Game One:
Head coach Dave Deiros sent junior Riley Randolph (4-0, 1.14 ERA) to the mound to pitch for FGCU while head coach Jen McIntyre attempted to counter by sending sophomore Katie Koshes (1-2, 4.38 ERA) to pitch for U-Conn.
Randolph was off to a shaky start at the top of the first as she gave up a lead-off home run to redshirt freshman Olivia Sappington. Randolph was able to get one strike out afterwards. Randolph would then strikeout two more batters at the top of the second inning.
At the bottom of the second, the Eagles struck back at the Huskies. Junior Brooke Clemens began with a lead-off single to center and advanced to second on a fielding error. After senior Ashley Swiderski drew a walk and senior Brittany McGuire was hit by a pitch to load the bases, senior Erica Ward had no problem bringing the first two runs for the Eagles as she hit a base-loaded two run single down the middle, driving in Clemens and Swiderski.
McIntyre would pull Koshes and send senior Chelsea Eckert (1-0, 1.79 ERA) in relief. Eckert began with a walk to freshman Farley Callaghan to load the bases once again for the Eagles for senior Bri Innamorato. The Mullica Hill, New Jersey native drove in McGuire for the Eagles' third run on a sacrifice fly. The onslaught did not end for the Eagles however. After senior Kelsey Huff was walked to once again load the bases, junior Racquel Fournet drove in Callaghan and Huff on a bases-loaded two-run single before Clemens flied out to end the inning.
At the bottom of the third, Swiderski would begin the onslaught with a lead-off solo home run for her third of the season to give the Eagles a 6-1 lead, but the Huskies would attempt to counter at the top of the fifth as sophomore Devon Casazza drove in the second run on an RBI single.
Hoping to add insurance, Callaghan began with a lead-off
single and advanced to second on a throwing error. After Innamorato moved
Callaghan on a sacrifice bunt, Huff would then hit an infield single and steal
second afterwards. After senior Natalie Lopez reached on fielder's choice and
stole second as well, Fournet had no problem bringing in Huff and Lopez with
another two-RBI single.
By the top of the sixth inning, Randolph would give up another home run to freshman Maura Glatczak for the Huskies third run of the game. Freshman Taylor Bauman would come in for Randolph. Bauman did struggle briefly, but brushed it off and ended the inning for another Eagles win. The Eagles are now 4-0 against the Huskies.
"I know my job is, as closer, is to get out and get the game done. That's one of my main goals," said Bauman. "When I go in there, I just kind of think just get the outs in, let's get out of this so we can get the win."
Randolph threw six innings while giving up three runs on seven hits while striking out seven batters.
Koshes was credited with the loss for U-Conn after throwing one inning and giving up four runs on two hits while one batter and striking out one.
Fournet was the only Eagle with more than one hit as she went 2-for-4 in game one with four RBI while Ward went 1-for-3 with two RBI.
Game Two:
Going to game two, the Eagles took on the Seawolves. Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White (1-0, 0.29 ERA) to pitch for the Eagles while head coach Megan Bryant sent sophomore Taylor Pechin (0-1, 1.17 ERA) to counter for the Seawolves.
The Eagles would strike the first run at the bottom of the second. After a McGuire single, senior Lulu Newmark moved McGuire to second on a ground out. After freshman Haley Morrell struck out, sophomore Kate Kelly would reach first on an error while McGuire advanced to third. Kelly would then steal second and after a throwing error from the catcher, McGuire scored the first run before Huff flew out to end the inning.
The Seawolves would then score their first run of the game at the top of the fourth. After senior Ilena Torres led things off with a lead-off single, sophomore Melissa Rahrich would advance Torres to second on a ground out before junior Irene Rivera drove in Torres on an RBI single. The Seawolves almost took the lead in the game after a double from sophomore Riley Craig, but thanks to solid teamwork from Huff, Morrell and Newmark, the Seawolves were unable to take the lead.
At the top of the sixth, with two outs, freshman Marissa Mesiemore (5-0, 0.51 ERA), who took over for White with twos out was able to get Rivera to ground into a fielder's choice for the third out.
