FGCU Baseball vs Jacksonville Day Two Recap

The FGCU baseball team (27-13, 9-3 A-SUN) swept Jacksonville (21-19, 7-8 A-SUN) after winning both games of Saturday's doubleheader by scores of 3-1 and 2-1 at Swanson Stadium.

"Both of these wins today were absolutely awesome," head coach Dave Tollett said. "Jacksonville is a very good team and, on paper, we are very equal across the board. It could've gone either way, but we're happy to close out this weekend with a sweep."

FGCU 3, JU 1
The Dolphins battled against junior Eagle starter Mason Studstill from the first at-bat of the game, getting two baserunners on in the opening frame. Studstill managed to get out of that jam, but Jacksonville was able to push a runner across after a fielding error in the bottom of the second to take an early 1-0 lead.

It took the Green and Blue a few innings to figure out the Dolphins' starting arm, but junior Kohl Gilmore eventually cranked out the first hit of the day when he singled up the middle in the bottom of the third. The team was unable to advance him farther than first base before the frame ended.

Jacksonville loaded the bases in the top of the fifth. With two outs on the board, FGCU recalled sophomore Nikolas Bitner (2-2) from the bullpen, who ended the frame via groundout. After 5.1 innings of work, Studstill finished the day with six strikeouts and let up five hits.

The Eagles' offense struck hard against the Dolphins in the bottom of the sixth. Junior Anthony Gonnella and senior Marc Coffers reached in consecutive at-bats, and senior Jay Hayes was intentionally walked to load the bases. With two outs on the board, senior Keith Stevens stepped into the batter's box and doubled down the right field line to score all three baserunners, as well as put the team up 3-1.

Bitner cruised through the next two innings, allowing just one hit. He was relieved in the top of the eighth by junior closer Hunter McGarry. Bitner finished his outing with three strikeouts and faced just two over the minimum. McGarry entered the game with two outs on the board and ended the inning with a strikeout.

Jacksonville managed to work the tying run into the batter's box in the top of the ninth, but McGarry ended the game with his third K. The closer picked up his seventh save of the season but wasn't done yet for the day. Bitner earned the win for his scoreless relief work.

With the win, the Eagles claimed their third A-SUN series win of the season.

FGCU 2, JU 1
Both sides started off slowly in the second game. Between the two teams, only six baserunners were allowed in the first three frames. Each team managed to advance a runner as far as third, but FGCU senior starter Evan Lumbert and Dolphin starter Austin Temple kept their opposition off the boards.

FGCU was the first team to get on the board, as the Eagles launched a well-balanced attack in the bottom of the fifth. Gilmore led off the inning with a single after poking a ball through the left side. He was replaced by freshman pinch runner Jalen Townsend, who moved over to second after a sacrifice bunt by junior pinch hitter Cameron Krzeminski. Gonnella and Coffers launched back-to-back doubles that put the team up 2-0 for the first runs of the day.

The Dolphins responded with a run of their own in the top of the sixth, using an RBI single to cut the Green and Blue's lead down to 2-1. Lumbert battled back and recorded a swinging strikeout for the second out of the inning before being relieved by McGarry who ended the frame. The starter finished his outing after 5.2 innings of work, tallying five Ks.

McGarry recorded the final four outs of the game for the Eagles and earned his second save of the day. The junior now has eight on the season and is tied for third place in the FGCU single-season standings. With five more, he will hold the Eagle record. He became just the second Eagle in the D-I era to earn two saves on the same day. The first was Sterling Koerner, who accomplished the feat in a pair of close victories over Lipscomb on May 13, 2017.

With the win, FGCU swept Jacksonville for the third time in the history between the two teams (2008, 2013) and earned its second A-SUN sweep of the season. The Green and Blue won all three against Lipscomb at Swanson Stadium three weeks ago, making this the longest home conference win streak since 2013-14 when FGCU won 11-straight across the end of the 2013 season and beginning of the 2014 campaign.

The three runs throughout the weekend are the fewest the Eagles have ever conceded in a series against the Dolphins. They also tie the fewest runs ever allowed in school history in a three-game conference series (Kennesaw State, 2012).

This was Jacksonville's first time getting swept by a conference opponent since the 2014 season. That year, they got swept by Mercer.

Up Next:
The Eagles will be back in action at Swanson Stadium this Wednesday, April 24 to host USF (18-20, 2-10 American) for a midweek game. The matchup against the Bulls is set for 6:30 p.m. and will be the second meeting between the two teams this season. USF earned a 15-4 victory over the Green and Blue up in Tampa on April 2. Overall, the Eagles own the series between the programs 11-6.