This season is playing out like a combination of corny clichés for the GW softball team.

Despite losing to Towson in a doubleheader – 0-2 and 3-6 – Wednesday afternoon at Mount Vernon Athletic Complex, to judge the Colonials by their seven-game losing streak would be to discount many of their accomplishments and judge the book by its cover.

The loss was due to resoundingly poor defense. Seven errors were made in the first game, and although the team fought back in the second, it still fell by a decisive score. A line-drive hit freshman pitcher Ali Pardo on the wrist during the second game and she was replaced by junior Carrie Higdon.

“Defensively, we’re not doing our part consistently,” coach Kim Staehle said. “Defense keeps you in the games, and if we could just tie up some of those loose ends, I have a feeling we’re going to see some results.”

But despite all this, sophomore Amanda Gabriel has been a defensive stalwart on the mound, having already broken the program’s strikeouts record. She was also named the Atlantic 10 player of the week earlier in the season for her pitching prowess.

And offensively, the Colonials’ inability to record a run does not match the statistics of the team.

Then again, winning is not everything. GW (5-14, 1-3) is ranked 15th in the nation for team batting average and is ranked in the top 10 for home runs per game and slugging percentage.

“I’m not concerned with our record,” Staehle said. “We really just approach these midweek games as preparation for the (Atlantic 10 tournament).”

Neither wins nor record accurately represents the team. Going into A-10 play the Colonials led the conference with a .325 team batting average. But they are only 1-3 and face a tough match-up this weekend against Massachusetts.

“UMass is traditionally a very strong ballclub,” Staehle said. “They hit the ball well, they pitch the ball well, they field the ball well, they do everything as they should.”

The Colonials’ inability to translate their individual accomplishments into wins lies in teamwork, or lack thereof. Because, as the saying goes, there is no “I” in team.

“Individually we may be meeting our goals, but softball is not an individual sport,” senior Chrysanthi Halkiotis said. “It’s very hard to get pitching, offense and defense all in the same day,”

“I think the thing with individual accomplishments is that I can pitch an awesome game and we can lose, or I can pitch a terrible game, and we can win,” Gabriel said. “And the thing with our offensive records is that we’re not putting things together. There can be a big hit here or there, but if you don’t have consecutive hits, then your individual performance shines, but not the team.”

Had the team overcome these clichés earlier, several of its close losses – such as a pair of one-point defeats to Georgetown last week — may have been wins.

As Halkiotis said after the Townson losses, all it takes is a little teamwork.

“I think that there are a few of us who are doing some great things, and we have some players ranked nationally or in the top 10, so if we can get everyone on the same page at the same time, it’s going to happen,” she said. “We’re close.”