At the bottom of the sixth, the Eagles managed to regain the lead. After Clemens struck out and Swiderski fouled out to the catcher, McGuire would reach first on an infield single. Freshman Ahnie Jumper would pinch run for McGuire before advancing to second after a single from Newmark, bringing up junior Bri Bennett to pinch hit for Morrell. On a 1-0 count, the Lake Sumter College transfer would bring Jumper in for the Eagles second run of the game before Ward grounded out to end the inning.
"My job was to get the ball on the ground and get a run in," said Bennett. "We had a good job from Ahnie Jumper that really helped us out with the RBI."
Mesiemore remained in the game for the seventh, but started to struggle. After Craig reached first on a fielding error and junior Katelyn Corr reached first on a single advancing Craig to third, Mesiemore would get junior Ally Dabroksi to strikeout looking before walking sophomore Allyssa Malony to load the bases, thus signaling the end of Mesiemore's time on the mound and sending Bauman to pitch for another save opportunity. Bauman would get freshman Nicole McCarvill to strikeout swinging before sophomore Jourodn Hering grounded out to Fournet to end the game.
"All in all, we had a solid first day and we competed hard in both games. It was great to see both pitchers give us 7 innings on day one, and offensively we did a lot of good things," said Bryant.
McGuire had the only multi-hit game as she went 2-for-3.
Fournet, Lopez, Newmark and Bennett had the only other hits.
White was credited with a no-decision after throwing 5.2 innings, giving up the one run on five hits, and struck out five batters while Mesiemore was credited with her sixth win after throwing two-thirds of an inning, giving up one hit, walking one batter and striking out one.
Bauman would be credited with her seventh save of the season after throwing two-thirds of an inning while striking out one batter. Bauman's seventh save was set as a new season record as she passed Rachael Edinge for most saves. Bauman is three away from passing Dana Frantz (nine saves) for most saves in a career.
"It's very exciting," said Bauman. "So I'm excited to see how the season goes."
"Just a fantastic job all the way around by our entire roster," said Deiros on games one and two. "All the kids we were able to be put in executed their roles and I'm really proud of them. Congratulations to Taylor Bauman for setting the FGCU single-season save record in 10 games and we're looking forward to bigger and better things from everyone moving forward."
Game Three:
Deiros would send Mesiemore to the mound to pitch for FGCU while Wright State head coach Laura Matthews sent senior Ashley Sharp (0-7, 5.48 ERA) to counter against Mesiemore
At the top of the first, Mesiemore struggled briefly. Senior Honnah Susor began with a lead off single. After sophomore Rebekah Lenos reached on a fielder's choice, back-to-back singles were hit by senior Macey Gunther and sophomore Lauren Deitrick to load the bases for the Raiders, but thanks to a strikeout and a lineout, Mesiemore was able to breathe and get out of the jam.
The Eagles would strike first in the run column at the bottom of the first. After senior Kelsey Huff was hit by a pitch and fellow senior Natalie Lopez was walked on four straight pitches, junior Racquel Fournet drove in Huff for the first run with an RBI single. After junior Brooke Clemens reached first on a fielder's choice, senior Ashley Swiderski would drive in Fournet for the second run on another RBI single.
With the bases loaded again for the Eagles, after senior Brittany McGuire was hit by a pitch, freshman Farley Callaghan drove in Clemens and Swiderski with a bases-loaded two run double.
"I felt really good and it was definitely needed," said Callaghan. "We weren't off to that slow of a start, but it was definitely a moment changer to get a couple of extra runs on the board."
Mesiemore remained calm, cooled and collected through the next three innings, despite briefly struggling in the third inning.
At the bottom of the fourth, the Eagles brought in another run. Sophomore Kate Kelly, who came in as a pinch hitter for freshman Haley Morrell, began with a pinch hit lead-off single to open the bottom half of the inning. After another Lopez single, Fournet had no trouble yet again as she drove Kelly in for the fifth run on an RBI single to make it 5-0.
In the fifth, the Eagles would add another run to the scoreboard. McGuire would start with a one-pitch lead-off single before Deiros had freshman Ahnie Jumper pinch run. After senior Emily Demurius reached first on a fielding error and a double steal occurred, junior Bri Bennett, who drove in the game-winning run against Stony Brook on day one of the tournament, hit a sacrifice fly and bring in Jumper for the sixth run.
