drawing Samford within one.
 
With runners at first and second in the bottom of the second inning, George Washington's Carlee Gray would single into right field, scoring one and advancing to second on the throw to put two in scoring position with two out.  A popup would end the inning and limit the damage as the Colonials could only extend their lead by one, up 3-1 through two innings.
 
Aldridge entered to pitch for the Bulldogs in the bottom of the third, as Shelby Scott's day ended after 2.0 innings with only one earned run.  The Colonials put two runners on with one out as both advanced into scoring position off a passed ball.  A gutsy steal attempt backfired as both runners were out the following play, keeping the lead within reach for the Bulldogs.
 
With one out in the top of the fourth, Abby Adams was walked and Seay followed that up with her second hit of the day to put two on with one away.  Batting ninth, Arica Dykes was walked to load the bases and turn it back to the top of the order.  Megan Dowdy reached on a fielder's choice as Adams was tagged out at home, leaving the bases loaded with two out.  Dickey earned a tough RBI as she was hit by a pitch to bring a runner home and pull the Bulldogs within one run.  A fly ball to the first baseman in foul territory ended the top half of the inning with Samford now within striking distance, trailing 3-2.
 
After shutting down the Colonials in order in the bottom of the fourth, Shaffer led off the top of the fifth with a single, her second of the day, and Brister followed that with a double to put two in scoring position right away for the Bulldogs.  Wilder was hit by a pitch to load the bases and that ended the day for Rico in the circle as Courtney Martin entered to pitch for the Colonials in a tough spot.  Abby Adams hit a grounder to third base, reaching on a fielder's choice as Shaffer was forced out at home leaving the bases loaded with one away.  A strikeout put two outs on the board but good patience at the plate by Dykes drew a bases-loaded walk, scoring the tying run.  The Bulldogs took the lead with yet another bases-loaded walk, as Dowdy reached first with the Bulldogs now up 4-3.  Dickey hit a grounder to second, reaching on a fielder's choice, but the Colonials could not get a runner out on the play as Adams scored to extend Samford's lead to 5-3.  Yet another bases-loaded fielder's choice, this time by Alex Adams, scored a run with the Bulldogs moving up 6-3 before a groundout finally stopped the bleeding to end the half-inning.
 
Control issues in the circle continued for George Washington in the top of the sixth, as Brister drew a leadoff walk which ended the day for Martin as Chelsey Pedley entered the game.  After Brister reached second on a groundout, Seay added on to a great day at the plate by doubling to right field, scoring Brister to make it 7-3.  Dykes followed that with a single as Seay advanced to third and scored off an errant throw, adding another run to make it 8-3 Samford.  A flyout ended the inning but the Bulldogs further extended their lead to five runs.
 
Samford couldn't rest easy with the lead however, as the bases were quickly loaded in the bottom half of the inning with nobody out.  After a strikeout, Victoria Valos reached on a fielder's choice and Samford got the runner out at second, allowing the run to score as it was now 8-4 with runners at the corners and two away.  A strikeout ended the half-inning with the lead trimmed to four runs.
 
Samford tacked on an insurance run in the top of the seventh, as Brister hit a one-out RBI single through the right side, scoring Dickey and moving Alex Adams to third.  After a lineout, Abby Adams added another run with a single through the left side making the score 10-4.  Seay unloaded the bases with a two-run triple, her fourth hit of the day, to further extend the lead to 12-4.  The game was called soon after because of snow as the Bulldogs earned a convincing eight-run victory over George Washington.
 
Samford concludes play at the Spartan Invitational tomorrow, playing two games.  First, the Bulldogs face the Bowling Green Falcons (1-0) at 11 a.m. ET before facing the USC Upstate Spartans (6-0) at 3 p.m. ET.
 
The game against USC Upstate will be live streamed for free on the Atlantic Sun Conference's streaming site, www.asun.tv.