Led by senior pitcher Samantha Giovanniello, who four hits and five RBIs, the Georgetown softball team (7-23, 1-4 Big East) handily defeated the Mount St. Mary’s (6-24, 0-2 Northeast Conference) Wednesday afternoon.

The Hoyas came out strong, scoring eight runs in the first inning. A three-run single from freshman catcher Sarah Bennett, an RBI single from junior first baseman Alessandra Gargicevich-Almeida, a double from senior third baseman Taylor Henry and a triple from freshman outfielder Mallory Belknap contributed to the Hoyas’ hot start.

Head Coach Pat Conlan said there is one constant that never changes no matter what is going on in the season.

“Winning feels good,” she wrote in an email to The Hoya.

For the Hoyas, this one was absolutely crucial.

“We really needed a win to give us some momentum heading into our Creighton games this weekend, so I think it naturally sends us there with a good feeling,” Conlan wrote.

Last week, the Hoyas struggled on the mound, giving up 16 walks in a single game, which, according to Conlan, “[is] almost unheard of in our game.”

The Hoyas look to continue improving on this goal, cutting down on giving up walks if they are to come away victorious, as they did this week. The team gave up just seven walks in its win against Mount St. Mary’s.

“[Junior pitcher] Delaney [Osterday] and Sam [Giovanniello] have done a good job of limiting walks,” Conlan wrote. “We feel if a team is going to score runs we want them to earn it with their bats. We are focused on getting a little bit better every time we step on the field.”

Despite an improved effort to reduce Georgetown’s scoring opportunities, Mount St. Mary’s came back to test Georgetown, driving in five runs during the top of the fourth inning and cutting the nine-run lead to four.

“We know teams are going to score so our focus is to find a way to stop the bleeding and get out of the inning with as little damage as possible. I loved that we kept the pressure on offensively,” Conlan wrote.

When it came down to it, the Mountaineers’ push was not enough, as the Hoyas answered with five more runs to finish the game.

“The name of the game is scoring more runs than the other team, and we did that very well,” Conlan wrote.

In terms of carrying this performance over to the coming weekend, Conlan said she is looking to maintain her focus on doing the little things well.

“Solid pitching performance, quality at bats with good execution, good defense and energy are always going to be our focus against anyone we play,” Conlan wrote.  “We need to worry about playing the game, and competing against the team. When we do that, the results will be there … I’m ready to see our team play to their capabilities and turn the season around.  We know what our end goal is but now have to make that happen on the field.”

Next, Georgetown will play Creighton (19-12, 3-1 Big East) in a three-game series as it advances in conference play. The series will begin with a doubleheader tomorrow at 1 p.m. in Omaha, Neb. The third and final game will take place on Sunday at 12 p.m., also in Omaha.