Mesiemore had no problem to the end as the Eagles won 6-0. Mesiemore would earn with her sixth win of the season after throwing her first collegiate complete game shutout, giving up three hits while walking one and striking out one.
"I felt good about it" said Mesiemore on her shutout win. "My defense for sure had my back tonight, and we made a lot of good plays."
Sharp would be credited with her eighth loss of the season after throwing six innings and giving up six runs (five earned) on eight hits while two batters and striking out five.
Fournet and McGuire had two hits each in the game. Fournet was 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored while McGuire was 2-for-2.
Callaghan was 1-for-3 with the two-RBI double.
Lopez, Swiderski and Kelly also had a hit each.
During the game, athletes from other sports were in attendance including sophomores goalkeeper Melissa Weck and defender Lindsay Patton from the women's soccer team, sophomore Marcelo Tebet from the men's tennis team, redshirt junior Jay Hayes and junior Eric Gonzalez from the baseball team and senior Ashley Glickert and freshman Kayla Whetstone from the beach volleyball team. Glickert and Whetstone competed in a bottle opening challenge during the fourth inning. Even FGCU alum and former softball player Brianna Tourtillott was in attendance.
"I felt good about it" said Mesiemore on her shutout win. "My defense for sure had my back tonight, and we made a lot of good plays."
Sharp would be credited with her eighth loss of the season after throwing six innings and giving up six runs (five earned) on eight hits while two batters and striking out five.
Fournet and McGuire had two hits each in the game. Fournet was 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored while McGuire was 2-for-2.
Callaghan was 1-for-3 with the two-RBI double.
Lopez, Swiderski and Kelly also had a hit each.
During the game, athletes from other sports were in attendance including sophomores goalkeeper Melissa Weck and defender Lindsay Patton from the women's soccer team, sophomore Marcelo Tebet from the men's tennis team, redshirt junior Jay Hayes and junior Eric Gonzalez from the baseball team and senior Ashley Glickert and freshman Kayla Whetstone from the beach volleyball team. Glickert and Whetstone competed in a bottle opening challenge during the fourth inning. Even FGCU alum and former softball player Brianna Tourtillott was in attendance.
Game Four:
Deiros would have Randolph on the mound to pitch against SIU's Savanna Dover.
After giving up two hits in the first inning, Randolph was able to fight through the first, but it was the same way for Dover as she fought through the first. Dover kept the Eagles not just scoreless, but hitless too until the bottom of the fourth when Fournet hit the Eagles first hit with a single to center. Nonetheless, it did not stop Dover however.
Randolph was credited with the win after throwing a two-hit shutout while walking one batter and striking out four.
Dover, despite a valiant effort, was credited with her fourth loss after throwing six innings, giving up one run on four hits while walking one batter and striking out one.
With the win, the Eagles are now 3-1 against the Salukis.
"Two really good performances in the circle today," said Deiros on games three and four. "Marissa tossed a complete game to get the job done and Riley really stepped up after giving up a hard hit in the first. It was a fun game on both sides with good defense and both teams played really well. It was just a matter of who was going to get a break and we got one in the bottom of the sixth. Congratulations to us, we're still undefeated and tomorrow we will go out to try to win the tournament."
"We played extremely hard today and we played extremely well. We lost a starter due to illness and just had other people step up and come in and play," SIU head coach Kerri Blaylock said. "I thought we had two extremely good pitching performances. Savanna Dover threw the best game of her early senior year. The game against FGCU could have gone either way."
After giving up two hits in the first inning, Randolph was able to fight through the first, but it was the same way for Dover as she fought through the first. Dover kept the Eagles not just scoreless, but hitless too until the bottom of the fourth when Fournet hit the Eagles first hit with a single to center. Nonetheless, it did not stop Dover however.
Randolph and Dover continued fighting neck and neck in a a pitcher's duel until Dover finally buckled at the bottom of the sixth inning. The Eagles would start with three straight infield singles from Kelly, Huff and Lopez to load the bases. After Fournet lined out to second, Clemens would drive Kelly in for the lone run of the game after reaching on a fielder's choice before Randolph closed the door in the seventh for a 1-0 Eagle win.
