The FGCU softball team (35-15, 9-6 A-SUN) are set to wrap up their final conference series at home as they face UNF (24-27, 4-11 A-SUN).
Last Time Out:
The Eagles wrapped up by winning their last conference road trip against Lipscomb. The Eagles would split the first two games winning 1-0 for the first game before losing the second game 1-9 in six innings via the mercy rule. The Eagles would claim the series after winning the rubber match game by a score of 2-1 in nine innings.
A-SUN Standings:
The conference standings are as noted:
1. Kennesaw State (36-15, 14-3 A-SUN)*+
2. Upstate (31-17, 10-6 A-SUN)*
3. FGCU (35-15, 9-6 A-SUN)*
4. Lipscomb (31-15, 9-8 A-SUN)*
5. Jacksonville (24-26, 5-9 A-SUN)
6. UNF (24-27, 4-11 A-SUN)
7. Stetson (25-21, 3-11 A-SUN)
*Clinched a spot in the A-SUN tournament
+ A-SUN Regular Season Championship
Jacksonville, Stetson and UNF are currently battling for the final two spots in the conference tournament
#1 Seed Dwindled:
The Eagles chance of earning the No. 1 seed and regular season championship dwindle away after falling in game two of the series against Lipscomb, however, the Eagles can get the No. 2 seed for a first round bye in the tournament if they sweep UNF. With the possible sweep against UNF, the Eagles can move ahead of Upstate.
Key Player(s):
On the mound, junior Riley Randolph and sophomore Morgan White have been on point.
Randolph (15-6), who was named A-SUN Pitcher of the Week for the third time this season, is currently throwing a 1.76 ERA with 123 strikeouts. Against Lipscomb, the St. Petersburg native threw 15 innings and struck out 13 batters including the rubber match game where she threw eight innings.
White (8-2) is currently throwing a team-leading 1.57 ERA with 67 strikeouts. White threw two innings in game two and earned her first save in game three.
At the plate, senior Ashley Swiderski and junior Racquel Fournet have been keys on the offense.
Swiderski is currently batting .255 with six home runs and 25 RBIs. Swiderski went 2-for-8 against Lipscomb.
Fournet currently leads the team with a .393 batting with 57 hits, five home runs and 30 RBIs. In the series against Lipscomb, Fournet went 6-for-8 with three doubles.
Mrs. Doubles:
Speaking of doubles, Fournet currently has 13 doubles this season, but overall in her career, the Windemere native is third overall with 45 career doubles including the three from the series against Lipscomb. Fournet is five doubles away from passing Courtney Platt and Cheyenne Jenks (49 each) from being the all-time leader in career doubles.
Scouting UNF:
The Ospreys recently competed in a series against Stetson. The Ospreys would win the series after splitting the first two games losing 0-1 in game one and winning 6-5 in game two before winning the rubber match game by a score of 4-0.
On the mound, despite her record, redshirt junior Sydney Matzko leads the way for the Osprey. Matzko is currently 12-17 with a 2.15 ERA and 136 strikeouts. the North Carolina transfer played in all three games against Stetson. Matzko threw two-thirds of an inning with one strikeout in game one, 3.1 innings with four in game two and a one-hit shutout with four strikeouts.
At the plate, junior Navia Penrod leads the team with a .432 batting average. In the series against Stetson, Penrod was 3-9 with a double.
Junior Tiffany Lower leads the team with three home runs and is second on the team with 21 RBIs. Lower was 4-10 against Stetson with an RBI.
Series History:
The Eagles are currently 17-13 overall against the Ospreys. Last time both teams met, the Ospreys won the series winning 2-0 and 6-4 before the Eagles won 5-2 to avoid the sweep
Senior Recognition:
For the Eagles, eight seniors will be recognized for the final game of the season for their senior day: Natalie Lopez, Emily Demurius, Kelsey Huff, Ashley Swiderski, Brittany McGuire, Erica Ward, Brianne Innamorato and Lulu Newmark.
The Ospreys' seniors will also be recognized: Ashley Niesman, Alex Arciola, Becca Enter, Casey Estes and Amanda Blanchard.
The first two games will be at 5 and 7 P.M on Friday and Saturday at 2 P.M. The Friday games will be dubbed as Youth Night and Star Wars Night while Saturday will also be dubbed as a green out along with Free Comic Book Day for Senior Day.
About Me
FGCU Baseball vs Kennesaw Recap: Game 2
The FGCU baseball team (29-12, 6-5 ASUN) pulled off a 3-0 victory over Kennesaw State (24-19, 10-4 A-SUN) as they continue conference play. With the win, the Eagles are now 24-14 overall against the Owls.
Head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt junior Josh Dye to pitch against Kennesaw’s Brooke Buckler.
It was a pitcher duo between Dye and Buckler as they kept each other scoreless until the seventh inning when the Eagles struck first. After freshman Christian Proffitt was hit by a pitch to lead-off the inning, sophomore Marc Coffers would send Proffitt to second with a sacrifice bunt. After sophomore Alex Brait sent Proffitt to third after grounding out, sophomore Richie Garcia gave the Eagles the lead they needed with an RBI triple, sending Proffitt 90 feet for the first run. The Eagles would add a second run after sophomore Kohl Gilmore hit a single to drive in Garcia.
The Eagles would add one more insurance run in the eighth inning. After senior Spencer Levine reached first on a fielding error, Proffitt would draw a walk, sending Levine to second before advancing to third on a wild pitch. From there, Coffers would smack an RBI double sending Levine home for the third run.
Still on the mound, Dye was able to strikeout Griffin Helms for the third and final out of the game in the ninth. Dye would finish with his seventh win of the season after a four-hit shutout while walking two batters and striking out nine. This was the first shutout of the season for the Eagles and Dye’s second career shutout.
“It’s an awesome feeling to be able to throw a complete game,” said Dye. “Toe (Tollett) was coming up to me telling me I was coming out, I was gonna tell him ‘no I wanted that game’, and I just knew I had it in me.”
"He was really good today," said Tollett on Dye. "He had to throw behind in the count, sink the two-seam, and his changeup was especially good. But that's our first complete game in quite some time. He was at 98 pitches going into the final inning so we had to run him back out there. He averaged a strikeout per inning but the key was, we needed this win. Josh knew we needed this and that's what makes it more special for us."
Buckler would be credited with his second loss of the season after throwing seven innings, giving up two runs on seven hits while walking one and striking out three.
Freshman Ryan Kennedy came in for Buckler for relief throwing one inning, giving up one run (unearned) on one hit while walking one batter and striking out two.
Eight of the nine batters in the lineup had one hit each: Coffers, Brait, Garcia, Gilmore, senior Eli Lovell, redshirt junior Jay Hayes, Levine and Proffit.
Head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt junior Josh Dye to pitch against Kennesaw’s Brooke Buckler.
It was a pitcher duo between Dye and Buckler as they kept each other scoreless until the seventh inning when the Eagles struck first. After freshman Christian Proffitt was hit by a pitch to lead-off the inning, sophomore Marc Coffers would send Proffitt to second with a sacrifice bunt. After sophomore Alex Brait sent Proffitt to third after grounding out, sophomore Richie Garcia gave the Eagles the lead they needed with an RBI triple, sending Proffitt 90 feet for the first run. The Eagles would add a second run after sophomore Kohl Gilmore hit a single to drive in Garcia.
The Eagles would add one more insurance run in the eighth inning. After senior Spencer Levine reached first on a fielding error, Proffitt would draw a walk, sending Levine to second before advancing to third on a wild pitch. From there, Coffers would smack an RBI double sending Levine home for the third run.
Still on the mound, Dye was able to strikeout Griffin Helms for the third and final out of the game in the ninth. Dye would finish with his seventh win of the season after a four-hit shutout while walking two batters and striking out nine. This was the first shutout of the season for the Eagles and Dye’s second career shutout.
“It’s an awesome feeling to be able to throw a complete game,” said Dye. “Toe (Tollett) was coming up to me telling me I was coming out, I was gonna tell him ‘no I wanted that game’, and I just knew I had it in me.”
"He was really good today," said Tollett on Dye. "He had to throw behind in the count, sink the two-seam, and his changeup was especially good. But that's our first complete game in quite some time. He was at 98 pitches going into the final inning so we had to run him back out there. He averaged a strikeout per inning but the key was, we needed this win. Josh knew we needed this and that's what makes it more special for us."
Buckler would be credited with his second loss of the season after throwing seven innings, giving up two runs on seven hits while walking one and striking out three.
Freshman Ryan Kennedy came in for Buckler for relief throwing one inning, giving up one run (unearned) on one hit while walking one batter and striking out two.
Eight of the nine batters in the lineup had one hit each: Coffers, Brait, Garcia, Gilmore, senior Eli Lovell, redshirt junior Jay Hayes, Levine and Proffit.
FGCU Softball vs Lipscomb Series Recap
In a top-4 battle of the A-SUN standings, the FGCU softball team (35-15, 9-6 A-SUN) wrapped up their final conference road trip as they won the series against Lipscomb (31-15, 9-8 A-SUN). The Eagles split the first two games winning 1-0 in the first game and falling 9-1 in game via the mercy rule before winning the rubber game 2-1 in 10 innings.
Game One: FGCU 1, Lipscomb 0:
In game one, Deiros sent junior Riley Randolph to pitch against Mandy Jordan. Throughout the whole game, it was a pitchers duo between Randolph and Jordan. Both teams had opportunities to get on the scoreboard first through five innings, but to no avail. Both Randolph and Jordan combined 10 strikeouts in five innings.
In the sixth inning, the Eagles would be able to put the only run on the scoreboard. Senior Ashley Swiderski would begin with a lead-off walk before Deiros sent fellow senior Emily Demurius to pinch run. Demurius advanced to second on a passed ball before advancing to third off a single from junior Racquel Fournet. Senior Brittany McGuire would reach on a fielder’s choice bringing in Demurius for the first run of the game.
In the seventh inning, the Eagles had an opportunity to add an insurance run, but were unsuccessful to do so. The Bison also had an opportunity to get a run on the board to at least tie the game. After giving up a one-out triple, Randolph to get the next batter to pop out before striking out the final batter.
Randolph earned her 14th win of the season after throwing a five-hit shutout while walking three batters and striking out nine.
Jordan would be credited with her sixth loss putting her record at 15-6. Jordan threw a complete game, giving up the only Eagles run on four hits while walking two batters and striking out five.
Out of the four hits from the Eagles, Fournet was the only Eagle with a multi-hit game. Fournet went 2-for-3 with a double. This was Fournet’s 43rd double of her career. Freshmen Farley Callaghan and Haley Morrell would have the Eagles other two hits.
Game Two: FGCU 1, LIPSCOMB 9:
For game two, Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to the mound to face Chloe Yeager. In the second inning, the Eagles struck early on the scoreboard. After Morrell hit a two-out single, senior Kelsey Huff would send Morrell home on an RBI single.
In the third inning, White was replaced by freshman Marissa Mesiemore. Mesiemore would struggle through the third and part of the fourth inning before being replaced by fellow freshman Taylor Bauman. The Bison would score the final four runs in the sixth inning before the game was called after the eight run mercy rule.
White would earn a no-decision after throwing two scoreless innings, giving up three hits while walking one batter and striking out one.
Yeager would earn her eighth win of the season after throwing a six inning complete game, giving up one run on six hits while walking one batter and striking out two.
Mesiemore would be credited with her fourth loss after throwing 1.1 innings, giving up five runs on six hits with one strikeout.
Bauman gave up four unearned runs on six hits while walking one batter.
Fournet and Swiderski went 2-for-3 each. Fournet added her second double of the series, her 44th in her career. Huff and Morrell would have one hit each.
"Gutsy series win for our team," stated Deiros. "Riley fought all day to keep us in it and Morgan closed the door in style in the ninth."
McGuire, Callaghan, and Newmark had one hit each. McGuire and Newmark had the Eagles two RBIs.
Game One: FGCU 1, Lipscomb 0:
In game one, Deiros sent junior Riley Randolph to pitch against Mandy Jordan. Throughout the whole game, it was a pitchers duo between Randolph and Jordan. Both teams had opportunities to get on the scoreboard first through five innings, but to no avail. Both Randolph and Jordan combined 10 strikeouts in five innings.
In the sixth inning, the Eagles would be able to put the only run on the scoreboard. Senior Ashley Swiderski would begin with a lead-off walk before Deiros sent fellow senior Emily Demurius to pinch run. Demurius advanced to second on a passed ball before advancing to third off a single from junior Racquel Fournet. Senior Brittany McGuire would reach on a fielder’s choice bringing in Demurius for the first run of the game.
In the seventh inning, the Eagles had an opportunity to add an insurance run, but were unsuccessful to do so. The Bison also had an opportunity to get a run on the board to at least tie the game. After giving up a one-out triple, Randolph to get the next batter to pop out before striking out the final batter.
Randolph earned her 14th win of the season after throwing a five-hit shutout while walking three batters and striking out nine.
Jordan would be credited with her sixth loss putting her record at 15-6. Jordan threw a complete game, giving up the only Eagles run on four hits while walking two batters and striking out five.
Out of the four hits from the Eagles, Fournet was the only Eagle with a multi-hit game. Fournet went 2-for-3 with a double. This was Fournet’s 43rd double of her career. Freshmen Farley Callaghan and Haley Morrell would have the Eagles other two hits.
Game Two: FGCU 1, LIPSCOMB 9:
For game two, Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to the mound to face Chloe Yeager. In the second inning, the Eagles struck early on the scoreboard. After Morrell hit a two-out single, senior Kelsey Huff would send Morrell home on an RBI single.
In the third inning, White was replaced by freshman Marissa Mesiemore. Mesiemore would struggle through the third and part of the fourth inning before being replaced by fellow freshman Taylor Bauman. The Bison would score the final four runs in the sixth inning before the game was called after the eight run mercy rule.
White would earn a no-decision after throwing two scoreless innings, giving up three hits while walking one batter and striking out one.
Yeager would earn her eighth win of the season after throwing a six inning complete game, giving up one run on six hits while walking one batter and striking out two.
Mesiemore would be credited with her fourth loss after throwing 1.1 innings, giving up five runs on six hits with one strikeout.
Bauman gave up four unearned runs on six hits while walking one batter.
Fournet and Swiderski went 2-for-3 each. Fournet added her second double of the series, her 44th in her career. Huff and Morrell would have one hit each.
Game Three: FGCU 2, Lipscomb 1:
For the rubber game, Deiros sent Randolph back to the mound to pitch against Jordan. Similar game one of the series, it was a pitcher’s battle between Randolph and Jordan. Both pitchers combined a total of 10 strikeouts (Randolph (3), Jordan (7)) through five innings.
The Bison would get on the scoreboard first in the bottom of the sixth after a solo home run off the bat of Khayla Green.
In the seventh inning, with the score 1-0 in favor of Lipscomb, the Eagles would soon tie the game. Fournet would begin by drawing a lead-off walk before Demurius came in to pinch-run. After Demurius advanced to second on a ground out from Swiderski, McGuire would send Demurius home with an RBI double. After ending the seventh at 1-1, the game would go into extra innings.
At the top of the ninth inning, the Eagles would soon take the lead. After a one-out double from Fournet and a two-out walk from McGuire, Callaghan would hit a single to load the bases for senior Lulu Newmark. Newmark would bring in the go-ahead run sending Fournet home for the Eagles second run.
White would come in for Randolph in the ninth for a save situation and had no trouble to end the inning unfazed.
"Gutsy series win for our team," stated Deiros. "Riley fought all day to keep us in it and Morgan closed the door in style in the ninth."
