FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU Softball team (20-21, 3-8 Atlantic Sun) dropped both games in its doubleheader against USC Upstate (28-6, 10-1 Atlantic Sun) on Friday night. The Eagles lost game one by an 8-0 count before falling in game two by a 7-2 score.

In game one, junior Makensie McAvoy (Plant City, Fla./Plant City HS) went 3-for-3 at the plate with two singles and a double while freshman Kasandra Castle (Lake Worth, Fla./Palm Beach Central HS) added two singles.

In game two, senior Kelsey Carpenter (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS) went 2-for-3 with one of her hits being a two-run homer to center field. Senior Christine Marino (Miami, Fla./Hialeah Miami Lakes HS/Bryan College) added a single and a walk.

"Just a tough day for us," said head coach David Deiros. "In the first game we made way to many mistakes, and in the second game a couple of bad breaks went against us. The long and the short of it is that we have to do a better job of executing the things we want to execute when it's time to. We have to go after them tomorrow and see how we do."

GAME ONE
Junior Ashley Dobson (Wheatfield, Ind./Kankakee Valley HS) started game one against USC Upstate. Dobson pitched six innings, allowing 10 hits, eight runs, four earned while walking one.

After taking a 4-0 lead in the fourth inning, USC Upstate added its final four runs in the sixth inning off of three hits and an error. The Spartans scored their eight runs on 10 hits and three errors.

Offensively, the Eagles could only muster six hits during the contest. Out of those six hits only one was an extra-base hit.

GAME TWO
Freshman Gabbee Draney (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep HS) took the circle in the second game of the night against the Spartans. The freshman pitched 6.1 innings, giving up eight hits, seven earned runs while walking five and striking out six. Sophomore Taylor Wade (Pace, Fla./Pace HS) entered the game with one out in seventh and retired both batters she faced.

After The Spartans took an early 2-0 lead, Carpenter hit a two-run bomb to center in the bottom of the sixth which scored McAvoy, who reached earlier in the inning with a single.

USC Upstate scored two runs in the third inning before scoring five runs in the seventh inning, four of which came via a grand slam.

The Eagles return to action for the final game of the series against USC Upstate on Saturday, Apr. 4 with the first pitched slated for 1 p.m.

For up-to-the minute information on the FGCU softball program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_Softball and Instagram at fgcusoftball and stay tuned at FGCUAthletics.com.

The founding father of FGCU softball, David Deiros is in his 13th season as head coach. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the dirt up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to 11 seasons with a winning record, eight campaigns with 35+ wins and a win percentage of  .688 (509-232-3). The 2014 Eagles finished with a 33-26-1 and wins over SEC, Big 10, Big East, and ACC opponents.  FGCU finished their season with an RPI ranking in the top-100 for the 3rd consecutive season and the 5th time in their seven years at Division I. Deiros is a former head coach at the 1998 Florida State Runner-up Lely High School in Naples and is the founding head coach of the 1999 District Champion/2001 Regional Runner-up Gulf Coast High School in Naples.