"I was just telling myself I had to put the ball on the ground so the run could score," said Clemens.
Randolph was credited with the win after throwing a two-hit shutout while walking one batter and striking out four.
Dover, despite a valiant effort, was credited with her fourth loss after throwing six innings, giving up one run on four hits while walking one batter and striking out one.
With the win, the Eagles are now 3-1 against the Salukis.
"We played extremely hard today and we played extremely well. We lost a starter due to illness and just had other people step up and come in and play," SIU head coach Kerri Blaylock said. "I thought we had two extremely good pitching performances. Savanna Dover threw the best game of her early senior year. The game against FGCU could have gone either way."
Huff, Lopez, Fournet and Kelly had the four hits for the Eagles.
Game Five:
Deiros would send White to pitch against U-Conn’s Jill Stockley.
The Eagles would strike first at the bottom of the second. McGuire would start with a two out single before Bennett drove in McGuire with an RBI triple to left center.
At the fourth inning, White was pulled after loading the bases with two outs and Bauman would enter the game in relief. Bauman kept the Huskies scoreless until the top of the sixth when a sacrifice occurred and the Huskies tied the game.
Both teams did not score in the seventh inning and the game went into extra innings with the International Tiebreaker rule in effect.
The Huskies had a chance to have the runner on third, but the runner was caught in a pickle trying to go back to third and the Huskies failed to take the lead. The Eagles would then get their chance in the bottom of the eighth to seal the deal. With Jumper pinch running for McGuire, who was the last batter out, the Clewiston native was able to steal third with Bennett up to the plate.
With a 2-2 count, Bennett would hit a ground ball to the pitcher and Jumper, who saw the ball go through the pitcher’s legs, would score the game-winning run for the Eagles. This was the first walk-off win of the season for the Eagles.
At the fourth inning, White was pulled after loading the bases with two outs and Bauman would enter the game in relief. Bauman kept the Huskies scoreless until the top of the sixth when a sacrifice occurred and the Huskies tied the game.
Both teams did not score in the seventh inning and the game went into extra innings with the International Tiebreaker rule in effect.
The Huskies had a chance to have the runner on third, but the runner was caught in a pickle trying to go back to third and the Huskies failed to take the lead. The Eagles would then get their chance in the bottom of the eighth to seal the deal. With Jumper pinch running for McGuire, who was the last batter out, the Clewiston native was able to steal third with Bennett up to the plate.
With a 2-2 count, Bennett would hit a ground ball to the pitcher and Jumper, who saw the ball go through the pitcher’s legs, would score the game-winning run for the Eagles. This was the first walk-off win of the season for the Eagles.
"My job was to put the ball on the ground and Ahnie (Jumper) did a really good job getting there," said Bennett.
"I knew Bri (Bennett) was gonna put it in play. Somehow, someway, she always comes through for us." said Jumper. "I didn't know exactly where the ball went. I knew it was going down, and I knew it was coming back to the pitcher. If she fielded it clean, I probably was gonna forward, but she (Stockley) didn't field it cleanly, and she was looking for the ball and that's when I took off."
White would be credited with a no-decision after throwing 3.2 scoreless innings while giving up three hits and striking out two batters. Bauman would earn her first win of the season after throwing 4.1 innings, giving up one run on two hits while walking one and striking out three.
Stockley would be credited with her third loss of the season after throwing a complete game, giving up two runs on three hits while walking one and striking out one.
McGuire, Huff and Bennett were 1-for-3 each.
"It was a really nice effort all the way around by our pitching staff," said Deiros. "They had to hang in tough because defensively we made a couple of key mistakes and we didn't really hit the ball the way we wanted to today but you have to tip your hat off to UConn's pitcher Stockley for keeping us off balance the whole game. Swiderski's heads up play on the error up the middle to pick off the runner at third was the biggest play of the day. First and third and one out is a lot worse than two outs and a runner on first. Jumper did a great job being aggressive on the bases to score the winning run and it may have not been the prettiest win but we'll take it.
Up next, the Eagles travel to Tallahassee to play Hofstra, #5 Oregon, and #9 Florida State in the FSU Unconquered Invitational from March 2-4.
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