Randolph would earn her 15th win of the season and her second win of the series after throwing eight innings, giving up one run on nine hits while walking and striking out four batters each. Randolph threw 16 innings and struck out 13 batters
White would earn her first save of the season after throwing one scoreless inning while striking out two batters.
Jordan would be credited with her seventh loss of the season after throwing 8.2 innings, giving up two runs on three hits while walking three batters and striking out 10.
Yeager came in relief for Lipscomb throwing a third of an inning giving up two hits.
Fournet was the only Eagles player with a multi-hit game going 2-for-2 with her 13th double of the season and 45th double of her career. Fournet finished the series 6 for 8 with three doubles.
McGuire, Callaghan, and Newmark had one hit each. McGuire and Newmark had the Eagles two RBIs.
The Eagle will conclude their season with three final home games against UNF.
FGCU Baseball vs Kennesaw: Game One Recap
The FGCU baseball team (28-12, 5-5 A-SUN) dropped the first game of the series against Kennesaw (24-18, 10-3 A-SUN) as the Eagles fell 2-1.
Head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt senior Mario Leon to face Kennesaw’s A.J. Moore for the opening game. The Owls would be the first to get on the scoreboard. After a double from Jaylen Smith, Forrest Bramlett would send Smith home.
At the bottom of the third, the Eagles would tie the game. After junior Eric Gonzalez drew a lead-off walk, sophomore Elijah Eusebio would send Gonzalez to third with single for freshman Christian Proffitt. With an 0-1 count, the Cape Coral native would send Gonzalez 90 feet and score the tying run.
At the top of the fourth, the Owls would retake the lead. After Jake Franklin hit a lead-off single, he would then advance to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a throwing and fielding error.
The Eagles had two opportunities to score in the eighth and ninth inning, but were unsuccessful. In the eighth, Proffitt and sophomore Marc Coffers reached base, but a fly out from sophomore Alex Brait stopped the Eagles from scoring. In the ninth inning, senior Eli Lovell would hit a two-out single to hopefully get a rally for the Eagles. After sophomore Tyler Yeager was sent to pinch run for Lovell, Yeager was then picked off for the final out in the opening game.
Leon would be credited with his third loss of the season after throwing 7.1 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on nine hits while striking out five.
“We didn’t do the simple things today to come away with a win,” said Tollett. “Mario pitched really well tonight but give Kennesaw State credit. That’s a good ballclub and they came to play. We need to be better tomorrow to even up the series.”
Senior Parker Hamilton threw 1.2 scoreless innings while giving up one hit and striking out one batter.
Moore would earn the win after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on three hits while walking four batters and striking out five.
Jake McLinskey would earn his fifth save of the season after throwing two scoreless innings while giving up two hits and walking one batter.
Proffitt was the only Eagle with a multi-hit game as he went 2-for-3. Eusebio, Coffers, and Lovell were the only other Eagles that had one hit. Coffers also added his 20th stolen base of the season.
Head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt senior Mario Leon to face Kennesaw’s A.J. Moore for the opening game. The Owls would be the first to get on the scoreboard. After a double from Jaylen Smith, Forrest Bramlett would send Smith home.
At the bottom of the third, the Eagles would tie the game. After junior Eric Gonzalez drew a lead-off walk, sophomore Elijah Eusebio would send Gonzalez to third with single for freshman Christian Proffitt. With an 0-1 count, the Cape Coral native would send Gonzalez 90 feet and score the tying run.
At the top of the fourth, the Owls would retake the lead. After Jake Franklin hit a lead-off single, he would then advance to third on a wild pitch before scoring on a throwing and fielding error.
The Eagles had two opportunities to score in the eighth and ninth inning, but were unsuccessful. In the eighth, Proffitt and sophomore Marc Coffers reached base, but a fly out from sophomore Alex Brait stopped the Eagles from scoring. In the ninth inning, senior Eli Lovell would hit a two-out single to hopefully get a rally for the Eagles. After sophomore Tyler Yeager was sent to pinch run for Lovell, Yeager was then picked off for the final out in the opening game.
Leon would be credited with his third loss of the season after throwing 7.1 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on nine hits while striking out five.
“We didn’t do the simple things today to come away with a win,” said Tollett. “Mario pitched really well tonight but give Kennesaw State credit. That’s a good ballclub and they came to play. We need to be better tomorrow to even up the series.”
Senior Parker Hamilton threw 1.2 scoreless innings while giving up one hit and striking out one batter.
Moore would earn the win after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on three hits while walking four batters and striking out five.
Jake McLinskey would earn his fifth save of the season after throwing two scoreless innings while giving up two hits and walking one batter.
Proffitt was the only Eagle with a multi-hit game as he went 2-for-3. Eusebio, Coffers, and Lovell were the only other Eagles that had one hit. Coffers also added his 20th stolen base of the season.
FGCU W-Golf: A-SUN Championship Recap
Following heavy rain, the FGCU women’s golf team vaulted up into a tie for fourth place to conclude the A-SUN Championship on Tuesday at Chateau Elan’s Legends Course in Braselton, Ga. The Eagles finished with a final score of 620 (+44) tying with Jacksonville. The eventual winner of the tournament was host Kennesaw with a final score of 601 (+25), thus Kennesaw earned a ticket to the national tournament.
“I am thrilled with our performance today,” FGCU head coach Sarah Trew said. “Unfortunately, we had some pretty major weather issues that didn’t allow us to get the final round in as I think we could have moved up the leaderboard even more.
The Eagles shot a 291 in the final round, which was the second best among all teams behind Kennesaw State’s 288. In fact, the team made as the Green and Blue shaved 38 strokes off Sunday’s 329.
Beginning day one of the tournament, the Eagles sat in fifth place finishing with a score of 329 (+37), which was the biggest turnaround among all teams from the opening round.
“We dug ourselves into quite a bit of a hole after the first round and had to do something spectacular to move up the leaderboard today, and that is just what we did. When we talked as a team on Sunday, we stressed having nothing worse than bogey and we accomplished that goal today. It was great to end the year on a high note by posting the second best round of the tournament.”
It was junior Madeline Marck-Sherk who led the Eagles. Marck-Sherk began the tournament in sixth place, shooting a 77 in the opening round. The Ridgeway, Ontario native shot a 70 in the final round finishing with a two-round 147 (+3), which tied Kennesaw State’s Charlotte Charrayre for second place and behind the eventual individual winner Madison Caldwell. Marck-Sherk’s performance earned her a spot on the A-SUN All-Tournament Team
“I am so proud of Madeline,” Trew said. “She came into this tournament not playing her best golf, but still had the mindset of winning the tournament. She has worked so hard all year on her game, in the gym and on her mental game. I could not be happier to see it all come to fruition this week for her.”
Sophomore Ailsa Clark tied with three others for 10th place with a +12 and a final score of 156 (84-72). It was the second lowest score of the year for the sophomore since the Pat Bradley Invitational.
Sophomore Kate Williamson finished third among FGCU golfers with a +14 and a final score of 158 (86-72), tying for 16th overall with Clark.
A-SUN Freshman of the Year Natalia Nassar finished in a tie for 24th place with a +18 and a final score of 162 (85-77) with junior Kelsy Holbert (83-79).
Quotes from other coaches:
"It feels so good for this trophy be back in our hands," Kennesaw head coach Rhyll Brinsmead said. "This was a very frustrating few days with the amount of rain we had coming in and the uncertainty of whether we would be able to play another 18 holes of golf. The team did an outstanding job of staying patient and trusting what we had done the entire year. We have a wonderful group of young women who work every day to represent Kennesaw State at the highest level and we look forward to advancing to NCAA regional play."
"I'm so incredibly proud of Madison for winning the individual title," Brinsmead said on Caldwell. "She made six birdies today which was so impressive given the conditions."
"It was tough battling the elements, both on the course and waiting out the rain," said JU head coach Jennifer Borocz. "We unfortunately did not shoot as low as we would have liked to out there this week."
“I am thrilled with our performance today,” FGCU head coach Sarah Trew said. “Unfortunately, we had some pretty major weather issues that didn’t allow us to get the final round in as I think we could have moved up the leaderboard even more.
The Eagles shot a 291 in the final round, which was the second best among all teams behind Kennesaw State’s 288. In fact, the team made as the Green and Blue shaved 38 strokes off Sunday’s 329.
Beginning day one of the tournament, the Eagles sat in fifth place finishing with a score of 329 (+37), which was the biggest turnaround among all teams from the opening round.
“We dug ourselves into quite a bit of a hole after the first round and had to do something spectacular to move up the leaderboard today, and that is just what we did. When we talked as a team on Sunday, we stressed having nothing worse than bogey and we accomplished that goal today. It was great to end the year on a high note by posting the second best round of the tournament.”
It was junior Madeline Marck-Sherk who led the Eagles. Marck-Sherk began the tournament in sixth place, shooting a 77 in the opening round. The Ridgeway, Ontario native shot a 70 in the final round finishing with a two-round 147 (+3), which tied Kennesaw State’s Charlotte Charrayre for second place and behind the eventual individual winner Madison Caldwell. Marck-Sherk’s performance earned her a spot on the A-SUN All-Tournament Team
“I am so proud of Madeline,” Trew said. “She came into this tournament not playing her best golf, but still had the mindset of winning the tournament. She has worked so hard all year on her game, in the gym and on her mental game. I could not be happier to see it all come to fruition this week for her.”
Sophomore Ailsa Clark tied with three others for 10th place with a +12 and a final score of 156 (84-72). It was the second lowest score of the year for the sophomore since the Pat Bradley Invitational.
Sophomore Kate Williamson finished third among FGCU golfers with a +14 and a final score of 158 (86-72), tying for 16th overall with Clark.
A-SUN Freshman of the Year Natalia Nassar finished in a tie for 24th place with a +18 and a final score of 162 (85-77) with junior Kelsy Holbert (83-79).
Quotes from other coaches:
"It feels so good for this trophy be back in our hands," Kennesaw head coach Rhyll Brinsmead said. "This was a very frustrating few days with the amount of rain we had coming in and the uncertainty of whether we would be able to play another 18 holes of golf. The team did an outstanding job of staying patient and trusting what we had done the entire year. We have a wonderful group of young women who work every day to represent Kennesaw State at the highest level and we look forward to advancing to NCAA regional play."
"I'm so incredibly proud of Madison for winning the individual title," Brinsmead said on Caldwell. "She made six birdies today which was so impressive given the conditions."
"It was tough battling the elements, both on the course and waiting out the rain," said JU head coach Jennifer Borocz. "We unfortunately did not shoot as low as we would have liked to out there this week."
FGCU Softball vs Lipscomb Preview
The FGCU softball team (32-14, 7-5 A-SUN) prepare for their final conference road trip as they face Lipscomb (30-13, 8-6 A-SUN) in Nashville.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles last played Jacksonville for their second to last conference road trip. The Eagles would sweep the Dolphins in all three games (Gm 1. 6-0, Gm 2. 6-5, Gm 3. 8-1). In addition, this was the Eagles' first sweep in conference since the 2016 season (vs UNF May 2-3).
Key Players:
On the mound, sophomore Morgan White and junior Riley Randolph have been key factors.
White (8-2, 1.47 ERA) made two appearances in the series against Jacksonville, earning wins in both games. In the first appearance, White threw two-thirds of an inning while one batter and striking out one. In game two, White threw her first complete game of the season giving up one run (unearned) on one hit while striking out nine.
Randolph (13-6, 1.92 ERA) also made two appearances against Jacksonville. In game one, Randolph threw a two-hit shutout, walking two batters and striking out five. In game two, Randolph came in for her first save throwing one scoreless inning while walking two batters and striking out one.
At the plate, the players that have been on a hot streak include senior Ashley Swiderski, freshman Farley Callaghan and junior Racquel Fournet.
Despite going 0-4 in the last game of the series against Jacksonville, Swiderski finished 4-12 with two doubles, one triple and three RBIs. Swiderski is currently batting .255 with 35 hits, six doubles, four triples, six home runs and 25 RBIs.
Callaghan is currently batting .247 with 20 hits, six doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs. In the series against JU, Callaghan finished 5-9 (.555) with two doubles and an RBI.
Fournet is currently leading the team with a .372 batting average. The Windemere native has 51 hits, 10 doubles, four triples, five home runs and 30 RBIs. Against JU, Fournet went 5-11 (.455) with two doubles and an RBI. Fournet's two doubles put her at 42 in her career and is eight away from surpassing Cheyenne Jenkins and Courtney Platt (49) for most in a career.
Save The Nation:
Freshman Taylor Bauman still not only leads the team and conference in saves (15), but in the nation too. The Jacksonville native currently ties the single season record for saves with former Canisius College pitcher Mallory Aldred. Bauman is only one save away from passing Aldred for the single season saves record.
Scouting Lipscomb:
The Bison recently faced former A-SUN Conference member Belmont, winning 13-2 in five innings.
Last time out for the Bison in conference, they faced Kennesaw in only two games, losing 2-3 and 1-2. The third game was tied at 5-5 in the fourth inning, but was cancelled due to rain.
On the mound, junior Mandy Jordan leads the way. Jordan (15-5, 1.47 ERA) lead the team with 128 strikeouts. In her last start against Kennesaw, Jordan earned a loss after throwing six innings, giving up three runs on four hits while walking four and striking out one.
At the plate, senior Abby Fenichel and junior Jordan Fortel lead the way.
Fenichel is currently batting .289 and leads the team with seven home runs and 32 RBIs. Against Kennesaw Fenichel went 2-6 with two RBIs.
Fortel is currently batting .261 with five home runs and 19 RBIs as a batter. In the game against Belmont, Fortel went 1-3 with a home run and two RBIs. She went 1-5 with a home run in the series against Kennesaw. As a pitcher, Fortel is 3-3 with a 1.76 ERA and 29 strikeouts.
Series History:
The Eagles are currently 12-10 all-time against the Lady Bison. Last time both teams met, the Eagles took the series at home as they won game one 3-2 in nine innings and 4-0 in game three, but lost 2-10 in the second game.
Chance At No. 1:
The current conference standings are as noted:
1. Kennesaw (34-14, 12-2 A-SUN)
2. Upstate (31-16, 10-6 A-SUN)
3. FGCU (33-14, 7-5 A-SUN)
4. Lipscomb (30-13, 8-6 A-SUN)
5. Jacksonville (23-24, 4-7 A-SUN)
6. Stetson (24-19, 2-9 A-SUN)
7. UNF (22-26, 2-10 A-SUN)
The Eagles do have a slight chance to get the No. 1 and No. 2 spot for the conference tournament. The Eagles would have to sweep Lipscomb and UNF, but they would also need Jacksonville to sweep Kennesaw to get the No. 1 seed.
To get No. 2, the Eagles would have to sweep Lipscomb and UNF, and Kennesaw would have to lose the series against Jacksonville.
Livestream:
The first two games will air on ESPN+ at 5 P.M. and 7 P.M. and live stats will be available for all three games.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles last played Jacksonville for their second to last conference road trip. The Eagles would sweep the Dolphins in all three games (Gm 1. 6-0, Gm 2. 6-5, Gm 3. 8-1). In addition, this was the Eagles' first sweep in conference since the 2016 season (vs UNF May 2-3).
Key Players:
On the mound, sophomore Morgan White and junior Riley Randolph have been key factors.
White (8-2, 1.47 ERA) made two appearances in the series against Jacksonville, earning wins in both games. In the first appearance, White threw two-thirds of an inning while one batter and striking out one. In game two, White threw her first complete game of the season giving up one run (unearned) on one hit while striking out nine.
