ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell softball team, fresh off its opening weekend sweep at the George Mason Invitational, will head back to Fairfax, Va. this weekend for the Mason Cherry Blossom Classic. The Big Red will play five games over three days in the tournament.

Cornell opens the tournament against Niagara on Friday, March 12 at 6 p.m., then will play a pair of games on both Saturday and Sunday. The Big Red will play Albany on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. and George Mason at 7 p.m., then turns around to meet Albany on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. and Mount St. Mary's at 2 p.m. before returning home.

The Big Red has already played George Mason once, knocking off the Patriots 2-1 in the finale of last weekend's tournament by rallying for a pair of runs in the fifth. Cornell now leads the series 8-6. Cornell and Albany are tied 2-2 all-time, while it owns a 14-1 advantage over Niagara.

In week one, Cornell was outstanding at the plate, in the field and on the mound. Cornell hit .368 in the four games and outscored its opponents 28-9. Cornell hitters reached base 47 percent of the time in the first weekend, with four regulars hitting .455 or better. Included was Ivy League Player of the Week Elise Menaker, who batted .500 with a home run and five RBI. Defensively, the Big Red committed just one error in 106 chances for a .991 fielding percentage. On the mound, Cornell posted a 1.88 earned run average with 31 strikeouts in 26 innings. Reigning Ivy League Pitcher of the Year Elizabeth Dalrymple was simply dominant in her two starts, posting a 2-0 record with 19 strikeouts in 11 innings.