The FGCU softball team had a busy week as they played and hosted the Battle at the Beach Invitational. They had a total of six games during the week and prior to the BATB Invitational, FGCU had a series against FSU, the No.1 team in the nation and lost both games 7-0 and 13-1 before battling Canisius College and beating them 2-1 in nine innings
The following teams were invited to participate in the invitational: Iowa State, Canisius College, IUPUI, Drexel and Cleveland State.
I took a look at a few of the games that we were not playing in to scouted our competition that we expect to face.
First two games, I was unable to go because I was in Orlando for the men's basketball tournament, but from what I was told that we split the first two games. FGCU beat Iowa State 7-3, but lost to IUPUI 2-1 on Thursday. sophomore left-handed pitcher Riley Randolph got the win against Canisius while senior right-handed pitcher, while Taylor Wade got the loss against IUPUI.
On Friday, FGCU did not play in the invitational as they were preparing for Saturday. When Saturday came, FGCU continued their part with an 8-0 win over Canisius College again.
In the first inning, senior catcher Brianna Tourtillott started the game with an RBI single that drove in junior outfielder Natalie Lopez. Then junior third baseman Brittany McGuire had a fielder's choice that drove in sophomore first baseman Racquel Fournet. One batter later, junior LuLu Newmark drove in Tourtillott before a lineout by junior second baseman Emily Demurias.
In the second inning, junior outfielder Kelsey Huff had an bunt single that drove in Lopez despite it being a throwing error.
Three scoreless innings later, going into the bottom of the fifth, FGCU was back on the scoring side. After a lineout from Huff, Tourtillott began with a standing double. Tourtillott was then pulled out to put a pinch runner for her, and little did I know that a surprise guest had joined the team. Pinch running for Tourtilott was Evita Leter.
Leter came from the FGCU swimming and diving to join the team. The senior from Paramaribo, Suriname is mainly known for swimming in the 2016 Rio Olympics representing her native country. What I was told was that the NCAA cleared her and was eligible to play. When I heard that she was on the softball team, I was thinking at first "Is this real? Is there a hidden camera or digital recorder that's playing tricks on me?" Honestly, I was not fully convinced that this was real and before the game started, I saw her in uniform No. 23, so my eyes did not deceive me after all.
Also, this was the first time that she ever played softball, and she told that she just started on Friday and did not know anything about softball.
Some of her swimming and diving teammates including sophomores Linda Shaw, Georgie Gardener and Doris Eichorn were in attendance to watch their teammate in the game.
Leter advanced to third on a groundout from senior second baseman Jeanie Verderese and would then score after Newmark reached on a throwing error before junior shortstop Brianne Innamorato grounded out to end the inning.
In the sixth inning, Fournet would finish the game and hit a game-winning two run double that ended in 8-0 via the mercy rule.
Randolph got the win after throw a complete game shutout while giving up four hits and striking out eight batters.
FGCU would later face ISU, but fell 5-2 and split the series once again.
During the Saturday games, I saw Jessica and Jaimie Harney, two fellow softball players and twins from the same junior college that me and junior Erica Ward were enrolled in. They came to visit Ward, who is out for the rest of the season.
On Sunday morning, FGCU was scheduled to play Drexel University of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and Cleveland State of the Horizon League.
The Eagles started off against Drexel. The first three innings were scoreless, but going into the fourth inning, Fournet started by reaching first on a fielding error. After a walk by Newmark, Tourtilott, who played right field in the game, moved the runners into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt. After McGuire popped out, Innamorato drove in the first two runs of the game on a double before senior catcher Amber Plaza popped out.
After a scoreless fitfth inning, the Dragons would drive in three runs after FGCU committed two errors that cost them the lead.
With the bottom of the sixth starting, Fournet flew out to start the inning. Newmark then hit a triple to right field. Head coach David Deiros was not happy about it and took Newmark out and put Demurias to pinch run. Honestly, in her defense, I think Newmark misread what Deiros told her. She was suppose to stay at second, but it looked like Deiros was telling her to run to third, so there may have been some miscommunication. With Demurias on third, Tourtilott was at the plate and on a 1-1 pitch, she hit a game-winning two run home run that put FGCU up 4-3.
In the top of the seventh, Drexel started things off with a triple, but then it looked a little controversial. The next batter grounded out to Verderese and Verderese threw to Plaza, who then threw it to Demurias for a double play.
From a view, it looked like the runner was safe and it should have been tied 4-4, but I found before the second game that the runner did not reach home plate and Plaza did get her in time. Drexel would pop up and ended the game.
Both teams had only four hits in the game. Newmark, Innamorato, Verderese and Tourtillott had the only four hits.
Wade got the win throwing a complete game giving three unearned runs on four hits with two walks and three strikeouts.
The final game of the invitational was between FGCU and Cleveland State. Cleveland State was 2-24 before starting the game.
Instead of Randolph pitching the game, it was freshman right-hander Morgan White that took the mound. White was struggling the past few games, but this time, it was much better than I could imagine.
The first batter White faced hit a single to start. After pop out and another single, I'm thinking "Please let her have this game in her hand" and luckily, my wish came true.
White struck out two batters in the first inning. In the second, she struck one batter. In the third, despite giving up a single and a throwing error being set, White got out of the inning and struck out one batter. White would strike out three of the four batters she faced in the fourth.
After three scoreless inning, FGCU would start the offense. Huff led things off with a triple. After Fournet walked and stole second, Newmark would strikeout and Tourtillott would load the bases with a walk before McGuire drove in Huff for the first run on a sacrifice fly. White would then step up to the plate and hit a pop fly to the infield. It looked like the inning was about to end, but the Cleveland State's shortstop dropped the ball and Fournet would score the second run before Verderese struck out to end the inning.
With White back on the mound, Cleveland State took another crack at her in the fifth. White struck out the first batter and gave up a single before having the next two batters fly out. White had eight strikeouts in the game before going into the sixth inning. The first batter White faced struck out looking. After a fly out with second batter, White walked two straight batters and threw an illegal pitch that advanced the first runner that walked to second, but after that, she struck out her final batter.
During the bottom of the sixth, there was some confusion. After McGuire popped out and White struck out, Innamorato hit a single to center and advanced to third on a throwing error by the second baseman, but something did not look right to the umpires and they gathered together with both Deiros and the head coach of CSU about the situation with Innamorato's advancement.
After a 30 minute delay of looking through the rule book, Innamorato was ok to stay at third. I was very confused with the problem and I could not figure it out. Redshirt sophomore Ashley Swiderski would fly out to end the sixth.
In the seventh, junior right-hander Gabbee Draney came in to get the save and struck out all three batters to end the inning.
FGCU would once again have only four hits. Huff had two and Innamorato and Verderese would have one each.
White earned her second win and threw six innings and gave up all four hits and three walks, but it was the 10 strikeouts that set the bar for the lone freshman. Draney would be credited with her second save of the season.
At the end of the invitational, FGCU ended up 4-2, Canisius (11-13) was 2-2, IUPUI (10-17) and Iowa State (15-16) went 4-1, Drexel (4-7) went 1-4 and Cleveland State went 0-5 in the Battle at the Beach Invitational.
FGCU (18-13) will be starting conference play in the A-Sun on Saturday with two games at home against Jacksonville before wrapping up with one more in the afternoon and heading to UNF for the first conference road trip.
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