Randolph (13-6, 1.92 ERA) also made two appearances against Jacksonville. In game one, Randolph threw a two-hit shutout, walking two batters and striking out five. In game two, Randolph came in for her first save throwing one scoreless inning while walking two batters and striking out one.
At the plate, the players that have been on a hot streak include senior Ashley Swiderski, freshman Farley Callaghan and junior Racquel Fournet.
Despite going 0-4 in the last game of the series against Jacksonville, Swiderski finished 4-12 with two doubles, one triple and three RBIs. Swiderski is currently batting .255 with 35 hits, six doubles, four triples, six home runs and 25 RBIs.
Callaghan is currently batting .247 with 20 hits, six doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs. In the series against JU, Callaghan finished 5-9 (.555) with two doubles and an RBI.
Fournet is currently leading the team with a .372 batting average. The Windemere native has 51 hits, 10 doubles, four triples, five home runs and 30 RBIs. Against JU, Fournet went 5-11 (.455) with two doubles and an RBI. Fournet's two doubles put her at 42 in her career and is eight away from surpassing Cheyenne Jenkins and Courtney Platt (49) for most in a career.
Save The Nation:
Freshman Taylor Bauman still not only leads the team and conference in saves (15), but in the nation too. The Jacksonville native currently ties the single season record for saves with former Canisius College pitcher Mallory Aldred. Bauman is only one save away from passing Aldred for the single season saves record.
Scouting Lipscomb:
The Bison recently faced former A-SUN Conference member Belmont, winning 13-2 in five innings.
Last time out for the Bison in conference, they faced Kennesaw in only two games, losing 2-3 and 1-2. The third game was tied at 5-5 in the fourth inning, but was cancelled due to rain.
On the mound, junior Mandy Jordan leads the way. Jordan (15-5, 1.47 ERA) lead the team with 128 strikeouts. In her last start against Kennesaw, Jordan earned a loss after throwing six innings, giving up three runs on four hits while walking four and striking out one.
At the plate, senior Abby Fenichel and junior Jordan Fortel lead the way.
Fenichel is currently batting .289 and leads the team with seven home runs and 32 RBIs. Against Kennesaw Fenichel went 2-6 with two RBIs.
Fortel is currently batting .261 with five home runs and 19 RBIs as a batter. In the game against Belmont, Fortel went 1-3 with a home run and two RBIs. She went 1-5 with a home run in the series against Kennesaw. As a pitcher, Fortel is 3-3 with a 1.76 ERA and 29 strikeouts.
Series History:
The Eagles are currently 12-10 all-time against the Lady Bison. Last time both teams met, the Eagles took the series at home as they won game one 3-2 in nine innings and 4-0 in game three, but lost 2-10 in the second game.
Chance At No. 1:
The current conference standings are as noted:
1. Kennesaw (34-14, 12-2 A-SUN)
2. Upstate (31-16, 10-6 A-SUN)
3. FGCU (33-14, 7-5 A-SUN)
4. Lipscomb (30-13, 8-6 A-SUN)
5. Jacksonville (23-24, 4-7 A-SUN)
6. Stetson (24-19, 2-9 A-SUN)
7. UNF (22-26, 2-10 A-SUN)
The Eagles do have a slight chance to get the No. 1 and No. 2 spot for the conference tournament. The Eagles would have to sweep Lipscomb and UNF, but they would also need Jacksonville to sweep Kennesaw to get the No. 1 seed.
To get No. 2, the Eagles would have to sweep Lipscomb and UNF, and Kennesaw would have to lose the series against Jacksonville.
Livestream:
The first two games will air on ESPN+ at 5 P.M. and 7 P.M. and live stats will be available for all three games.
FGCU M-Golf: A-SUN Championship Recap
The FGCU men's golf team concluded their season Tuesday In a rain-altered A-SUN Championship match. The Eagles finished with a final-round of 291 and a final score of +30, finishing in 5th place overall at The Legends Course at Chateau Elan. The eventual winner of the tournament was #26 UNF with a -4 (285-279: 564). The Osprey earned an automatic bid to the NCAA National Tournament. The rain washed out the entire 2nd round of action Monday, prompting officials to shorten the tournament from 54 to 36 holes.
It was informed that Kennesaw is also eligible for the NCAA National Tournament and will compete in the Stockton Regional in Stockton, California. Kennesaw had an at-large bid for the national tournament, despite finishing fourth in the conference tournament.
"We had a much better closing round than we did to open the championship on Sunday," commented FGCU head coach Eric Booker. "Grant played really solid to finish in the top 10, and we had a few other guys bounce back nicely as well, but overall we just had too many mistakes that we can't afford to make if we want to compete at this level to win a conference championship."
Senior Grant Renegar paced the Eagles with a closing 2-under 68 to finish in a team-best tie for 7th overall with a two-round 143 total (+1). Renegar put together a really clean card in the final round, opening with a birdie on the adjusted par-3 10th, and adding two others against only one bogey to complete what was tied for the 3rd-best round of the day and matched for his personal best this year.
Junior Andrew Potter joined Renegar by finishing in the top 15 overall as the junior followed up a 1st-round 73 with a final-round 75 to tie for 14th overall (148, +6).
Senior Michael Keymont bounced back from an 80 on Sunday with a 71 on Tuesday – his 2nd-best round in two years with the Eagles – to move up eight spots on the leaderboard, representing the 2nd-largest jump in the field of 35. Keymont tied for 23rd overall with a 151 (+9) total. started on the par-4 8th and recorded four birdies and five bogeys on his way to the 71. Keymont tied for the 2nd-best par-3 scoring in the field for the tournament at -1, a total which was also equaled by Renegar.
Rounding out the FGCU five-man lineup scoring was freshman Cole Castro. Castro, who was selected as a member of the A-SUN All-Freshman Team selection, finished in 31st as he shot a +17 with a 159 total (82-77). Castro highlighted FGCU by holing out on the par-4, 344-yard 16th for an eagle.
Sophomore Doug Smith finished tied for 34th with a +21 (79-84: 163).
The 5th-place finish for the Green and Blue marked the team's fourth-straight year concluding the conference championship in that position.
Quotes From Other Coaches:
"This was a humbling event for us. We came in prepared and confident, but we just couldn't execute the shots we needed," Kennesaw head coach Bryant Odom said. "However, our season continues with NCAA Regionals and we will evaluate this event and learn from it."
"It's an honor and privilege to get to go and compete at the NCAA Regionals, and from there we just have to play our hearts out," Odom said on qualify for the national tournament. "It's exciting to go out West where we haven't been in a couple years and where we can expect some consistent weather. It's going to be fun to compete against some new teams and at a venue that most of us will be playing for the first time.
"We need everyone on our team playing well and we have to have the depth throughout the lineup and rely on everyone every day," Odom added. "We are going to need consistent scores, try to avoid the big numbers, and just have fun."
FGCU Lineup Scores:
T-7) Grant Renegar: 75-68: 143 (+1)
T-14) Andrew Potter: 73-75: 148 (+6)
T-23) Michael Keymont: 80-71: 151 (+9)
31) Cole Castro: 82-77: 159 (+17)
T-34) Doug Smith: 79-84: 163 (+21)
Complete Field (Golfstat Rankings Designated By #):
1) ) #26 North Florida: 285-279: 564 (-4)
2) #69 Lipscomb: 286-283: 569 (+1)
3) #60 Jacksonville: 302-284: 586 (+18)
4) #51 Kennesaw State: 296-292: 588 (+20)
5) #174 FGCU: 307-291: 598 ()
6) #245 Stetson: 313-290: 603 (+35)
7) #162 USC Upstate: 303-305: 608 (+40)
It was informed that Kennesaw is also eligible for the NCAA National Tournament and will compete in the Stockton Regional in Stockton, California. Kennesaw had an at-large bid for the national tournament, despite finishing fourth in the conference tournament.
"We had a much better closing round than we did to open the championship on Sunday," commented FGCU head coach Eric Booker. "Grant played really solid to finish in the top 10, and we had a few other guys bounce back nicely as well, but overall we just had too many mistakes that we can't afford to make if we want to compete at this level to win a conference championship."
Senior Michael Keymont bounced back from an 80 on Sunday with a 71 on Tuesday – his 2nd-best round in two years with the Eagles – to move up eight spots on the leaderboard, representing the 2nd-largest jump in the field of 35. Keymont tied for 23rd overall with a 151 (+9) total. started on the par-4 8th and recorded four birdies and five bogeys on his way to the 71. Keymont tied for the 2nd-best par-3 scoring in the field for the tournament at -1, a total which was also equaled by Renegar.
Rounding out the FGCU five-man lineup scoring was freshman Cole Castro. Castro, who was selected as a member of the A-SUN All-Freshman Team selection, finished in 31st as he shot a +17 with a 159 total (82-77). Castro highlighted FGCU by holing out on the par-4, 344-yard 16th for an eagle.
Sophomore Doug Smith finished tied for 34th with a +21 (79-84: 163).
The 5th-place finish for the Green and Blue marked the team's fourth-straight year concluding the conference championship in that position.
Quotes From Other Coaches:
"This was a humbling event for us. We came in prepared and confident, but we just couldn't execute the shots we needed," Kennesaw head coach Bryant Odom said. "However, our season continues with NCAA Regionals and we will evaluate this event and learn from it."
"It's an honor and privilege to get to go and compete at the NCAA Regionals, and from there we just have to play our hearts out," Odom said on qualify for the national tournament. "It's exciting to go out West where we haven't been in a couple years and where we can expect some consistent weather. It's going to be fun to compete against some new teams and at a venue that most of us will be playing for the first time.
"We need everyone on our team playing well and we have to have the depth throughout the lineup and rely on everyone every day," Odom added. "We are going to need consistent scores, try to avoid the big numbers, and just have fun."
FGCU Lineup Scores:
T-7) Grant Renegar: 75-68: 143 (+1)
T-14) Andrew Potter: 73-75: 148 (+6)
T-23) Michael Keymont: 80-71: 151 (+9)
31) Cole Castro: 82-77: 159 (+17)
T-34) Doug Smith: 79-84: 163 (+21)
Complete Field (Golfstat Rankings Designated By #):
1) ) #26 North Florida: 285-279: 564 (-4)
2) #69 Lipscomb: 286-283: 569 (+1)
3) #60 Jacksonville: 302-284: 586 (+18)
4) #51 Kennesaw State: 296-292: 588 (+20)
5) #174 FGCU: 307-291: 598 ()
6) #245 Stetson: 313-290: 603 (+35)
7) #162 USC Upstate: 303-305: 608 (+40)
FGCU Softball vs. JU Recap: Final Game
Bouncing from fifth to fourth place in the conference standings, the FGCU softball team (32-14, 7-5 A-SUN) swept the series against Jacksonville (23-24, 4-7 A-SUN). The Eagles would win the final game by a score of 8-1. With the win, the Eagles are not only 24-5 against the Dolphins, but have also claimed their first sweep in conference play this season.
Head coach Dave Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to the mound to pitch against sophomore Alyssa Bilodeau.
The Dolphins would shake up White in the bottom of the first after an RBI single from Ragan, but it would be the only run and hit that the Dolphins would get.
The Eagles would soon tie the game at the top of the second. After a lead-off double from Callaghan before senior Emily Demurius came in to pinch run and advanced to third on a ground out from fellow senior Bri Innamorato, Morrell would send Demurius home on a sacrifice bunt.
The Eagles would then take the lead at the top of the third. After a one-out double from Fournet, McGuire would send Fournet home on a fielding error to give the Eagles the lead. After freshman Ahnie Jumper came into pinch run for McGuire, sophomore Seana Mora would come in to pitch for Bilodeau.
After Clemens reached first on a fielder’s choice, Callaghan would hit an infield single before Innamorato drew a walk to load the bases for senior Lulu Newmark. The Pembrook Pines native would clear the bases with a triple, sending Clemens, Callaghan and Innamorato home.
The Eagles continued added another run in the fifth inning. After a two-out double from Callaghan, Innamorato would hit an RBI double, bringing in Callaghan.
The Eagles would add two more final runs in the seventh inning. After McGuire and Innamorato drew walks, Morrell would hit a two RBI double before being called attempting to get a triple.
White would get her eighth win after throwing a one hit complete game, giving up one unearned run while striking out nine batters.
"A masterful outing from Morgan set the tone for the day," said Deiros. "Once we tied the game in the second, we knew we were in good shape. Big two-out RBI extra-base hits from LuLu and Haley put the game away. Always tough to win on the road, especially in the A-SUN, so great job by our team."
Bilodeau earned her 10th loss of the season after throwing 2.1 innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits.
Callaghan and Kelly were the only Eagles in the game that had more than one hit. Callaghan finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs score while Kelly was 2-for-3.
Fournet, McGuire, Innamorato, Morrell and Newmark had one hit each.
The Eagles will return to action to face Lipscomb for their last away conference series.
Head coach Dave Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to the mound to pitch against sophomore Alyssa Bilodeau.
The Dolphins would shake up White in the bottom of the first after an RBI single from Ragan, but it would be the only run and hit that the Dolphins would get.
The Eagles would soon tie the game at the top of the second. After a lead-off double from Callaghan before senior Emily Demurius came in to pinch run and advanced to third on a ground out from fellow senior Bri Innamorato, Morrell would send Demurius home on a sacrifice bunt.
The Eagles would then take the lead at the top of the third. After a one-out double from Fournet, McGuire would send Fournet home on a fielding error to give the Eagles the lead. After freshman Ahnie Jumper came into pinch run for McGuire, sophomore Seana Mora would come in to pitch for Bilodeau.
After Clemens reached first on a fielder’s choice, Callaghan would hit an infield single before Innamorato drew a walk to load the bases for senior Lulu Newmark. The Pembrook Pines native would clear the bases with a triple, sending Clemens, Callaghan and Innamorato home.
The Eagles continued added another run in the fifth inning. After a two-out double from Callaghan, Innamorato would hit an RBI double, bringing in Callaghan.
The Eagles would add two more final runs in the seventh inning. After McGuire and Innamorato drew walks, Morrell would hit a two RBI double before being called attempting to get a triple.
White would get her eighth win after throwing a one hit complete game, giving up one unearned run while striking out nine batters.
"A masterful outing from Morgan set the tone for the day," said Deiros. "Once we tied the game in the second, we knew we were in good shape. Big two-out RBI extra-base hits from LuLu and Haley put the game away. Always tough to win on the road, especially in the A-SUN, so great job by our team."
Bilodeau earned her 10th loss of the season after throwing 2.1 innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits.
Callaghan and Kelly were the only Eagles in the game that had more than one hit. Callaghan finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and two runs score while Kelly was 2-for-3.
Fournet, McGuire, Innamorato, Morrell and Newmark had one hit each.
The Eagles will return to action to face Lipscomb for their last away conference series.
FGCU Softball vs JU Recap
Bouncing from fifth to fourth place in the conference standings, the FGCU softball team (31-14, 6-5 A-SUN) took a doubleheader in the series against Jacksonville (23-23, 4-6 A-SUN) as the Eagles swept the Dolphins 6-0 and 6-5. With the wins, the Eagles are now 23-5 against the Dolphins.
"Our entire team – pitchers, catchers, defenders, hitters, coaches, and trainer did a great job staying engaged and with our plan," said head coach David Deiros.
For game one, Deiros sent junior Riley Randolph to the mound to face sophomore Alyssa Bilodeau.
