FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU baseball team opens its 2017 campaign with a four-game series against Sacred Heart at Swanson Stadium this weekend. The series opener against the Pioneers is scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m., while first pitch in games two and three are Saturday at 1 p.m. and approximately 4:30 p.m., and the series finale is Sunday at 1 p.m.
 
Redshirt junior Mario Leon (Naples, Fla./Gulf Coast HS) will toe the rubber in the season opener opposite Sacred Heart's Brent Teller. The Eagles' starters Saturday at to be determined, while the Pioneers will send southpaw John Sostarich and righty Baylor Sundahl to the mound in the doubleheader. Finally, the series finale Sunday will feature FGCU's Kutter Crawford (Okeechobee, Fla./Indian River State/Okeechobee HS) and Sacred Heart's James Taubl.
 
Fans attending the season opener Friday evening are encouraged to wear green. Single game and season tickets for games contested at Swanson Stadium can be purchased by visiting FGCUTickets.com or calling 239-590-7145. Those unable to make it to Swanson Stadium can track the action all weekend on Stat Broadcast. 

SERIES HISTORY
The 2017 season-opening series marks the second time in program history the Eagles and Pioneers have squared off. Sacred Heart also traveled to Swanson Stadium for a four-game set in 2010, when FGCU took three of four from the visiting Pioneers. After dropping the opening game, 6-3, FGCU went on to win the next three contests by outscoring Sacred Heart 40-9.

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
Sacred Heart is coming off a 2016 season during which it posted a 30-28 overall record and went 18-13 in the Northeast Conference. The Pioneers won its opening game of the NEC Tournament vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, 9-8, but dropped its next two contests to end its season. A year prior, after starting the season 0-10, Sacred Heart made a run through the conference tournament and appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in program history.
 
Offensively, the Pioneers hit .265 as a team and were a major threat on the base paths as they stole 85 bases in 58 games. Sophomore outfielder Kyle Oliver returns as the team's leading hitter in 2017 after hitting .333 during his freshman campaign. Junior outfield Dan Shock returns as Sacred Heart's biggest power threat after hitting a team-high nine home runs and slugging .466 in 2016.
 
On the mound, Sacred Heart turned in a 4.37 ERA last year and was led by the aforementioned Taubl, who put up a 2.16 ERA in 16 appearances. Upperclassmen Mike Lembo and Alex Perry combined for 27 appearances out of the bullpen a season ago and posted ERA's of 2.25 and 2.55, respectively.
 
MILESTONE IN SIGHT
FGCU's founding head coach Dave Tollett enters the 2017 season 10 wins shy of hitting the 500-win milestone. The four-time ASUN Coach of the Year who has led the Green and Blue to four ASUN Regular Season Conference Championships has recorded 30 or more wins in 11 of his 14 seasons, including a program record 41 wins in 2006. He has led the Eagles to a winning mark in conference play in eight of nine seasons in the ASUN. Tollett would join Kennesaw State's Mike Sansing and UNF's Smoke Laval as the only active head coaches in the ASUN with 500 or more wins.
 
HE'S BAAACCCKKK
As the ASUN Preseason All-Conference Honors and Awards were announced at the end of January, redshirt senior designated hitter Nick Rivera (Cape Coral, Fla./Bishop Verot HS) found his name appear on the All-Conference Team for the third straight season. The hometown slugger returns to the FGCU lineup after missing all but 17 games a season ago with a wrist injury. A 2015 Louisville Slugger All-American, Rivera drove in a Division I program record 70 RBI to go along with a career-high 10 home runs and .347 average in his junior campaign. Following the 2015 season, he was selected by the Houston Astros in the 38th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft.
 
KEY RETURNERS
Along with the aforementioned Rivera, leadoff man and middle infielder Matt Reardon (Palm City, Fla./Martin County HS) highlights a list of talented and experienced returner for FGCU. Reardon, who earned ASUN All-Tournament Team honors in 2016, is the team's leading returner in runs (42), hits (80) and RBI (25). He will likely join ASUN All-Freshman Team honoree Jake Smith (Windermere, Fla./Windermere Prep), who hit .443 in conference games in 2016, as a pair of table setters for the middle of the FGCU order.
 
On the mound, a trio of upperclassmen in Leon, Sterling Koerner (Fort Pierce, Fla./John Carroll HS) and 2016 ASUN All-Tournament Team member Garrett Anderson (Arcadia, Fla./DeSoto County HS) will likely spearhead the FGCU pitching staff. With the addition of Crawford and the return of the injured Josh Dye (DeLand, Fla./DeLand HS), both of who will likely find a role in the Eagles' weekend rotation, the Green and Blue look to be much improved from a season ago.
 
