FGCU Baseball vs USF Preview

Fresh off its second conference sweep of the season, the FGCU baseball team (27-13, 9-3 A-SUN) will host USF (18-20, 2-10 American) for a 6:30 p.m. game on Wednesday, April 24 at Swanson Stadium. This will be the second meeting between the programs this season. The Bulls claimed a 15-4 victory up in Tampa on April 2. The game will be streamed on YouTube Live, but there will be no scheduled commentary.

Junior Mason Studstill has proven to be one of the strongest arms in all of DI baseball so far this season and was recently named to the College Baseball Foundations' 2019 Pitcher of the Year Award Watch List. He ranks seventh nationally in earned run average (1.31) and eighth in hits allowed per nine innings (4.52). The junior is currently 5-0, one of just two pitchers in the A-SUN's top 10 that have undefeated records. The only Eagle to ever finish on the single-season top-10 wins list with a perfect record was current Red Sox pitcher and 7-time MLB All-Star Chris Sale (11-0) in 2010.
Studstill has struck out a league-high 78 batters. With five more, he will tie for ninth on the

Junior Hunter McGarry made history this past weekend when he converted two save chances on the same day. He now has eight saves on the season, the third-most of any arm in Eagle history. He has already made 20 appearances.

Junior Alex Brait leads the Green and Blue with a .347 batting average. The catcher has cranked out a team- and conference-high 60 hits and is one of just two players that have started all 40 games for FGCU. Classmate Richie Garcia has also started every game.

Senior Jay Hayes sits at the top of the league with a .621 slugging percentage and 87 total bases. He checks in at second in RBIs (40) and home runs (8). Hayes (.472) and freshman Joe Kinker (.458) check in at first and second, respectively, on the A-SUN's top-10 list for on-base percentage. Kinker's batting average (.325) is the second-highest of all A-SUN freshmen and good for 11th in the conference.

Last Time Out:
Last weekend, the Eagles swept Jacksonville for just the third time in the history between the two teams.

Led by senior Justin Gill, the Green and Blue held Jacksonville to just one run during Thursday's 12-1 victory over the Dolphins. The only run of the night for JU was unearned.

Brait led the offense in the explosive triumph, going 4-for-5 at the plate with two RBIs and three runs. He and junior Anthony Gonnella both launched two-run home runs in the fifth inning.

The teams won both games (3-1, 2-1) of Saturday's doubleheader against the Dolphins. Senior Keith Stevens accounted for all three runs when he cranked out a bases-clearing double in the bottom of the sixth.

Sophomore Nikolas Bitner (2-2) earned the win after two innings of scoreless relief work. McGarry entered in the final 1.1 frames and earned his first save of the day.

Gonnella and junior Marc Coffers notched a pair of one-RBI doubles that put the team up 2-0 in the fifth.

The Dolphins managed to push one across but senior starter Evan Lumbert (4-2) and McGarry prevented them from tying things up. McGarry, who recorded the final four outs of the game, picked up his second save of the day and Lumbert was awarded the win.

The three runs conceded over the series tied FGCU's record for fewest runs allowed in a three-game series in school history.

Scouting USF:
Last weekend, the Bulls swept the Citadel in a three-game non-conference series. The Bulls outscored their competitor 28-12.

Senior Joe Genord leads the Bulls with a .346 batting average, .699 slugging percentage and 12 home runs. He and classmate Kyle Phillips are the only two players that have started all 38 games for USF. Phillips leads the team with seven stolen bases and 54 hits.

In each of their last three midweek games, the Bulls have thrown five pitchers. Of those three games, the longest a USF arm has gone is 4.2 innings.

Junior lefty Logan Lyle and senior right-hander Richie Cruz lead the USF bullpen with 17 appearances each. Each have started one game.

Junior Nelson Alvarez leads the Bull relievers with 28 Ks. He has been charged with nine runs through 22.0 innings and has 5 saves.

Series History:
The Eagles hold an 11-6 advantage in the history between the two teams and a split 4-4 mark at Swanson Stadium. The Bulls have won the last two meetings, both of which have been played at their home park in Tampa. In both of those wins, USF has put up double-digit runs. FGCU has never lost to the Bulls twice in a single season. They have, however, swept USF in home-and-home midweeks twice.

Junior Sebastian Gruszecki will get the nod to start in the game, while for USF it is to be determined.

Livestats Link: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=252513

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_1ISjt5aVZZLdGCQqVAPGw?view_as=subscriber