The Eagles would get on the scoreboard first at the top of the first inning. After a lead-off single from senior Kelsey Huff, senior Ashley Swiderski would bring in Huff on an RBI double. After a single from junior Racquel Fournet and advanced to second on a groundout from senior Brittany McGuire, Swiderski would score on a wild pitch while Fournet advanced to third. Junior Brooke Clemens would then bring in Fournet with a sacrifice fly.
Going to the top of the fourth inning, the Eagles would continue to add runs to the scoreboard. After a two-out double from senior Brittany McGuire, Clemens would hit an RBI single to center and bring in McGuire. After freshman Taylor Bauman was hit by a pitch, freshman Farley Callaghan would hit a single to right, bringing in Clemens to make it 5-0 Eagles.
The Eagles would add one more run to the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth inning. After a two-out single from freshman Haley Morrell and a walk drawn by sophomore Kate Kelly, Huff would bring in Morrell on an RBI single for the sixth and final run. Morell would make a game-saving diving catch at the bottom of the seventh to get the Eagles the win.
Randolph would earn her 13th win of the season after throwing a two-hit shutout while walking two batters and striking out five.
Bilodeau would be credited with her ninth loss of the season after throwing all seven innings, giving up six runs on 10 hits while walking two batters and striking out four.
Huff, Fournet, and McGuire were 2-for-4 each in the game with one run scored.
Clemens finished 1-for-3 with two RBIs. Swiderski, Callaghan and Morrell also had one hit each.
The Dolphins only hits came off the bats of the bats of sophomore Katelin Davis and senior Madison Ragan.
"I thought we got outplayed in every facet in game one," JU head coach Erica Ayers said. "Riley carved us up pretty good."
For game two, Deiros sent freshman Marissa Mesiemore to face sophomore Seana Mora.
The Dolphins would bring in the first run of game two in the bottom of the first inning off an RBI double from senior Heather Roberts.
Despite having scoring opportunities in the third and fourth inning, the Eagles remained scoreless until the fifth inning rally gave them a leading opportunity. After two-out back-to-back singles from Kelly and Huff, Swiderski would clock a two RBI double, giving the Eagles the lead. Fournet and McGuire would follow with back-to-back RBI doubles. Fournet’s double was her 41st in her career as she is nine away from passing Courtney Platt and Cheyenne Jenks (49) for most career doubles. Clemens would bring McGuire with an RBI single, giving the Eagles a 5-1 lead.
The Dolphins would then tie the game at the bottom of the fifth after an RBI single from Roberts, two-RBI single from senior Kristen Griffith, and a bunt single from sophomore Carolyn O'Neal, but the Eagles would take back the lead at the top of the seventh. After Huff drew a walk, Swiderski would hit an RBI triple to right bringing in Huff which would the deciding run.
Mesiemore would earn a no-decision after throwing 4.1 innings, giving up three runs (one earned) on three hits while walking three batters and striking out three.
"Our entire team – pitchers, catchers, defenders, hitters, coaches, and trainer did a great job staying engaged and with our plan," said head coach David Deiros.
For game one, Deiros sent junior Riley Randolph to the mound to face sophomore Alyssa Bilodeau.
The Eagles would get on the scoreboard first at the top of the first inning. After a lead-off single from senior Kelsey Huff, senior Ashley Swiderski would bring in Huff on an RBI double. After a single from junior Racquel Fournet and advanced to second on a groundout from senior Brittany McGuire, Swiderski would score on a wild pitch while Fournet advanced to third. Junior Brooke Clemens would then bring in Fournet with a sacrifice fly.
Going to the top of the fourth inning, the Eagles would continue to add runs to the scoreboard. After a two-out double from senior Brittany McGuire, Clemens would hit an RBI single to center and bring in McGuire. After freshman Taylor Bauman was hit by a pitch, freshman Farley Callaghan would hit a single to right, bringing in Clemens to make it 5-0 Eagles.
The Eagles would add one more run to the scoreboard in the bottom of the sixth inning. After a two-out single from freshman Haley Morrell and a walk drawn by sophomore Kate Kelly, Huff would bring in Morrell on an RBI single for the sixth and final run. Morell would make a game-saving diving catch at the bottom of the seventh to get the Eagles the win.
Randolph would earn her 13th win of the season after throwing a two-hit shutout while walking two batters and striking out five.
Bilodeau would be credited with her ninth loss of the season after throwing all seven innings, giving up six runs on 10 hits while walking two batters and striking out four.
Huff, Fournet, and McGuire were 2-for-4 each in the game with one run scored.
Clemens finished 1-for-3 with two RBIs. Swiderski, Callaghan and Morrell also had one hit each.
The Dolphins only hits came off the bats of the bats of sophomore Katelin Davis and senior Madison Ragan.
"I thought we got outplayed in every facet in game one," JU head coach Erica Ayers said. "Riley carved us up pretty good."
For game two, Deiros sent freshman Marissa Mesiemore to face sophomore Seana Mora.
The Dolphins would bring in the first run of game two in the bottom of the first inning off an RBI double from senior Heather Roberts.
Despite having scoring opportunities in the third and fourth inning, the Eagles remained scoreless until the fifth inning rally gave them a leading opportunity. After two-out back-to-back singles from Kelly and Huff, Swiderski would clock a two RBI double, giving the Eagles the lead. Fournet and McGuire would follow with back-to-back RBI doubles. Fournet’s double was her 41st in her career as she is nine away from passing Courtney Platt and Cheyenne Jenks (49) for most career doubles. Clemens would bring McGuire with an RBI single, giving the Eagles a 5-1 lead.
The Dolphins would then tie the game at the bottom of the fifth after an RBI single from Roberts, two-RBI single from senior Kristen Griffith, and a bunt single from sophomore Carolyn O'Neal, but the Eagles would take back the lead at the top of the seventh. After Huff drew a walk, Swiderski would hit an RBI triple to right bringing in Huff which would the deciding run.
Mesiemore would earn a no-decision after throwing 4.1 innings, giving up three runs (one earned) on three hits while walking three batters and striking out three.
Sophomore Morgan White would earn her seventh win after
throwing two-thirds of an inning while walking one batter and striking out one.
Mora would be credited with her 10th loss of the
season after throwing 4.2 innings, giving up five runs on nine hits while
striking out four batters.
Randolph would earn her first save of the season after
throwing one scoreless inning while walking two batters and striking out one.
Swiderski would finish 3-for-4 with three RBIs and one run scored
while Fournet finished 2-for-4 with one RBI, a run scored and a walk.
Huff, McGuire, Clemens, Callaghan and Kelly would have one
each.
"I'm really, really proud of how they bounced back in game two," Ayers said. "We just came up a play short. That was a great ballgame and how it should be. I really wish for our kids that we could have gotten that one."
"We've got a short night, but if we can play like we played in game two, I think we've got a shot," Ayers said.
"I'm really, really proud of how they bounced back in game two," Ayers said. "We just came up a play short. That was a great ballgame and how it should be. I really wish for our kids that we could have gotten that one."
"We've got a short night, but if we can play like we played in game two, I think we've got a shot," Ayers said.
The Eagles will attempt a sweep against Jacksonville on Sunday at 11 A.M.
FGCU MTEN vs NJIT: A-SUN QF Recap
The FGCU men’s tennis team (9-11) have advanced to the
semifinals of the A-SUN Conference Tournament. The Eagles, who entered as the
No. 3 seed, defeated the No. 6 seed NJIT (6-19) 4-1 in the quarterfinals. With the win, the Eagles are now 4-2 against
the Highlanders.
"I thought today was a good day for us," said head
coach CJ Weber. "We took care of business in doubles and then in singles,
we did what we've been trying to focus on. The conditions today were extremely
tough, so you know you aren't going to play your best tennis. It came down to
attitude and when it came down to it, we were tough today."
Beginning with doubles, the duo of juniors Ezequiel Cerrini
and Mateo Ruiz defeated juniors Tomi Antoljak and Zac Castagna at 6-1 at No. 2
doubles.
The duo of senior Austin Bates and junior Felipe Escobar defeated senior Richard Rangga and sophomore Aleksa Petrovic 6-2 at No. 3 doubles, claiming the doubles point for the Eagles.
Despite being up 5-2 at No. 1 doubles, senior Oliver Landert and sophomore Marcelo Tebet did not finish their match against freshman Abdullah Fouad and junior Lukas Zvikas as the Eagles claimed the doubles point.
The duo of senior Austin Bates and junior Felipe Escobar defeated senior Richard Rangga and sophomore Aleksa Petrovic 6-2 at No. 3 doubles, claiming the doubles point for the Eagles.
Despite being up 5-2 at No. 1 doubles, senior Oliver Landert and sophomore Marcelo Tebet did not finish their match against freshman Abdullah Fouad and junior Lukas Zvikas as the Eagles claimed the doubles point.
Going into singles, Cerrini, at the No. 3 singles, would get
a pair of 6-1 decisions as he defeated Zvikas for the first singles point for
the Eagles. Landert would then follow Cerrini with a 6-3, 6-2 win over senior
Jan Cimrman at the No. 2 singles for the Eagles third point.
With the score 3-0 in favor of the Eagles, the Highlanders
would get their first and only point of the matchup as junior Javier Fernandez
lost to Fouad by a score of 4-6, 2-6 at No. 4 singles leaving it to
three matches.
Fighting in a tiebreaker in the second set, Tebet, who
played at the No. 5 singles, was able to seal the deal for the Eagles as the
Brazil native defeated Castagna 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), thus helping the Eagles advance
to the semifinals.
Ramirez and Bates did not finish their matches during the
Eagles victory. Ramirez was ahead of Antoljak by a score of 3-6, 6-1, 4-0 at
No. 1 singles while Bates was ahead of Rangga by a score of 6-4, 5-4 at No. 6
singles.
With the win, the Eagles will now be facing No. 2 seed
Stetson, who received a first-round bye in the semifinals of the tournament.
FGCU BVB: A-SUN Conference Tournament Preview
The FGCU beach volleyball team (13-9, 7-3 A-SUN) now prepares for the A-SUN Conference Tournament at the Cooper Beach Volleyball Courts in Deland hosted by Stetson.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles wrapped up their regular season with five straight home games where they finished 4-1. They would beat NAIA Webber International 4-1 on April 10. On April 13, the Eagles would split two matches beating Jacksonville 5-0 before losing to UNF 2-3, but would beat UNF 3-2 in a rematch before shutting out Jacksonville again by a score of 5-0.
Final Five:
The standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament with five teams going:
1. Stetson (27-8, 10-0 A-SUN)
2. FGCU (13-9, 7-3 A-SUN)
3. UNF (17-10, 7-3 A-SUN)
4. Mercer (8-11, 3-7 A-SUN)
5. Jacksonville (5-16, 3-7 A-SUN)
Coastal Carolina (1-15, 0-10 A-SUN) did not qualify for the conference tournament based on their record. This was the second straight season that the Chanticleers did not win a single conference game.
Bracket Breakdown:
The tournament is double elimination with a single elimination championship final. Since Stetson is the No. 1 seed in the tournament, they will have a first-round bye in the tournament.
No. 4 seed Mercer and No. 5 seed Jacksonville will play each other at 9 A.M. to determine who will play Stetson. The winner of that match will play Stetson at 1 P.M. and the losing team will be sent to the losers bracket. The Eagles, who drew the No. 2 seed, will play No. 3 seed UNF at 11 A.M.
Awarded Eagles:
Five of the Eagles earned awards and recognition during the season:
Juniors Karissa Rhoades and Katherine Puisis unanimously earned spots on the A-SUN All-Conference First Team after finishing with a program record-breaking 16 wins. This was the second straight season the pair were named members of the A-SUN All-Conference First Team.
Freshman History:
The Freshman duo of Kayla Whetstone and Snowy Burnam were unanimous selections on the A-SUN All-Freshman Team, but Burnam was also named a unanimous selection for the A-SUN Freshman of the Year. This was the first time in A-SUN history that a player has won A-SUN Freshman of the Year in indoor and beach volleyball in the same school year. In fact, Burnam is the second player in NCAA history to do so (Kathryn Plummer, Stanford 2016).
Rhoades, along with fellow junior Amanda Carroll were named members of the A-SUN All-Academic Team.
Prior to the awards, senior Ashley Glickert and sophomore Giovanna Borgiotti were named A-SUN Co-Pair of the Week after going 5-0 in their matches at home.
ESPN+:
The A-SUN Conference Tournament will air on the new, subscription-based digital platform ESPN+ which will be the new home for select FGCU and ASUN game and event broadcasts. Subscribers can try the new app for free for 30 days, which follows to $4.99 a month after.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles wrapped up their regular season with five straight home games where they finished 4-1. They would beat NAIA Webber International 4-1 on April 10. On April 13, the Eagles would split two matches beating Jacksonville 5-0 before losing to UNF 2-3, but would beat UNF 3-2 in a rematch before shutting out Jacksonville again by a score of 5-0.
Final Five:
The standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament with five teams going:
1. Stetson (27-8, 10-0 A-SUN)
2. FGCU (13-9, 7-3 A-SUN)
3. UNF (17-10, 7-3 A-SUN)
4. Mercer (8-11, 3-7 A-SUN)
5. Jacksonville (5-16, 3-7 A-SUN)
Coastal Carolina (1-15, 0-10 A-SUN) did not qualify for the conference tournament based on their record. This was the second straight season that the Chanticleers did not win a single conference game.
Bracket Breakdown:
The tournament is double elimination with a single elimination championship final. Since Stetson is the No. 1 seed in the tournament, they will have a first-round bye in the tournament.
No. 4 seed Mercer and No. 5 seed Jacksonville will play each other at 9 A.M. to determine who will play Stetson. The winner of that match will play Stetson at 1 P.M. and the losing team will be sent to the losers bracket. The Eagles, who drew the No. 2 seed, will play No. 3 seed UNF at 11 A.M.
Awarded Eagles:
Five of the Eagles earned awards and recognition during the season:
Juniors Karissa Rhoades and Katherine Puisis unanimously earned spots on the A-SUN All-Conference First Team after finishing with a program record-breaking 16 wins. This was the second straight season the pair were named members of the A-SUN All-Conference First Team.
Freshman History:
The Freshman duo of Kayla Whetstone and Snowy Burnam were unanimous selections on the A-SUN All-Freshman Team, but Burnam was also named a unanimous selection for the A-SUN Freshman of the Year. This was the first time in A-SUN history that a player has won A-SUN Freshman of the Year in indoor and beach volleyball in the same school year. In fact, Burnam is the second player in NCAA history to do so (Kathryn Plummer, Stanford 2016).
Rhoades, along with fellow junior Amanda Carroll were named members of the A-SUN All-Academic Team.
Prior to the awards, senior Ashley Glickert and sophomore Giovanna Borgiotti were named A-SUN Co-Pair of the Week after going 5-0 in their matches at home.
ESPN+:
The A-SUN Conference Tournament will air on the new, subscription-based digital platform ESPN+ which will be the new home for select FGCU and ASUN game and event broadcasts. Subscribers can try the new app for free for 30 days, which follows to $4.99 a month after.
FGCU WTEN: A-SUN Tournament Preview
The FGCU women's tennis team (10-7, 6-0 A-SUN) prepare for the A-SUN Conference Tournament hosted by UNF.
Official Brackets:
For the women, the standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament:
1. FGCU (10-7, 6-0 A-SUN)
2. UNF (15-7, 5-1 A-SUN)
3. Lipscomb (10-11, 4-2 A-SUN)
4. Stetson (11-8, 3-3 A-SUN)
5. Kennesaw (3-14, 2-4 A-SUN)
6. NJIT (8-11, 1-5 A-SUN)
USC Upstate (1-19, 0-6 A-SUN) did not qualify for the conference tournament based on their overall record.
