Terrapins softball pitcher Hannah Dewey was dominant at the beginning of starts against Massachusetts and Binghamton in the Maryland Invitational this past weekend. She didn’t allow runs in the first three frames of either outing.

But in the later innings of the Terps’ 5-4 loss to Massachusetts and 9-3 loss to Binghamton, she struggled after opposing hitters made adjustments.

“The second, third, fourth time through the lineup, they kind of know what you’re going to throw sometimes,” Dewey said.

On Friday, with the Terps leading Massachusetts by 4-0, she allowed five runs, five hits and three walks in the final two frames. Until that point, though, she had allowed just three hits.

And Sunday against Binghamton, Dewey breezed through the first three innings before allowing a run and loading the bases in the fourth. Coach Julie Wright removed her from the game, and one batter later, pitcher Brenna Nation gave up a bases-clearing triple to score all three inherited runners.

Still, Dewey, who has a 7.79 ERA in 53 innings of work, said it’s important to trust relief pitchers to come in and perform well when she gets into a jam.

“We’re a staff,” she said. “If we need each other, that’s why we’re there.”

Dewey attributed some of her late-inning issues to sometimes overthinking when she’s pitching.

Instead of keeping things simple and attacking the strike zone early in the count, she said, there are innings when she concentrates too much on the intricacies of her throwing mechanics.

“At times she’ll get to a certain spot where she’ll just lose the strike zone,” Wright said. “When she’s working ahead and attacking the plate … she’s very good. Where she’s struggling is to be able to do that all the time.”

In addition to maintaining a simple strike-throwing approach, Dewey is hoping to switch up her pitches’ speed and location in hopes of keeping hitters off balance.

Wright believes Dewey is capable of playing at her peak level for longer stretches if she adjusts her mindset and improves her pitch control. She pointed to the pitcher’s performance against then-No. 5 Alabama earlier in the season as an example of her potential — Dewey threw five innings and did not allow an earned run in that game.

“That’s the Hannah we need,” Wright said.