FORT MYERS, Fla. – Quick responses from the FGCU offense and stellar performances from a pair of freshmen gave FGCU a 7-3 win over Oakland Thursday. Racquel Fournet and Riley Randolph continued their spectacular starts to 2016, as the Eagles moved to 4-5 while sending the Golden Grizzlies to 2-6.

It was once again Fournet (Windermere, Fla./Windermere Preparatory School) to lead the offense aided by a strong top of the order and an eight-strikeout performance from Randolph (St. Petersburg, Fla./Northeast HS) in the circle. Oakland posted single runs in each of the first two innings, but FGCU responded to both, with a single run in the first and a four-run second capped by a Fournet two-run double. Oakland posted another single run in the fourth but that was all Randolph would allow as the Green and Blue scored runs in the fourth and fifth innings claiming their fourth win of the season, 7-3.

"When we bring freshmen in here, we bring them out here with the idea that they're going to compete for jobs and both Riley and Racquel have done a nice job at getting better at their specific roles," said head coach David Deiros. "It was a team win today all the way around. Even though we made a mistake in the middle, it was probably our cleanest game. We made an effort in the middle of last week to change the way we went about our business. What we were doing was not working for us from an energy perspective. The energy wasn't where it needed to be so we made changes to make sure that we're going to play a certain way that is more conducive to the players and personalities that we have."

Randolph struck out the first two batters of the ballgame, but conceded consecutive base hits as Oakland grabbed an early 1-0 lead. The Eagles immediately responded, beginning with Kelsey Huff (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./Dwyer HS) reaching on a dropped third strike and promptly stealing second. After Makensie McAvoy (Plant City, Fla./Plant City HS) walked, Fournet sent a hard-hit ball to first, deflecting off the glove and sending Huff home.

The Golden Grizzlies took advantage of a triple and a passed ball in the second, taking a 2-1 lead but once again, the home team responded. Bri Innamorato (Mullica Hill, N.J./Bishop Eustace HS) singled to center to lead off the frame and Morgan Sutherland (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier High School) reached on an error. As the lineup went back to the top of the order, Huff singled back up the middle plating both Innamorato and Sutherland. McAvoy followed with a single of her own, putting runners at the corners. With two outs, Fournet stepped back up to the plate and doubled to the opposite field to give FGCU a 5-2 lead.

Oakland cut into FGCU's lead with a solo home run to right off the bat of Sydney Hasselbach in the fourth but the Eagles restored their three-run lead in the bottom half. Following a McAvoy triple, Fournet sent her third hit of the game into left, bringing McAvoy home to put FGCU in front 6-3.

The Green and Blue added an insurance run in the fifth on a bases loaded walk with McAvoy at the plate. Leading by four, Oakland put the lead off runner on, prompting Taylor Wade (Pace, Fla./Pace HS) to enter the ballgame. The senior would remain in until the final frame when Randolph came back to finish off her first career win.

Randolph (1-1) threw 5.2 total innings, striking out eight batters. The freshman allowed three runs on six hits, with no walks. Wade tossed 1.1 innings, with a pair of strikeouts.

For the second-straight game, Fournet drove in four runs to lead the Eagles. In addition, Huff and McAvoy went a combined 5-for-6 at the top of the order with four runs scored and three RBIs.

UP NEXT
FGCU is back in action Friday as the Battle at the Beach continues. The Eagles take on Sacred Heart at 4:30 p.m. before taking on Oakland at 7 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
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.
 
COACH DEIROS
The founding father of FGCU softball, David Deiros enters his 14th 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 .674 (516-247-3). The 2015 Eagles finished with a 23-30 record and wins over Atlantic 10, Southland, AAC and ACC opponents. 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.
 
SUPPORT THE CAUSE
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.