Farewell Upstate:
USC Upstate has finished their last season for women's tennis as a member of the A-SUN Conference since 2007. At the start of the 2018-19 season, Upstate will be moving to the Big South Conference due to travel costs. Upstate will join former A-SUN Conference members Campbell and Gardner-Webb.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles faced Stetson in their last regular season matchup where they defeated the Hatters 7-0. The Eagles earned the No. 1 seed after beating UNF in a nail biter of a matchup and with the win against Stetson, the Eagles were named A-SUN Regular Season Champions and earned a first-round bye in the tournament.
Lucky 13:
The Eagles claimed 13 awards and honor prior to the tournament:
A-SUN Coach of the Year:
Head coach Courtney Vernon was named A-SUN Coach of the Year. In her fifth season with the Eagles, Vernon has been named the A-SUN Coach of the Year for the third-straight season, taking it outright for a consecutive season.
After tonight's announcements, Vernon has coached the Eagles to a total of 56 All-Conference and All-Academic honors in her five years in Southwest Florida.
A-SUN Player of the Year:
After winning the A-SUN Freshman of the Year last season, sophomore Maja Ornberg was named A-SUN Player of the Year. The Kil, Sweden native was one of three Eagles to turn in double-digit wins as she went 14-3 in dual match action and posted a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play at No. 1 singles.
A-SUN All-Conference First Team:
Ornberg joined junior Julia Ascua on the A-SUN All-Conference First Team, her second straight. Ascua, who went 8-9 in singles (primarily at No. 2 Singles) and was recently named A-SUN Player of the Week, earned A-SUN All-Conference First Team honors for the third straight year.
A-SUN All-Conference Second Team/A-SUN All-Freshman Team:
Four Eagles were named to the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team for singles: freshman Madison Gallegos, junior Patricia Villar and sophomores Sofia Perez and Bridget Forster.
Gallegos, the lone freshman on the team, played her majority of tennis matches at No. 3 singles where she claimed six victories. The Denver native capped off the regular season collecting 14 overall wins, nine alone in dual play (9-8 record), and a 4-2 record against conference foes. Gallegos was named a unanimous selection on the A-SUN All-Freshman Team.
Since transferring from Louisiana-Monroe, Villar finished 6-6 in singles with a 3-0 record in conference, majorly at the No. 6 singles. The native of Logrono, Spain primarily played with Gallegos and the duo is currently 6-2 overall with a 5-0 record in conference.
Villar and Gallegos were also named as one of three teams on the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team in doubles.
After receiving more playing time on the courts from last year, Perez, who was transitioning between No. 3 and No. 6 singles before officially playing at the No. 5 singles, displayed an impressive 10-4 overall record in singles with a perfect 6-0 record in conference. Three of Perez's conference wins in singles were final match winners (Kennesaw, UNF, Stetson). Perez helped clinch the No. 1 seed for the tournament after winning the final match against UNF's Valentina Mariotto. Perez's 10 wins tied for the second most on the team. This was the first postseason award for the native of Alajuela, Costa Rica.
After being a part of the A-SUN All-Freshman team last season with former player Sara Kelly, Forster joins Ornberg and Perez with a perfect 6-0 singles record in conference. The native of Boca Raton provided a 10-3 record in singles transitioning between No. 5 and No. 6 singles. Forster ties Perez for the second most wins on the season.
A-SUN All-Academic Team:
On the A-SUN All-Academic Team, Ascua (4.0) and Forster (3.8) are joined by lone senior Julianna Curtis (4.0). Curtis primarily played at No. 2 doubles with junior Laura Falceto Font and earned her third straight All-Academic Team honors. Battling with a back injury, Curtis went 5-4 with Falceto Font in doubles. Curtis put together a 20-23 career record in singles and a 35-24 record in doubles with 27 of her doubles wins being played with Ascua. The West Des Moines native was last season's A-SUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
"These ladies are well deserving of these honors and they have worked hard," said Vernon. "I am thankful they are being acknowledged for their hard work."
ESPN+:
The A-SUN Conference Tournament will air on the new, subscription-based digital platform ESPN+ which will be the new home for select FGCU and A-SUN game and event broadcasts. Subscribers can try the new app for free for 30 days, which follows to $4.99 a month fee afterwards.
Tournament Walk-through:
FGCU and UNF will have a first-round bye as they are the No. 1 and No. 2 seed (#1 FGCU, #2 UNF). Seeds 3-6 will face each other to determine who will face FGCU and UNF. No. 3 seed Lipscomb will face No. 6 seed NJIT at 5 P.M. to determine who will play UNF while No. 4 seed Stetson and No. 5 seed Kennesaw will face each other at 2:30 P.M. to determine who will play FGCU.
The winner of the tournament will claim an automatic bid and represent the A-SUN in the national tournament in Salem, N.C.
Official Brackets:
For the women, the standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament:
1. FGCU (10-7, 6-0 A-SUN)
2. UNF (15-7, 5-1 A-SUN)
3. Lipscomb (10-11, 4-2 A-SUN)
4. Stetson (11-8, 3-3 A-SUN)
5. Kennesaw (3-14, 2-4 A-SUN)
6. NJIT (8-11, 1-5 A-SUN)
USC Upstate (1-19, 0-6 A-SUN) did not qualify for the conference tournament based on their overall record.
Farewell Upstate:
USC Upstate has finished their last season for women's tennis as a member of the A-SUN Conference since 2007. At the start of the 2018-19 season, Upstate will be moving to the Big South Conference due to travel costs. Upstate will join former A-SUN Conference members Campbell and Gardner-Webb.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles faced Stetson in their last regular season matchup where they defeated the Hatters 7-0. The Eagles earned the No. 1 seed after beating UNF in a nail biter of a matchup and with the win against Stetson, the Eagles were named A-SUN Regular Season Champions and earned a first-round bye in the tournament.
Lucky 13:
The Eagles claimed 13 awards and honor prior to the tournament:
A-SUN Coach of the Year:
Head coach Courtney Vernon was named A-SUN Coach of the Year. In her fifth season with the Eagles, Vernon has been named the A-SUN Coach of the Year for the third-straight season, taking it outright for a consecutive season.
After tonight's announcements, Vernon has coached the Eagles to a total of 56 All-Conference and All-Academic honors in her five years in Southwest Florida.
A-SUN Player of the Year:
After winning the A-SUN Freshman of the Year last season, sophomore Maja Ornberg was named A-SUN Player of the Year. The Kil, Sweden native was one of three Eagles to turn in double-digit wins as she went 14-3 in dual match action and posted a perfect 6-0 mark in conference play at No. 1 singles.
A-SUN All-Conference First Team:
Ornberg joined junior Julia Ascua on the A-SUN All-Conference First Team, her second straight. Ascua, who went 8-9 in singles (primarily at No. 2 Singles) and was recently named A-SUN Player of the Week, earned A-SUN All-Conference First Team honors for the third straight year.
A-SUN All-Conference Second Team/A-SUN All-Freshman Team:
Four Eagles were named to the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team for singles: freshman Madison Gallegos, junior Patricia Villar and sophomores Sofia Perez and Bridget Forster.
Gallegos, the lone freshman on the team, played her majority of tennis matches at No. 3 singles where she claimed six victories. The Denver native capped off the regular season collecting 14 overall wins, nine alone in dual play (9-8 record), and a 4-2 record against conference foes. Gallegos was named a unanimous selection on the A-SUN All-Freshman Team.
Since transferring from Louisiana-Monroe, Villar finished 6-6 in singles with a 3-0 record in conference, majorly at the No. 6 singles. The native of Logrono, Spain primarily played with Gallegos and the duo is currently 6-2 overall with a 5-0 record in conference.
Villar and Gallegos were also named as one of three teams on the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team in doubles.
After receiving more playing time on the courts from last year, Perez, who was transitioning between No. 3 and No. 6 singles before officially playing at the No. 5 singles, displayed an impressive 10-4 overall record in singles with a perfect 6-0 record in conference. Three of Perez's conference wins in singles were final match winners (Kennesaw, UNF, Stetson). Perez helped clinch the No. 1 seed for the tournament after winning the final match against UNF's Valentina Mariotto. Perez's 10 wins tied for the second most on the team. This was the first postseason award for the native of Alajuela, Costa Rica.
After being a part of the A-SUN All-Freshman team last season with former player Sara Kelly, Forster joins Ornberg and Perez with a perfect 6-0 singles record in conference. The native of Boca Raton provided a 10-3 record in singles transitioning between No. 5 and No. 6 singles. Forster ties Perez for the second most wins on the season.
A-SUN All-Academic Team:
On the A-SUN All-Academic Team, Ascua (4.0) and Forster (3.8) are joined by lone senior Julianna Curtis (4.0). Curtis primarily played at No. 2 doubles with junior Laura Falceto Font and earned her third straight All-Academic Team honors. Battling with a back injury, Curtis went 5-4 with Falceto Font in doubles. Curtis put together a 20-23 career record in singles and a 35-24 record in doubles with 27 of her doubles wins being played with Ascua. The West Des Moines native was last season's A-SUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
"These ladies are well deserving of these honors and they have worked hard," said Vernon. "I am thankful they are being acknowledged for their hard work."
ESPN+:
The A-SUN Conference Tournament will air on the new, subscription-based digital platform ESPN+ which will be the new home for select FGCU and A-SUN game and event broadcasts. Subscribers can try the new app for free for 30 days, which follows to $4.99 a month fee afterwards.
Tournament Walk-through:
FGCU and UNF will have a first-round bye as they are the No. 1 and No. 2 seed (#1 FGCU, #2 UNF). Seeds 3-6 will face each other to determine who will face FGCU and UNF. No. 3 seed Lipscomb will face No. 6 seed NJIT at 5 P.M. to determine who will play UNF while No. 4 seed Stetson and No. 5 seed Kennesaw will face each other at 2:30 P.M. to determine who will play FGCU.
The winner of the tournament will claim an automatic bid and represent the A-SUN in the national tournament in Salem, N.C.
FGCU Men's Tennis: A-SUN Conference Tournament Preview
As the season comes to a close, the FGCU men's tennis (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN) prepares for the A-SUN Conference Tournament hosted by UNF.
On the men's side, the standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament as well:
1. UNF (11-9, 6-0 A-SUN)
2. Stetson (17-3, 5-1 A-SUN)
3. FGCU (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
4. Lipscomb (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
5. Kennesaw (8-10, 2-4 A-SUN)
6. NJIT (9-10, 1-5 A-SUN)
USC Upstate (6-18, 1-5 A-SUN) did not qualify based on their overall record.
Farewell Upstate:
As it looks, both tennis teams for Upstate have finished their last season as a member of the A-SUN Conference and at the start of the 2018-19 season, Upstate will be moving from the A-SUN to the Big South Conference due to travel costs.
Last Time Out:
The men faced Stetson in their last regular season matchup, but fell 2-5.
Award Status:
Senior Austin Bates, junior Javier Fernandez and sophomore Felipe "Pipe" Ramirez were all named on the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team. This was Bates and Fernandez's second and third times on winning the recognition.
Bracket Breakdown:
The men claimed the No. 3 seed in the tournament for the second straight season and will face No. 6 seed NJIT in the quarterfinals. UNF and Stetson will have a first round bye in the tournament.
UNF, who is the No. 1 seed and the A-SUN regular season champions, will await the winner between Lipscomb and Kennesaw while Stetson, the No. 2 seed, await the winner between FGCU and NJIT. This will be the second straight season that the men will play in the quarterfinals.
The tournament will take place at UNF. Lipscomb and Kennesaw will each other at 9 A.M. while FGCU and NJIT play at 11:30 A.M. on Friday.
The winner of the tournament will claim an automatic bid and represent the A-SUN in the national tournament in Salem, N.C.
On the men's side, the standing are as noted with the teams' overall and conference standings for the tournament as well:
1. UNF (11-9, 6-0 A-SUN)
2. Stetson (17-3, 5-1 A-SUN)
3. FGCU (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
4. Lipscomb (8-11, 3-3 A-SUN)
5. Kennesaw (8-10, 2-4 A-SUN)
6. NJIT (9-10, 1-5 A-SUN)
USC Upstate (6-18, 1-5 A-SUN) did not qualify based on their overall record.
Farewell Upstate:
As it looks, both tennis teams for Upstate have finished their last season as a member of the A-SUN Conference and at the start of the 2018-19 season, Upstate will be moving from the A-SUN to the Big South Conference due to travel costs.
Last Time Out:
The men faced Stetson in their last regular season matchup, but fell 2-5.
Award Status:
Senior Austin Bates, junior Javier Fernandez and sophomore Felipe "Pipe" Ramirez were all named on the A-SUN All-Conference Second Team. This was Bates and Fernandez's second and third times on winning the recognition.
Bracket Breakdown:
The men claimed the No. 3 seed in the tournament for the second straight season and will face No. 6 seed NJIT in the quarterfinals. UNF and Stetson will have a first round bye in the tournament.
UNF, who is the No. 1 seed and the A-SUN regular season champions, will await the winner between Lipscomb and Kennesaw while Stetson, the No. 2 seed, await the winner between FGCU and NJIT. This will be the second straight season that the men will play in the quarterfinals.
The tournament will take place at UNF. Lipscomb and Kennesaw will each other at 9 A.M. while FGCU and NJIT play at 11:30 A.M. on Friday.
The winner of the tournament will claim an automatic bid and represent the A-SUN in the national tournament in Salem, N.C.
FGCU WTEN vs. Stetson Recap: A-SUN Regular Season Champs
“The performance was great,” said head coach Courtney Vernon. “The girls played with a lot of focus today. They played with determination and they stuck to the plan, and it feels great and they are rewarded for their hard work and commitment to working.”
The Eagles have clinched the No. 1 seed prior to the conference tournament after defeating UNF to hold a share of the regular season championship on April 12.
“It’s a privilege,” said Vernon on the team being the No. 1 seed in the tournament. “We’re thankful for this opportunity, and thankful we get to play again because we’re having so much fun competing.”
Beginning with doubles, the duo of sophomore Maja Ornberg and junior Julia Ascua fell 4-6 to sophomore Lucie Renault and freshman Brooke Milner at No. 1 doubles.
The Eagles would fight back as junior Laura Falceto Font and senior Julianna "Juje" Curtis defeated freshman Danel Ashirova and senior Arijana Korac by a score of 6-2 at No. 2 doubles. Curtis earned her 55th doubles win in her career.
“I think that it was kind of surreal right now. It hadn’t really sunk in yet,” said Curtis on her last match. “Lau (Falceto Font) and I have done great this season after not playing as much in the fall. We did well and I think we just fought really hard.”
Junior Patricia Villar and freshman Madison Gallegos defeated freshman Vickey Geurinckx and sophomore Alexe Viaud by a score of 7-5 at No. 3 doubles, thus claiming the doubles point for the Eagles.
After the doubles matches, the team gathered together at the Tom Manring court as they recognized Curtis for senior night and her accomplishments on and off the court. Curtis is the only senior on the team.
"We were so grateful to celebrate Julianna this evening as the special young lady she is. We're grateful for what she has given to this university these past four years,” said Vernon on Curtis’ career performance. “Also, we are thankful for the community that supports our program and all of our donors that came out this evening for our last home match of the season. Tonight we would like to send a special thank you to Bonita Bay, who has given a scholarship to Juliana these past four years. What a gift it is to have them support us.”
