WP | Josh Dye (1-1): 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
LP | Cody Cooper (5-4): 8.0 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
 
FORT MYERS, Fla. – Facing a 3-0 deficit in the 4th inning, the FGCU baseball team (26-22-1, 9-7 A-Sun) fought back to earn a 6-5 victory over visiting Northern Kentucky (17-29, 5-12 A-Sun) Saturday afternoon at Swanson Stadium. The win not only clinches the series for the Eagles but also secures their spot in the Atlantic Sun Championship May 20-23.
 
With the game tied at 5-5 in the 7th inning, Matt Reardon (Palm City, Fla./Martin County HS) and Tyler Selesky (Estero, Fla./Estero HS) collected consecutive hits with two outs to bring Nick Rivera (Cape Coral, Fla./Bishop Verot HS) to the plate. FGCU's leading hitter worked a walk, but the final pitch of the at bat was in dirt, and the wild pitch allowed Reardon to score from third with the winning run.
 
Freshman reliever Josh Dye (DeLand, Fla./DeLand HS) earned his first win (1-1) by pitching three scoreless innings, limiting the Norse to three hits and striking out while issuing no walks.
 
At the plate, Selesky led the charge by going 3-4 with two runs scored and an RBI out of the second spot in the lineup. Jake Noll (Punta Gorda, Fla./Charlotte HS) added two hits for the Eagles, while Adam Eggnatz (Tampa, Fla./Middle Georgia College) contributed a pair of RBI for the Green and Blue, which ran its all-time record against the Norse to 8-0.
 
"Josh did a great job out of the bullpen for us today," said FGCU head coach Dave Tollett of his southpaw reliever who entered a 5-5 game in the 7th inning. "For the most part he was able to keep NKU off the bases late in the game, allowed our offense to tack on a run and trusted his defense behind him. It's great to have clinched a spot in the tournament on our home field, but we've still got a lot of season left as we're now fighting for seeding."
 
Seeding is still completely up for grabs as North Florida has secured the top seed for the A-Sun Championship. Seeds 2-6 are wide open and only separated by a couple of games as still four regular-season conference contests remain.
 
Jordan Desguin (Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor HS) started for the Eagles but left with a no decision after tossing six innings, scattering six hits and allowing five runs. He walked only one and struck out six while throwing 95 pitches.
 
Desguin allowed back-to-back hits to start the game, with the second one resulting in NKU's first run of the game and first lead of the series, 1-0. However, the right hander settled down and got out of the inning with double play.
 
The deficit expanded to three as the Norse added two more runs in the 4th, but Desguin did a solid job to avoid further damage as he worked out of runners on second and third and no one out without allowing another run.
 
Desguin's offense rewarded him for getting out of the jam as the Eagles tied the game in the bottom of the frame. A Bottomley double which was ripped inside the left-field line and past the diving effort of NKU third baseman Brad Bohlen scored Selesky from second and moved Noll to third. Then, with two outs, Eggnatz dropped a single into right center to knot the game at 3-3.
 
However, the tie was short lived as leadoff hitter Quint Heady delivered a 1-out home run to left for the Norse to put NKU back in front, 4-3, in the 5th inning.
 
But, FGCU had another response in the bottom of the frame and eventually took its first lead of the afternoon. Selesky ripped a double underneath the outstretched dive of NKU's second baseman Kyle Colletta to bring around Kyle Gilbert (Lake Mary, Fla./Seminole HS) who had led off the inning with a walk. Selesky later scored on a Noll hard-hit single off the third baseman's glove to put the Eagles in front, 5-4.
 
The lead again was short lived as the next inning Desguin struck out the side, but a hit by pitch and two wild pitches allowed the Norse to tie the contest, 5-5, before another wild pitch – this time by NKU in the 7th – served as the game winner.
 
The series finale is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. Prior to first pitch, the Eagles will honor their six graduating seniors and will pay tribute to all the mothers on Mother's Day. FGCU will conclude the regular season next Thursday-Saturday with a three-game series at Stetson.
 
ATLANTIC SUN CHAMPIONSHIP 
The Eagles will once again host the Atlantic Sun Championship Tournament at Swanson Stadium this season. The event is set to take place May 20-23 and the top six teams in the standings at the end of the regular season will advance to the championship and compete in a double-elimination style tournament to determine the A-Sun's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles are four-time A-Sun Regular Season Champions with the most recent title coming in 2014.
 
DAVE TOLLETT
In 12+ seasons of work, FGCU head coach Dave Tollett has compiled a 459-259-3 record as the only head coach in the program's history. He is a four-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year and has guided the Green and Blue to four A-Sun Regular Season Championships. His team has been ranked nationally on several occasions by multiple media outlets and has coached 35 All-Conference selections, 22 draft picks, 16 current minor leaguers, four A-Sun Pitchers of the Year, three All-Americans, one National Freshman Player of the Year, one National Player of the Year and one MLB All-Star.
 
#WINGSUP
Fans are encouraged to download the brand-new Wings Up mobile app in conjunction with SuperFanU. The fully-customized loyalty-rewards platform allows fans to check in at each of FGCU's sporting events to earn points throughout the school year toward exclusive prizes that can't be offered anywhere else.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For constant, news, photos, videos and updates you can follow the baseball team on Twitter @FGCU_Baseball, Instagram @FGCU_Baseball or on Facebook: Facebook.com/FGCUBaseball. You can also find FGCU athletics on YouTube by visiting YouTube.com/FGCUEagles.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.