FGCU Baseball @ NJIT Preview

 The FGCU baseball team (30-17, 12-5 A-SUN) will wrap up its conference road swing with a series at NJIT (16-25-1, 6-15 A-SUN) May 10-12 at the Skylands Stadium in Augustana, N.J.

Last Time Out:
The Eagles dropped two close games to Stetson at the Hatters' home stadium in DeLand. The series finale was cancelled due to weather.

Junior Richie Garcia scored the first run of the series after being pushed across by senior Eric Gonzalez in the opening frame of Friday night's game. The initial 1-0 lead was the Eagles' only advantage of the weekend.

Junior Mason Studstill (5-1) was charged with his first loss of the season as the Eagles eventually fell to the reigning A-SUN champs by a score of 2-1.

The Hatters posted a 5-0 edge over FGCU in game two before senior Jay Hayes got the team on the board by driving in Garcia.

Junior Kohl Gilmore made it a two-run ballgame with a single that sent Garcia and Gonzalez home, but it was the closest the team ever got.

The series loss was the first for the Eagles since dropping two-of-three to UNF back in March.

A Look at FGCU:
Studstill has established himself as one of the best arms in the nation. His average of 4.40 hits allowed per nine innings is the second-lowest in the nation and his earned run average (1.59) checks in at 13th. Studstill leads the A-SUN with 90 strikeouts so far, which stands alone as the sixth-most dealt by an Eagle in single-season history.

As a team, the Green and Blue sit at the top of the league standings. They pace the conference in runs (314), RBIs (279) and on-base percentage (.387).

Junior Alex Brait leads the team in the batter's box. The catcher owns a .325 batting average and has cranked out 66 hits, the most by any player in the A-SUN. Brait has caught 11 runners stealing so far, which ties for tenth on the FGCU single-season list. He needs just four more to check into the top five. He is also a perfect 10-10 on stolen bases and is one of two players in the league to have stolen at least 10 bags without being caught.

With 289 career assists, Garcia is currently tied for ninth in the Eagles' record book. He and Gonzalez have combined for 200 assists and 35 double plays this season.

Junior Hunter McGarry has been a force in the back end of the FGCU bullpen. He has already picked up eight saves this season, which ties for the third-most in Green and Blue single-season history. McGarry's eight saves are more than Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale, Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Jacob Barnes and former Chicago Cubs pitcher Casey Coleman accumulated in their careers as Eagles.

Scouting NJIT:
Last weekend, NJIT faced off against conference newcomer North Alabama. The Highlanders and the Lions split the first two games, but North Alabama claimed the series after winning Sunday's rubber match 8-3.

Sophomore Paul Franzoni finished the three-game series 5-for-12 with seven RBIs, three runs, two doubles and two home runs.

On Tuesday night, the Highlanders rallied to an 18-11 win over St. Peter's. After scoring just two runs, the Highlanders posted a combined total of 16 over the last two frames of the night.

Freshman Brett Helmkamp finished the night 4-for-6 with three RBI and two runs. On the season, Helmkamp leads the team with a .329 batting average, the highest of any freshman in the A-SUN.

Sophomore Julio Marcano has cranked out a team-high eight home runs and paces the Highlanders with 81 total bases. His twin brother, David Marcano, has stolen nine bags and turned in 10 extra-base hits.

The Highlanders' starting rotation of junior Tyler Stafflinger, redshirt-senior Sean Lubreski and junior Jared Kasco have a combined ERA of 5.39. The trio has given up 264 hits and been charged with 128 earned runs.

Freshman Joe Georgini has made a team-high 18 appearances. He and Kasco have each picked up one save so far this season.

Series History:
The Eagles are 5-1 against the Highlanders with their lone loss on April 8, 2018 where the Eagles fell 4-3 in the series finale.

A-SUN Standings:
1. FGCU (30-17, 12-5 A-SUN)
2. Liberty (33-15, 12-6 A-SUN)
3. Lipscomb (26-21, 10-8 A-SUN)
4. UNF (28-20, 9-8 A-SUN)
4. Stetson (21-16, 9-8 A-SUN)
6. Jacksonville (26-23, 9-9 A-SUN)
7. Kennesaw State (23-26, 8-10 A-SUN)
8. North Alabama (15-33, 7-13 A-SUN)
9. NJIT (16-25-1, 6-15 A-SUN)

How to Keep Up:
Livestats will be provided for all three games and will air on Highlanders Sports Network. It will cost $6 per game. Is it worth it?

Fans can also keep updated with FGCU baseball on Twitter @FGCU_Baseball

Livestats Link:
Game One- https://www.njithighlanders.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Game Two- https://www.njithighlanders.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary
Game Three- https://www.njithighlanders.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary

Livestream Link ($): https://www.njithighlanders.com/watch/?Live=353&type=Live