Transitioning to singles, Ascua began with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Ashivora before Ornberg followed with 6-1, 6-3 win over Korac. This was Ornberg’s 14th singles win of the season (seventh straight).
With the score 3-0 in favor of the Eagles, sophomore Sofia Perez, who helped the Eagles clinch the No. 1 seed and a share of the A-SUN Regular Season Championship with the win against UNF, once again sealed the deal for the Eagles, earning her 10th singles win (7th straight) of the season as she defeated Milner 6-1, 6-4. This was the third time that Perez clinched a game-winner for the Eagles.
“I’m just very happy that we were very loud and very energetic, and we came and got it done," said Perez. “Honestly, I felt I didn’t even know I was clinching, but I just kept it going.”
The Eagles would finish out the rest of the matches as sophomore Bridget Forster defeated freshman Maxine Bateman 6-3, 6-2. Font would follow with 6-2, 6-4 win over Geurinckx before Gallegos defeated Renault 6-1, 6-4 to complete the sweep.
As the No. 1 seed, the Eagles will have a first-round bye prior to the tournament as they will await the winner between No. 4 seed Stetson and the No. 5 seed Kennesaw State.
"I'm just being very humble going into the championship," Perez said on FGCU being the No. 1 seed. "We're gonna give all we have with lots of energy."
I'm so proud of the ladies and what they did and I'm very happy that I get to graduate on the same day as the lone senior, even if it's at different times. I even got to do a special interview with her
Below are pictures of me with the team:
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| With Curtis after the game |
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| I even kissed her on the cheek |
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| With the Whole Team (Front: Ascua (left) and Perez (right) holding the "W" Flag. From left to right back row: Gallegos, Falceto Font, me, Curtis, Forster, Ornberg and Villar |
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| Senior Day Poster |
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| Birthday Poster |
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| A card and a photo of me and the team. It was so nice of them to do that |
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| From assistant coach Alex Landert |
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| From Coach V |
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| From Maja (The Swedish Sensation) |
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| From Juje (Juju on that beat) |
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| From Madison (Maddy) |
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| From Juli (The Jet) |
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| From Patri (Prime Time) |
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| From Bridget (The Bomber) |
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| From Sofi (Costa Rican Crusader) |
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| From Lau (Lioness of Espana) |
FGCU WTEN vs UNF Recap
The FGCU women’s tennis team (9-7, 5-0 A-SUN) claimed their second straight share of the A-SUN regular season championship as they defeated UNF (15-7, 5-1 A-SUN) by a score of 4-3. The win for the Eagles was the second straight against UNF and they are now 2-13 s against the Ospreys. In addition to the win, the Eagles are now the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.
"First of all, I want to thank every single person that came out to support use today. We are sorry that we couldn't come out with the win, but each person's presence was huge," said UNF head coach Mariana Cobra. "Secondly, hats off to FGCU for walking away with the win. We didn't play great doubles and were still able to pull a great comeback and get the point. Honestly in singles, we took care of business right away in two courts and those were the courts we won."
Beginning with the doubles portion of the matchup, the duo of junior Patricia Villar and freshman Madison Gallegos began with a quick win on their match at No. 3 doubles as they defeated the freshmen duo of Valentina Mariotto and Florencia Rossi by a score of 6-1.
The Ospreys would fight back as the duo of sophomore Lucia Montano and freshman Eva Nyikos defeated senior Julianna Curtis and junior Laura Falceto Font by a score 7-5 at No. 2 doubles.
After three match point chances, the duo of junior Julia Ascua and sophomore Maja Ornberg fell 6-7 (7-9) to junior Rafaela Gomez and senior Luise Intert in a heart-breaking decider at No. 1 doubles, giving UNF the doubles point.
Going into singles, Gallegos would be the first Eagle to fall as she lost 4-6, 1-6 to Montano at the No. 3 singles. Falceto Font would follow, losing 1-6, 2-6 to Intert in No. 4 singles.
With the score 3-0 in favor of UNF, the Eagles attempted to mount a strong comeback as sophomore Bridget Forster would open with her sixth straight win as she defeated Rossi 6-4, 6-2 at No. 6 singles. Ascua would follow with a win of her own at No. 2 singles defeating Nyikos 6-3, 7-5.
With two matches left for both teams, the Eagles were able to tie the matchup as Ornberg, who was slightly down in the second set, bounced back to claim her 12th win (6th straight) of the season, winning 6-3, 6-4 against Gomez at No. 1 singles.
The decider came down to Mariotto and sophomore Sofia Perez at the No. 5 singles match. Having not played UNF at all for conference last season, Perez would drop the first set, but was able to mount a strong comeback to win in the second set, sending the match to a third set.
Seemingly unfazed at the result, with the final score at 40-30 in favor of Perez, the Costa Rican managed to secure the final set as she won 1-6, 6-1, 6-2. This was Perez's second time that she secure the final match for a win.
"For the other courts that we lost, we were not by any means the weaker player, we simply didn't compete as well and FGCU wanted it more in those spots. As heartbreaking as it was to lose after being up, we must let it go and move on. It is key for us to come ready for every practice and I know we will bounce back in the tournament," said Cobra.
“I am really proud of this team, and the fight they show,” said head coach Courtney Vernon. “North Florida is always tough. We are excited for another opportunity to compete on Saturday, and we are so excited to honor Julianna (Curtis).”
The Eagles return to action at home to wrap up their final conference match as they face Stetson on April 14 at 5 P.M. The match will be listed as Senior Day as the team recognizes 2017 ITA Scholar-Athlete, 2016 A-SUN All-Conference Second Team member, two-time A-SUN All-Academic Team honoree and defending A-SUN Scholar Athlete of the Year: Julianna Curtis.
"First of all, I want to thank every single person that came out to support use today. We are sorry that we couldn't come out with the win, but each person's presence was huge," said UNF head coach Mariana Cobra. "Secondly, hats off to FGCU for walking away with the win. We didn't play great doubles and were still able to pull a great comeback and get the point. Honestly in singles, we took care of business right away in two courts and those were the courts we won."
The Ospreys would fight back as the duo of sophomore Lucia Montano and freshman Eva Nyikos defeated senior Julianna Curtis and junior Laura Falceto Font by a score 7-5 at No. 2 doubles.
After three match point chances, the duo of junior Julia Ascua and sophomore Maja Ornberg fell 6-7 (7-9) to junior Rafaela Gomez and senior Luise Intert in a heart-breaking decider at No. 1 doubles, giving UNF the doubles point.
Going into singles, Gallegos would be the first Eagle to fall as she lost 4-6, 1-6 to Montano at the No. 3 singles. Falceto Font would follow, losing 1-6, 2-6 to Intert in No. 4 singles.
With the score 3-0 in favor of UNF, the Eagles attempted to mount a strong comeback as sophomore Bridget Forster would open with her sixth straight win as she defeated Rossi 6-4, 6-2 at No. 6 singles. Ascua would follow with a win of her own at No. 2 singles defeating Nyikos 6-3, 7-5.
With two matches left for both teams, the Eagles were able to tie the matchup as Ornberg, who was slightly down in the second set, bounced back to claim her 12th win (6th straight) of the season, winning 6-3, 6-4 against Gomez at No. 1 singles.
The decider came down to Mariotto and sophomore Sofia Perez at the No. 5 singles match. Having not played UNF at all for conference last season, Perez would drop the first set, but was able to mount a strong comeback to win in the second set, sending the match to a third set.
Seemingly unfazed at the result, with the final score at 40-30 in favor of Perez, the Costa Rican managed to secure the final set as she won 1-6, 6-1, 6-2. This was Perez's second time that she secure the final match for a win.
"For the other courts that we lost, we were not by any means the weaker player, we simply didn't compete as well and FGCU wanted it more in those spots. As heartbreaking as it was to lose after being up, we must let it go and move on. It is key for us to come ready for every practice and I know we will bounce back in the tournament," said Cobra.
“I am really proud of this team, and the fight they show,” said head coach Courtney Vernon. “North Florida is always tough. We are excited for another opportunity to compete on Saturday, and we are so excited to honor Julianna (Curtis).”
The Eagles return to action at home to wrap up their final conference match as they face Stetson on April 14 at 5 P.M. The match will be listed as Senior Day as the team recognizes 2017 ITA Scholar-Athlete, 2016 A-SUN All-Conference Second Team member, two-time A-SUN All-Academic Team honoree and defending A-SUN Scholar Athlete of the Year: Julianna Curtis.
FGCU W-Golf: Dale McNamara Invitational Recap
The FGCU women’s golf team concluded their regular season with a 10th place finish out of 13 teams in the Dale McNamara Invitational at Tulsa Country Club on Tuesday, hosted by the University of Tulsa. The Eagles finished with a final score of 930 (+90) over three rounds. The Eagles were eight spots behind Cincinnati, while the eventual winner of the tournament was Oklahoma State.
“Today was a little better for us,” said FGCU head coach Sarah Trew. “We shot our best score and all four scores were in the 70s. We talked yesterday about how we have not finished outside of the top 10 all year, and we weren’t about to start now.”
“I am happy about the way we rebounded and capped off our final regular season round. We have some things to fine tune before conference, but we have a week and a half to address the issues we need to. We are looking forward to putting in hard work and performing well at the A-SUN tournament.”
Freshman Natalia Nassar led the way once again throughout the whole tournament as the Colombia native finished with a +20 and a final score of 230 (75-80-75) tied for 33rd place. Sophomore Ailsa Clark had her best third round of the tournament, finishing with a +26 and a final score of 236 (80-80-76) to record a 46th place tie.
Junior Kelsy Holbert finished second on the team with a final round score of 77, which was her second best round behind the 75 she produced in the second round on Monday. Holbert tallied a 233 (81-75-77) and a +23 to tie for 37th place.
Sophomore Kate Williamson finished with a +25 and a final score of 235 (77-79-79) to tie for 43rd place.
Junior Madeline Marck-Sherk rounded out the lineup as she finished with a +30 and a final score of 240 (77-82-81) tied for 57th place.
The McNamara Invitational was one of the toughest and deepest slate of competition the Eagles have faced all spring as a total of six GolfStat top 100 teams matched the total number of teams the Green and Blue had faced up to this point in the spring season. FGCU has not faced more than two top 100 teams in any tournament this spring.
Quotes from Other Coaches:
Cincinnati: "Today was a frustrating day as we didn't execute shots well," said head coach Janet Carl. "We are seeing improvements in our processes, but today, not in our results. It is time to get home and get ready for the conference championship."
Texas A&M: "I am proud of the way we fought today," said Texas A&M head coach Trelle McCombs. "The girls settled in nicely after a shaky start, even getting to within a couple of shots at one point."
"Maddie (Szeryk) winning for the second time in two weeks is awesome," added McCombs. "She knew she was a few back coming down the stretch and needed to make some birdies. She's really starting to put together some great round at the right time."
Texas Tech: "Today was a much better day for us," Tech head coach JoJo Robertson said. "We stumbled a little coming in, but all-in-all it was a good final round. Our team had the second-lowest round of the day and really looked good out there. I'm pleased for Gabby as she hung in there all week and had a great chance for the win."
Texas State: "It was a great week for the team," head coach Lisa Strom said. "We were able to finish ahead of a couple of teams ranked better than us. With Sasikarn and Anne-Charlotte leading the way, we have some momentum heading into the Sun Belt Conference Championship next week."
Mississippi State: "We finished with three individuals in the Top 20," MSU coach Ginger Brown-Lemm said. "It was a good way to finish up the season. Now we evaluate strengths and weakness and prepare for SEC's."
Fresno State: "We had a challenging finish today and shot ourselves out of it in a pretty sluggish round," said head coach Emily Loftin. "But it's always exciting to be in the mix with some really competitive teams from across the country that we don't normally see. It was a great learning experience for us as we look forward."
"I'm thrilled for Brigitte (Thibault); she battled back after a hard first round and put two good rounds together at the end," said Loftin. "That showed some resiliency."
"Always exciting to see top 25 finishes," Loftin added. "It's certainly another good one from Mimi and it was great to see Alison lock in her first top 25 as well."
"There are a lot of exciting things happening on this team and there are some things these players are starting to discover about their games," Loftin said. "I think we're really starting to reach our peak which is excellent timing as we get home and get rested up for a few short days before we head off for conference."
Next up, the Eagles will prepare for the A-SUN Championship April 22-24 in Braselton, Georgia. The winner of the A-SUN Championship will go to the national tournament at the Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
“Today was a little better for us,” said FGCU head coach Sarah Trew. “We shot our best score and all four scores were in the 70s. We talked yesterday about how we have not finished outside of the top 10 all year, and we weren’t about to start now.”
“I am happy about the way we rebounded and capped off our final regular season round. We have some things to fine tune before conference, but we have a week and a half to address the issues we need to. We are looking forward to putting in hard work and performing well at the A-SUN tournament.”
Freshman Natalia Nassar led the way once again throughout the whole tournament as the Colombia native finished with a +20 and a final score of 230 (75-80-75) tied for 33rd place. Sophomore Ailsa Clark had her best third round of the tournament, finishing with a +26 and a final score of 236 (80-80-76) to record a 46th place tie.
Junior Kelsy Holbert finished second on the team with a final round score of 77, which was her second best round behind the 75 she produced in the second round on Monday. Holbert tallied a 233 (81-75-77) and a +23 to tie for 37th place.
Sophomore Kate Williamson finished with a +25 and a final score of 235 (77-79-79) to tie for 43rd place.
Junior Madeline Marck-Sherk rounded out the lineup as she finished with a +30 and a final score of 240 (77-82-81) tied for 57th place.
The McNamara Invitational was one of the toughest and deepest slate of competition the Eagles have faced all spring as a total of six GolfStat top 100 teams matched the total number of teams the Green and Blue had faced up to this point in the spring season. FGCU has not faced more than two top 100 teams in any tournament this spring.
Quotes from Other Coaches:
Cincinnati: "Today was a frustrating day as we didn't execute shots well," said head coach Janet Carl. "We are seeing improvements in our processes, but today, not in our results. It is time to get home and get ready for the conference championship."
Texas A&M: "I am proud of the way we fought today," said Texas A&M head coach Trelle McCombs. "The girls settled in nicely after a shaky start, even getting to within a couple of shots at one point."
"Maddie (Szeryk) winning for the second time in two weeks is awesome," added McCombs. "She knew she was a few back coming down the stretch and needed to make some birdies. She's really starting to put together some great round at the right time."
Texas Tech: "Today was a much better day for us," Tech head coach JoJo Robertson said. "We stumbled a little coming in, but all-in-all it was a good final round. Our team had the second-lowest round of the day and really looked good out there. I'm pleased for Gabby as she hung in there all week and had a great chance for the win."
Texas State: "It was a great week for the team," head coach Lisa Strom said. "We were able to finish ahead of a couple of teams ranked better than us. With Sasikarn and Anne-Charlotte leading the way, we have some momentum heading into the Sun Belt Conference Championship next week."
Mississippi State: "We finished with three individuals in the Top 20," MSU coach Ginger Brown-Lemm said. "It was a good way to finish up the season. Now we evaluate strengths and weakness and prepare for SEC's."
Fresno State: "We had a challenging finish today and shot ourselves out of it in a pretty sluggish round," said head coach Emily Loftin. "But it's always exciting to be in the mix with some really competitive teams from across the country that we don't normally see. It was a great learning experience for us as we look forward."
"I'm thrilled for Brigitte (Thibault); she battled back after a hard first round and put two good rounds together at the end," said Loftin. "That showed some resiliency."
