FGCU Baseball @ NJIT Doubleheader Recap

The FGCU baseball team (32-18, 14-6 A-SUN) swept a doubleheader on Saturday against NJIT (17-27-1, 7-17 A-SUN) to capture the overall series against the Highlanders. The Eagles earned 6-1, 4-3 victories over NJIT and became the first team to clinch a spot in the 2019 A-SUN Conference Tournament.

"It was good to see the guys come out and grab these two wins," head coach Dave Tollett said. "I thought our pitching was much better all-around and I thought that we did a good job of hanging in during the second game when things got tight."

FGCU 6, NJIT 1
Energized by one of senior starter Evan Lumbert's strongest outings this season, the FGCU baseball team rebounded from its Friday night loss to take game two of the series.

The Highlanders were the first to get on the board, pushing a run across in the second inning, but Lumbert kept them off the boards from there as the Eagles' offense got to work.

Freshman Joe Kinker evened the score up at 1-1 with an RBI groundout in the fourth inning that sent senior Eric Gonzalez across and the Eagles took over the game from there.

The Green and Blue used a three-spot in the fifth to extend the lead. Senior Jay Hayes started the spree with a double down the left field line that pushed junior Richie Garcia across, which was followed up by a two-RBI single off the bat of senior Keith Stevens. Junior Kohl Gilmore rounded out the scoring with a bases-clearing double that plated Gonzalez and Stevens.

Freshman Jalen Townsend came in as the final run of the ballgame after Stevens drew a bases-loaded walk in the sixth.

Lumbert (5-2) made it through 8.1 innings of the game, the longest outing of any FGCU arm this season. He allowed one earned run on six hits, while fanning three. Freshman Cody Woodring relieved Lumbert in the bottom of the ninth and made a brief appearance before handing the game over to sophomore Tyler Shuck.

The Highlanders had managed to load up the bases, but Shuck ended the game with a strikeout and a flyout, earning his first save of the season. With the win, the Eagles became the first team to clinch a spot in the 2019 A-SUN Tournament and knotted up the overall series at 1-1.

FGCU 4, NJIT 3
In the opening inning of game three, the Green and Blue jumped out to a 2-0 lead, as Stevens and Gilmore each pushed a runner across. The Highlanders responded to the early push with a run of their own, but Gilmore, Gonzalez and sophomore Christian Proffitt ended the first with a rundown.

Senior Justin Gill started on the mound for FGCU and kept NJIT off the board for the next few frames. The Eagles' offense struck again in the top of the fifth when Gilmore sent Gonzalez in with a double, making it a 3-1 ballgame. The Highlanders pushed one of their own runners across and sent another one in after a miscue by the Green and Blue defense to even things up at 3-3.

Gill left the game with a no-decision after being relieved by junior Hunter McGarry to start the sixth. The starter finished his day after facing 22 batters, fanning four and allowing six hits.

FGCU had a solid chance to put the game away in the seventh inning. Gonzalez, Kinker, and Proffitt all reached with walks to load up the bases, but NJIT battled back and shut down the inning before the Green and Blue could plate anyone.

Finally, the Eagles were able to string something together in the top of the ninth. Gilmore led off the inning with a double and was replaced by junior pinch runner Marc Coffers. A sac bunt via junior pinch hitter Cameron Krzeminski sent Coffers over to third and Townsend plated the winning run with a sac fly to left field.

McGarry kept NJIT from coming back in the bottom of the ninth and improved to 6-1 on the season.

Up Next:
The Eagles will return to Swanson Stadium to host Liberty (33-16, 12-7 A-SUN) May 16-18. Thursday's game will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs, as the Flames are new to the A-SUN this year. Prior to the game on Saturday, May 18, head coach Dave Tollett and his staff will honor the six graduating seniors: Justin Gill, Kohl Gilmore, Eric Gonzalez, Jay Hayes, Evan Lumbert and Keith Stevens. First pitch both Thursday and Friday is slated for 6:30 p.m. and Saturday's game will be played at 1 p.m..