"Always exciting to see top 25 finishes," Loftin added. "It's certainly another good one from Mimi and it was great to see Alison lock in her first top 25 as well."
"There are a lot of exciting things happening on this team and there are some things these players are starting to discover about their games," Loftin said. "I think we're really starting to reach our peak which is excellent timing as we get home and get rested up for a few short days before we head off for conference."
Next up, the Eagles will prepare for the A-SUN Championship April 22-24 in Braselton, Georgia. The winner of the A-SUN Championship will go to the national tournament at the Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
FGCU M-Golf: Loyola Marymount’s Geiberger Invitational Recap
Senior Grant Renegar led the FGCU men’s golf team with a top five finish overall and an eighth place finish at Loyola Marymount’s Geiberger Invitational in Palm Springs, California, hosted by Loyola Marymount University.
The Eagles were three shots behind San Diego as they finished with a final score of 879 (299-286-294), but finished 13 shots ahead of fellow conference member Stetson (892: 310-294-288). The eventual winner of the tournament was Brigham Young as they finished with a final score of 856 (290-284-282).
This was the first time since 2014 that the Eagles competed on the West Coast at the Saint Mary’s Invitational). The Eagles were one of three teams to compete outside of California. The other two being Brigham Young and Stetson.
“We had some good reflection after today’s round to remind us of the importance of playing the game and not trying to force a result,” said FGCU head coach Eric Booker, whose team made four double bogeys or worse in the final round after making 10 such scores over the first two rounds combined.
“The proper mental mindset is the need for a quiet, but confident, approach to each shot. This will be something we’ll be focusing on as we prepare for the A-SUN Championship.”
Renegar tied for fifth place out of 70 golfers as the McComb, Mississippi native shot a final-round 1-over 73 at the 7,204-yard PGA West Nicklaus Tournament Course. Renegar posted a -3 and a final score of 213 (72-68-73) total overall to finish four strokes behind eventual medalist Alex Lee from Fresno State (209, -7).
In addition to Renegar’s final-round 73, junior Andrew Potter and senior Michael Keymont also both signed for 73s in the tournament. Potter posted a +5 and a final score of 221 (75-73-73) tied for 32nd place while Keymont finished with a +10 and a final score of 226 (79-74-73) for a 47th place finish.
Not far behind Potter and Keymont was freshman Cole Castro. Castro finished with a +6 and a final score of 222 (76-71-75) tied for 35th place. Sophomore Doug Smith would round out the Eagles lineup scoring with a +15 and a final score of 231 (76-79-76) tied for 58th place.
FGCU will now turn its focus to the A-SUN Championship on April 22-24 at The Legends at Chateau Elan in Braselton, Georgia. The winner of the conference championship will go to the national tournament at the Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
The Eagles were three shots behind San Diego as they finished with a final score of 879 (299-286-294), but finished 13 shots ahead of fellow conference member Stetson (892: 310-294-288). The eventual winner of the tournament was Brigham Young as they finished with a final score of 856 (290-284-282).
This was the first time since 2014 that the Eagles competed on the West Coast at the Saint Mary’s Invitational). The Eagles were one of three teams to compete outside of California. The other two being Brigham Young and Stetson.
“We had some good reflection after today’s round to remind us of the importance of playing the game and not trying to force a result,” said FGCU head coach Eric Booker, whose team made four double bogeys or worse in the final round after making 10 such scores over the first two rounds combined.
“The proper mental mindset is the need for a quiet, but confident, approach to each shot. This will be something we’ll be focusing on as we prepare for the A-SUN Championship.”
Renegar tied for fifth place out of 70 golfers as the McComb, Mississippi native shot a final-round 1-over 73 at the 7,204-yard PGA West Nicklaus Tournament Course. Renegar posted a -3 and a final score of 213 (72-68-73) total overall to finish four strokes behind eventual medalist Alex Lee from Fresno State (209, -7).
In addition to Renegar’s final-round 73, junior Andrew Potter and senior Michael Keymont also both signed for 73s in the tournament. Potter posted a +5 and a final score of 221 (75-73-73) tied for 32nd place while Keymont finished with a +10 and a final score of 226 (79-74-73) for a 47th place finish.
Not far behind Potter and Keymont was freshman Cole Castro. Castro finished with a +6 and a final score of 222 (76-71-75) tied for 35th place. Sophomore Doug Smith would round out the Eagles lineup scoring with a +15 and a final score of 231 (76-79-76) tied for 58th place.
FGCU will now turn its focus to the A-SUN Championship on April 22-24 at The Legends at Chateau Elan in Braselton, Georgia. The winner of the conference championship will go to the national tournament at the Karsten Creek Golf Club in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
FGCU SB vs FAU Recap
The FGCU softball team (291-12, 3-3 A-SUN) wrapped up their final non-conference games fighting in two extra-inning games as they split with FAU (22-21, 9-6 C-USA) falling 4-5 in game one before winning 4-1 in game two. With the split, the Eagles are now 4-6 against the Owls. The Eagles were led offensively by seniors Erica Ward and Ashley Swiderski while on the mound, freshman Taylor Bauman made national history for softball.
"I thought we played 16 really strong innings of softball," stated head coach David Deiros. "Our kids did a great job battling, we had a chance to win both games but to come out of there with a split is a testament to our kids. Congratulations to Morgan White for pitching a gem today and also congrats to Taylor Bauman for tying the NCAA single-season saves record tonight."
Beginning with game one, Derios sent Bauman to pitch against FAU’s Mia Olson. The Eagles would strike first. After senior Kelsey Huff drew a walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch, junior Racquel Fournet would bring in Huff on an RBI single to give the Eagles an early lead. The Owls, however would tie the score after Bauman gave up an RBI single to Madisyn Palmer.
The Owls would then take the lead in the second after Amanda Peck hit an RBI single, but the Eagles would retie the lead in the third. After freshman Marissa Mesiemore, who came in for Bauman in the second inning, drew a walk before fellow freshman Haley Morrell came in to pinch run for Mesiemore, Huff would move Morrell to second on sacrifice bunt before Morrell advance to third on a wild pitch. Senior Brittany McGuire would ground out while Morrell scored to tie the game at 2-2. The Owls would then regain the lead in the bottom of the third after another RBI single from Palmer.
The Eagles would then once again retake the lead in the fourth. After a two-out single from Bauman, Ward would hit a two-run homer to left center to give the Eagles a 4-3 lead. This was Ward’s first home run of the season.
The Eagles were able to hold the lead until the bottom of the seventh after Emily Lochten tied the game with an RBI sending the game to extra innings, but it would be in the favor of FAU as Palmer would hit an infield single and drive in Peck for the game-winner in the ninth.
Bauman would be credited with her third loss of the season after throwing 4.2 inning, giving up two runs on four hits while walking four and striking out two. Bauman was also 1-4 with a run scored.
Mesiemore would earn a no decision after throwing four innings, giving up three runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two.
Ward would finish 3-for-4 with two RBIs while Huff and Fournet finished with two hits each. Fournet added one RBI to the mix.
Sophmore Kate Kelly, Swiderski and freshman Farley Callaghan had one hit each.
Going into game two, Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to pitch against FAU’s Taylor Buckley.
With White on the mound, the Ocala native struck out five batters in the first three innings, but a wild pitch in the third gave the Owls a 1-0 lead. White was still able to finish the inning.
With Buckley still on the mound, the Owls continued to hold the Eagles scoreless until the sixth inning. After Kelly hit a lead-off single and advanced to second on a Huff groundout, Fournet would tie the game with an RBI double to tie the game at 1-1.
White remained in the game and struck out five more batters in the fifth and sixth inning combined before preventing the Owls from winning the game in seventh forcing a second extra innings game with the Texas Tiebreaker in effect.
The Eagles would then take the lead in the eighth. After back-to-back singles from Kelly and Huff, Swiderski would clock a three-run shot to left to give the Eagles a 4-1 lead. This was Swiderski’s sixth home run of the season.
Bauman would come in for White in the eighth inning for a save opportunity. Bauman was able to get the first out with ease. Despite giving up a one-out single to Palmer, the Jacksonville native was more than able to get Buckley to lineout to Swiderski for a double play for the win.
White would earn her sixth win of the season after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on three hits while walking three batters and finishing with a season and career-high 11 strikeouts.
Bauman would earn her 15th save of the season after throwing one scoreless inning while giving up one hit. Bauman now ties former Canisius pitcher Mallory Aldred for most saves in a single season. Bauman was also 1-for-3 at the plate.
Kelly and Swiderksi would finish with two hits each. Swiderski would go 2-for-4 with three RBIs while Kelly went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
Huff and Fournet were each 1-for-4. Huff had one run scored while Fournet added one RBI.
The Eagles return to conference action as they face Kennesaw State on April 14-15.
"I thought we played 16 really strong innings of softball," stated head coach David Deiros. "Our kids did a great job battling, we had a chance to win both games but to come out of there with a split is a testament to our kids. Congratulations to Morgan White for pitching a gem today and also congrats to Taylor Bauman for tying the NCAA single-season saves record tonight."
Beginning with game one, Derios sent Bauman to pitch against FAU’s Mia Olson. The Eagles would strike first. After senior Kelsey Huff drew a walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch, junior Racquel Fournet would bring in Huff on an RBI single to give the Eagles an early lead. The Owls, however would tie the score after Bauman gave up an RBI single to Madisyn Palmer.
The Owls would then take the lead in the second after Amanda Peck hit an RBI single, but the Eagles would retie the lead in the third. After freshman Marissa Mesiemore, who came in for Bauman in the second inning, drew a walk before fellow freshman Haley Morrell came in to pinch run for Mesiemore, Huff would move Morrell to second on sacrifice bunt before Morrell advance to third on a wild pitch. Senior Brittany McGuire would ground out while Morrell scored to tie the game at 2-2. The Owls would then regain the lead in the bottom of the third after another RBI single from Palmer.
The Eagles would then once again retake the lead in the fourth. After a two-out single from Bauman, Ward would hit a two-run homer to left center to give the Eagles a 4-3 lead. This was Ward’s first home run of the season.
The Eagles were able to hold the lead until the bottom of the seventh after Emily Lochten tied the game with an RBI sending the game to extra innings, but it would be in the favor of FAU as Palmer would hit an infield single and drive in Peck for the game-winner in the ninth.
Bauman would be credited with her third loss of the season after throwing 4.2 inning, giving up two runs on four hits while walking four and striking out two. Bauman was also 1-4 with a run scored.
Mesiemore would earn a no decision after throwing four innings, giving up three runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two.
Ward would finish 3-for-4 with two RBIs while Huff and Fournet finished with two hits each. Fournet added one RBI to the mix.
Sophmore Kate Kelly, Swiderski and freshman Farley Callaghan had one hit each.
Going into game two, Deiros sent sophomore Morgan White to pitch against FAU’s Taylor Buckley.
With White on the mound, the Ocala native struck out five batters in the first three innings, but a wild pitch in the third gave the Owls a 1-0 lead. White was still able to finish the inning.
With Buckley still on the mound, the Owls continued to hold the Eagles scoreless until the sixth inning. After Kelly hit a lead-off single and advanced to second on a Huff groundout, Fournet would tie the game with an RBI double to tie the game at 1-1.
White remained in the game and struck out five more batters in the fifth and sixth inning combined before preventing the Owls from winning the game in seventh forcing a second extra innings game with the Texas Tiebreaker in effect.
The Eagles would then take the lead in the eighth. After back-to-back singles from Kelly and Huff, Swiderski would clock a three-run shot to left to give the Eagles a 4-1 lead. This was Swiderski’s sixth home run of the season.
Bauman would come in for White in the eighth inning for a save opportunity. Bauman was able to get the first out with ease. Despite giving up a one-out single to Palmer, the Jacksonville native was more than able to get Buckley to lineout to Swiderski for a double play for the win.
White would earn her sixth win of the season after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on three hits while walking three batters and finishing with a season and career-high 11 strikeouts.
Bauman would earn her 15th save of the season after throwing one scoreless inning while giving up one hit. Bauman now ties former Canisius pitcher Mallory Aldred for most saves in a single season. Bauman was also 1-for-3 at the plate.
Kelly and Swiderksi would finish with two hits each. Swiderski would go 2-for-4 with three RBIs while Kelly went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
Huff and Fournet were each 1-for-4. Huff had one run scored while Fournet added one RBI.
The Eagles return to conference action as they face Kennesaw State on April 14-15.
FGCU BVB vs Webber Recap
Having already clinched a spot in the A-SUN Conference Tournament and despite a 30-minute lightning delay, the FGCU beach volleyball team (12-10) returned home for the first time since March 16 as they defeated two-time defending small college national champion NAIA Webber International (12-12) by a score of 4-1 for their last non-conference matchup. With the win, the Eagles are now 7-0 overall against the Warriors.
"I don't think we played as crisp or cleanly as we have recently, so I was a little disappointed in that," FGCU head coach Matt Botsford said. "We did play well at the end of sets, though, and that was probably the difference today."
The No. 4 duo of freshman Snowy Burnam and Kayla Whetstone defeated senior Kaxandra Naranjo and freshman Molly Fusarelli 21-7, 21-5 to give the Eagles the early lead, but the Warriors would tie the score after the No. 5 duo of junior Kaitlyn Krivdo and freshman Alayna Ryan fell 21-17, 22-24, 9-15 to freshman Kobi Allston and junior Teryn Mills. Burnam and Whetstone’s win was their 11th of the season.
The Eagles would then regain the lead after No. 3 duo senior Ashley Glickert and sophomore Giovanna Borgiotti defeated sophomores Laura Embry and Hannah Tannone 21-12, 21-16 before the No. 1 duo of senior Mackenzie Allen and junior Amanda Carroll defeated sophomores Amber Lake and Carlee Baxter 21-12, 19-21, 15-10 to give the Eagles win.
The No. 2 duo of junior Karissa Rhoades and Katherine Puisis defeated freshman Emily Bowen and sophomore Hannah Tannone 21-17, 21-18. This was Rhoades’ and Puisis’ 13th win of the season and 28th career win overall.
"I didn't think today was one of their best performances, but they're playing at such a high level they can find themselves in a hole, dig themselves out and still pull out a win," Botsford said of Rhoades and Puisis.
With their 12th win, the Eagles’ overall effort secured their third straight season with 10 or more wins. Since producing a program-record 15 wins last year, the Eagles are now 36-25 over the past three seasons.
"Double digit wins is big," Botsford said. "It shows the trend. We've known that it's been going upward the past few years. It's about sustainability. That benchmark means something to us, and I'm hoping we can continue to build upon it."
The Eagles return to action at home as they continue conference play welcoming UNF and Jacksonville on April 13-14.
"I don't think we played as crisp or cleanly as we have recently, so I was a little disappointed in that," FGCU head coach Matt Botsford said. "We did play well at the end of sets, though, and that was probably the difference today."
The No. 4 duo of freshman Snowy Burnam and Kayla Whetstone defeated senior Kaxandra Naranjo and freshman Molly Fusarelli 21-7, 21-5 to give the Eagles the early lead, but the Warriors would tie the score after the No. 5 duo of junior Kaitlyn Krivdo and freshman Alayna Ryan fell 21-17, 22-24, 9-15 to freshman Kobi Allston and junior Teryn Mills. Burnam and Whetstone’s win was their 11th of the season.
The Eagles would then regain the lead after No. 3 duo senior Ashley Glickert and sophomore Giovanna Borgiotti defeated sophomores Laura Embry and Hannah Tannone 21-12, 21-16 before the No. 1 duo of senior Mackenzie Allen and junior Amanda Carroll defeated sophomores Amber Lake and Carlee Baxter 21-12, 19-21, 15-10 to give the Eagles win.
The No. 2 duo of junior Karissa Rhoades and Katherine Puisis defeated freshman Emily Bowen and sophomore Hannah Tannone 21-17, 21-18. This was Rhoades’ and Puisis’ 13th win of the season and 28th career win overall.
"I didn't think today was one of their best performances, but they're playing at such a high level they can find themselves in a hole, dig themselves out and still pull out a win," Botsford said of Rhoades and Puisis.
With their 12th win, the Eagles’ overall effort secured their third straight season with 10 or more wins. Since producing a program-record 15 wins last year, the Eagles are now 36-25 over the past three seasons.
"Double digit wins is big," Botsford said. "It shows the trend. We've known that it's been going upward the past few years. It's about sustainability. That benchmark means something to us, and I'm hoping we can continue to build upon it."
The Eagles return to action at home as they continue conference play welcoming UNF and Jacksonville on April 13-14.
FGCU Baseball vs. NJIT Recap: Gm. 2
The FGCU baseball team (24-6, 2-0 A-SUN) took advantage of a late rally in the eighth inning as they claimed a 3-1 victory over NJIT (11-12, 1-4 A-SUN). With the win, the Eagles are now 5-0 overall against the Highlanders.
FGCU and NJIT were deadlocked for the first two innings, but thanks to a lead-off solo home run from senior Eli Lovell in the third, the Eagles took the lead, but the Highlanders would tie the game in the fourth after an RBI double from Bryce Short.
The game remained tied until the Eagles came in clutch in the bottom of the eighth. After freshman Christian Proffitt led off the inning with a single to center, sophomore Marc Coffers would follow with a bunt single of his own. After redshirt senior Gage Morey reached on an error to load the bases, sophomore Richie Garcia would bring in the eventual game-winning run on a deep sac fly to center to bring Proffitt. Hoping to add an insurance run to the game, both Coffers and Morey were off and running, stealing second and third before Coffers took off for home and successfully stole a run over the course of the next two at-bats, giving the Eagles an insurance run they needed before redshirt senior Kenton Hering came in the ninth to close the door for the Eagles.
"Marc can change a game," said head coach Dave Tollett. "He did that on his own. Proffitt got the inning going and then Marc laid down a great bunt but he can change a game. We take pride in small ball – both offensively and defensively."
Redshirt junior Josh Dye, who started the game, would earn a no-decision after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on seven hits while walking three and striking out three.
"Josh was good, just one run through seven and if Kenton and Trey can keep throwing like that we'll be okay. We won the series and now we're going to come out tomorrow and try for the sweep," said Tollett.
Sophomore Trey Vickery would earn his second win after throwing one scoreless inning and striking out one batter.
Hering earned his fifth save of the season after throwing one scoreless inning with three strikeouts.
Coffers, Morey, Garcia, Lovell and Proffitt had all the Eagles five hits. Coffers added two stolen bases while Morey added one of his own.
UP NEXT:
FGCU will be going for the series sweep and their ninth-straight win over NJIT tomorrow at 12 p.m.
FGCU and NJIT were deadlocked for the first two innings, but thanks to a lead-off solo home run from senior Eli Lovell in the third, the Eagles took the lead, but the Highlanders would tie the game in the fourth after an RBI double from Bryce Short.
The game remained tied until the Eagles came in clutch in the bottom of the eighth. After freshman Christian Proffitt led off the inning with a single to center, sophomore Marc Coffers would follow with a bunt single of his own. After redshirt senior Gage Morey reached on an error to load the bases, sophomore Richie Garcia would bring in the eventual game-winning run on a deep sac fly to center to bring Proffitt. Hoping to add an insurance run to the game, both Coffers and Morey were off and running, stealing second and third before Coffers took off for home and successfully stole a run over the course of the next two at-bats, giving the Eagles an insurance run they needed before redshirt senior Kenton Hering came in the ninth to close the door for the Eagles.
"Marc can change a game," said head coach Dave Tollett. "He did that on his own. Proffitt got the inning going and then Marc laid down a great bunt but he can change a game. We take pride in small ball – both offensively and defensively."
Redshirt junior Josh Dye, who started the game, would earn a no-decision after throwing seven innings, giving up one run on seven hits while walking three and striking out three.
"Josh was good, just one run through seven and if Kenton and Trey can keep throwing like that we'll be okay. We won the series and now we're going to come out tomorrow and try for the sweep," said Tollett.
Sophomore Trey Vickery would earn his second win after throwing one scoreless inning and striking out one batter.
Hering earned his fifth save of the season after throwing one scoreless inning with three strikeouts.
Coffers, Morey, Garcia, Lovell and Proffitt had all the Eagles five hits. Coffers added two stolen bases while Morey added one of his own.
UP NEXT:
FGCU will be going for the series sweep and their ninth-straight win over NJIT tomorrow at 12 p.m.
FGCU Baseball vs NJIT Recap Gm. 1
The FGCU baseball team (23-6, 1-0 A-SUN) opened up their portion of conference with a 9-1 over NJIT (11-11, 1-3 A-SUN). With the win, the Eagles are now 7-0 against the Highlanders.
FGCU head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt senior Mario Leon to the mound while NJIT head coach Brian Guiliana sent sophomore Jared Kasco to counter.
Beginning at the bottom of the first, sophomore Marc Coffers began by reaching first on a throwing error before stealing second. Coffers would then score the first run after sophomore Richie Garcia reached first on a fielding error. After a single off the bat of sophomore Kohl Gilmore, sophomore Alex Brait would hit a single to left bringing in Garcia for the second run of the game.
In the fourth inning, the Eagles would add two more runs to the score. After junior Eric Gonzalez hit a one-out single and advanced to second on a wild pitch, senior Eli Lovell would clock a two-run home run to left for his first of the season.
The Highlanders would add one run in the fifth inning after Evan Pietronico hit an RBI single, but had very little effect on the score.
Going into the seventh inning, the Eagles added five more runs. After a lead-off walk to Garcia, Gilmore would hit a single and advance to third on a fielding error while Garcia scored the fifth run. Redshirt junior Jay Hayes would follow with an RBI single of his own, driving in Gilmore. After Brait drew a walk and junior Eric Gonzalez hit an infield single to load the bases, Lovelll would send Hayes and Brait home on a bases loaded single before freshman Christian Proffitt added one final run on a groundout bringing in Gonzalez before the Highlanders were unable to score any runs.
Leon would earn his fifth win of the season after throwing five innings, giving up one run on five hits while walking two and striking out eight.
"Mario grinded tonight, that was a good grind win," said head coach Dave Tollett. "His offspeed stuff was on tonight. He didn't always have his best stuff overall but he grinded it out for us. We had a lot of production from the bottom three spots and Eli stepped up for us. We pulled him into the office and talked to him and told him he needs to put the ball in the air and if he does, this will continue to happen."
Sophomores Trey Vickery and Sebastian Gruszecki, freshman Tyler Shuck and senior Peyton Gray threw one scoreless inning each. Vickery and Shuck would add one strikeout each while Gray threw three of his own.
Kasco would be credited with his third loss of the season after throwing 5.2 innings, giving up four runs (two earned) on 10 hits while striking out two batters.
Freshman Jake Rappaport, junior Brett Lubreski, senior John Saviano and redshirt senior Brent Jones also pitched also played in the game for the Highlanders.
Rappaport threw a scoreless third of an inning.
Lubreski gave up four runs on two hits with two walks while not pitching an inning.
Saviano threw one inning, giving up one run on two hits.
Jones threw one scoreless inning and struck out two batters.
Lovell finished the game 4-for-4 with four RBIs. Gonzalez, Brait, and Gilmore had two hits each while Coffers, Hayes, Proffitt and redshirt senior Gage Morey had one hit each. Coffers also finished with three stolen bases in the game.
“I felt pretty good at the plate, I felt pretty good at batting practice, and it just carried over into the game,” said Lovell. “A lineup as deep as ours, anybody in our lineup can have a day like I just did, and it was just fortunate that it was my night tonight.”
Pietronico and freshman Bryce Short were the only Highlanders with a multi-hit game. Pietronico was 3-for-4 while Short was 2-for-4.
Redshirt junior Josh Dye will take the mound for game two against NJIT's Sean Lubreski.
FGCU head coach Dave Tollett sent redshirt senior Mario Leon to the mound while NJIT head coach Brian Guiliana sent sophomore Jared Kasco to counter.
Beginning at the bottom of the first, sophomore Marc Coffers began by reaching first on a throwing error before stealing second. Coffers would then score the first run after sophomore Richie Garcia reached first on a fielding error. After a single off the bat of sophomore Kohl Gilmore, sophomore Alex Brait would hit a single to left bringing in Garcia for the second run of the game.
In the fourth inning, the Eagles would add two more runs to the score. After junior Eric Gonzalez hit a one-out single and advanced to second on a wild pitch, senior Eli Lovell would clock a two-run home run to left for his first of the season.
The Highlanders would add one run in the fifth inning after Evan Pietronico hit an RBI single, but had very little effect on the score.
Going into the seventh inning, the Eagles added five more runs. After a lead-off walk to Garcia, Gilmore would hit a single and advance to third on a fielding error while Garcia scored the fifth run. Redshirt junior Jay Hayes would follow with an RBI single of his own, driving in Gilmore. After Brait drew a walk and junior Eric Gonzalez hit an infield single to load the bases, Lovelll would send Hayes and Brait home on a bases loaded single before freshman Christian Proffitt added one final run on a groundout bringing in Gonzalez before the Highlanders were unable to score any runs.
Leon would earn his fifth win of the season after throwing five innings, giving up one run on five hits while walking two and striking out eight.
"Mario grinded tonight, that was a good grind win," said head coach Dave Tollett. "His offspeed stuff was on tonight. He didn't always have his best stuff overall but he grinded it out for us. We had a lot of production from the bottom three spots and Eli stepped up for us. We pulled him into the office and talked to him and told him he needs to put the ball in the air and if he does, this will continue to happen."
Sophomores Trey Vickery and Sebastian Gruszecki, freshman Tyler Shuck and senior Peyton Gray threw one scoreless inning each. Vickery and Shuck would add one strikeout each while Gray threw three of his own.
Kasco would be credited with his third loss of the season after throwing 5.2 innings, giving up four runs (two earned) on 10 hits while striking out two batters.
Freshman Jake Rappaport, junior Brett Lubreski, senior John Saviano and redshirt senior Brent Jones also pitched also played in the game for the Highlanders.
Rappaport threw a scoreless third of an inning.
Lubreski gave up four runs on two hits with two walks while not pitching an inning.
Saviano threw one inning, giving up one run on two hits.
Jones threw one scoreless inning and struck out two batters.
Lovell finished the game 4-for-4 with four RBIs. Gonzalez, Brait, and Gilmore had two hits each while Coffers, Hayes, Proffitt and redshirt senior Gage Morey had one hit each. Coffers also finished with three stolen bases in the game.
“I felt pretty good at the plate, I felt pretty good at batting practice, and it just carried over into the game,” said Lovell. “A lineup as deep as ours, anybody in our lineup can have a day like I just did, and it was just fortunate that it was my night tonight.”
Pietronico and freshman Bryce Short were the only Highlanders with a multi-hit game. Pietronico was 3-for-4 while Short was 2-for-4.
Redshirt junior Josh Dye will take the mound for game two against NJIT's Sean Lubreski.
FGCU WTEN vs. Upstate Recap
The FGCU women’s tennis team (8-7, 4-0 A-SUN) capped off the weekend on another strong note, shutting out USC Upstate (1-17, 0-4 A-SUN) 7-0. With the win, the Eagles are now 3-0 against the Spartans.
"We are growing every time we play," stated head coach Courtney Vernon. "What makes this experience so fun is the ladies' commitment to growth and committing to their plan when it gets uncomfortable. The ladies are acting mature and in control. It's exciting to be a part of this team's journey."
The Eagles began with a quick, solid performance in doubles as the duo of freshman Madison Gallegos and junior Patricia Villar defeated sophomore Morgan Dodd and freshman Elin Hellberg 6-1.
Senior Julianna Curtis and junior Laura Falceto Font would follow quickly as they defeated junior Noelia Acuna and sophomore Taylor Dodd 6-2, claiming the doubles point.
Junior Julia Ascua and sophomore Maja Ornberg did not finish their match against juniors Carol Sigaki and Vale Zarama despite being down 3-4.
Going into singles, Ascua would begin the onslaught with a with a quick 6-2, 6-1 win over Acona.
Forster would follow with pair of 6-0 decisions over freshman Gabriela Cevallos before Ornberg sealed the decider with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Sigaki, giving the Eagles the win.
This was Ornberg's 11th win of the season (5th straight).
“It was a windy day, so it was hard to play them (Upstate). I think they played really well in doubles. It was kind of hard, and at No.1 doubles, me and Maja (Ornberg) kind of struggled with the wind a little bit to move forward, and then I think the girls did a really good job closing the other two matches,” said Ascua. “In singles, I think we started off really aggressive. They (Upstate) were not as aggressive in singles, so we just came in on top, close to the net, and we just handled the wind pretty well.”
Both teams finished the rest of their matches as sophomore Sofia Perez defeated Taylor Dodd 6-2, 6-1.
Gallegos would follow as she defeated Zarama with a pair of 6-2 decisions before Villar finished the shutout with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Hellberg.
“I was feeling pretty confident, and I think we all played pretty well,” said Perez. “I think I got in the match playing aggressive and that helped me take the win."
The Eagles will head to Jacksonville as they face UNF for their final conference road match. This matchup will be the decider on who will be the No. 1 seed in the A-SUN Conference Tournament.
"We are growing every time we play," stated head coach Courtney Vernon. "What makes this experience so fun is the ladies' commitment to growth and committing to their plan when it gets uncomfortable. The ladies are acting mature and in control. It's exciting to be a part of this team's journey."
The Eagles began with a quick, solid performance in doubles as the duo of freshman Madison Gallegos and junior Patricia Villar defeated sophomore Morgan Dodd and freshman Elin Hellberg 6-1.
Senior Julianna Curtis and junior Laura Falceto Font would follow quickly as they defeated junior Noelia Acuna and sophomore Taylor Dodd 6-2, claiming the doubles point.
Junior Julia Ascua and sophomore Maja Ornberg did not finish their match against juniors Carol Sigaki and Vale Zarama despite being down 3-4.
Going into singles, Ascua would begin the onslaught with a with a quick 6-2, 6-1 win over Acona.
Forster would follow with pair of 6-0 decisions over freshman Gabriela Cevallos before Ornberg sealed the decider with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Sigaki, giving the Eagles the win.
This was Ornberg's 11th win of the season (5th straight).
“It was a windy day, so it was hard to play them (Upstate). I think they played really well in doubles. It was kind of hard, and at No.1 doubles, me and Maja (Ornberg) kind of struggled with the wind a little bit to move forward, and then I think the girls did a really good job closing the other two matches,” said Ascua. “In singles, I think we started off really aggressive. They (Upstate) were not as aggressive in singles, so we just came in on top, close to the net, and we just handled the wind pretty well.”
Gallegos would follow as she defeated Zarama with a pair of 6-2 decisions before Villar finished the shutout with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Hellberg.
“I was feeling pretty confident, and I think we all played pretty well,” said Perez. “I think I got in the match playing aggressive and that helped me take the win."
The Eagles will head to Jacksonville as they face UNF for their final conference road match. This matchup will be the decider on who will be the No. 1 seed in the A-SUN Conference Tournament.
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