FRESH FACES
FGCU welcomes one of the largest and arguably most talented incoming classes in program history with 22 newcomers joining the Green and Blue this season. The class, which consists of 13 freshmen and nine Junior College transfers, is highlighted by 2016 NJCAA Honorable Mention All-American Eli Lovell (Lincoln, Neb./Kansas City Kansas CC/Lincoln Southwest HS). With KCKCC last season, Lovell ranked in the top-15 in the NJAA in average (.451), hits (96), RBI (83) and total bases (174). He also slugged 15 home runs and scored 70 times in 57 games. Lovell and fellow Junior College transfer Spencer Levine (Miami, Fla./Seminole State/Miami Killian Senior HS), who hit 14 home runs a season ago and was named First Team All-Conference by the Mid-Florida League, will likely team up with Rivera to add the pop in the middle of the FGCU order.

CONFERENCE DOMINANCE
Since joining the ASUN in 2008, FGCU has not only won more regular season conference championships (four) than any other member of the ASUN, but has also won more overall and league games than any other conference opponent. The following is list of overall and conference records for teams that have competed in the ASUN since 2008.
 

No.	School	Overall	A-Sun
1.	FGCU (2008-present)	298-212-1	162-83 (.661)
2.	UNF (2008-present)	286-221	132-108 (.550)
3.	Kennesaw State (2008-present)	271-243	143-95 (.601)
4.	Stetson (2008-present)	268-263	132-111 (.543)
5.	Lipscomb (2008-present)	253-269	124-118 (.512)
6.	Mercer (2008-14)	243-156	115-82 (.584)
7.	Jacksonville (2008-present)	243-265	119-122 (.494)
8.	ETSU (2008-14)	197-201	88-110 (.444)
9.	USC Upstate (2008-present)	195-295	82-156 (.345)
10.	Belmont (2008-12)	158-139	78-68 (.534)
11.	Campbell (2008-11)	93-125	31-85 (.267)
12.	NKU (2013-15)	39-118	14-61 (.187)
13.	Gardner-Webb (2008)	29-30	15-18 (.455)
14.	NJIT (2016)	17-36	2-18 (.100)

 
CLIMBING THE RANKS
Rivera has already made his mark in FGCU program history as he not only holds the career record for doubles with 63, but also ranks in the top-10 in program history in a number of other offensive categories. The Cape Coral native ranks third in home runs (26) and RBI (160), fifth in games started (182), sixth in total bases (360), seventh in games played (187) and hits (215) and 10th in runs scored (126) and on-base percentage (.434). Additionally, his 63 doubles are good for tied for 10th among active NCAA players.

CAREER GAMES PLAYED

1.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	216
2.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	214
3.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	205
4.	Tyler Selesky (2013-16)	199
5.	Colton Bottomley (2013-16)	195
6.	Mike Reeves (2010-13)	191
7.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	187

CAREER GAMES STARTED

1.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	216
2.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	212
3.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	204
4.	Colton Bottomley (2013-16)	191
5.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	182

CAREER ON-BASE PERCENTAGE      

1.	David Cox (2003)	.495
2.	Chris Brown (2003-04)	.493
3.	Ian Manson (2005-06)	.484
4.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	.475
5.	Jason Peacock (2007-08)	.474
6.	Chris Perry (2003-06)	.450
7.	Jason Cooper (2003-05)	.449
8.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	.447
9.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	.439
10.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	.434

CAREER HITS

1.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	316
2.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	311
3.	Jake Noll (2013-16)	267
4.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	259
5.	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	247
6.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	241
7.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	215

CAREER RUNS SCORED

1.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	237
2.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	202
3.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	178
4.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	158
5.	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	156
6.	Jake Noll (2013-16)	151
7.	Tyler Selesky (2013-16)	137
8.	Chris Perry (2003-06)	134
9.	Craig Smith (2005-08)	129
10	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	126

CAREER RBI

1.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	180
	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	180
3.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	160

CAREER HOME RUNS

1.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	41
2.	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	40
3.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	26

CAREER TOTAL BASES

1.	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	418
	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	418
3.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	412
4.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	400
5.	Jake Noll (2013-16)	364
6.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	360

 
Like Rivera, Anderson and Koerner also make their way up the list of a number of top-10 career pitching records, while Dye also makes the list in fewest walks per 9.0 innings pitched.

CAREER APPEARANCES

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	86
2.	RJ Brown (2010-13)	82
3.	Brady Anderson (2012-16)	76
4.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	69
5.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	67

CAREER SAVES

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	14
2.	Brady Anderson (2012-16)	11
3.	Jack Wagoner (2010-11)	9
	Harrison Wagoner (2011-13)	9
5.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	7
6.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	6
	Derek Shaw (2007-09)	6
	Casey Coleman (2006-08)	6

 
CAREER GAMES FINISHED

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	51
2.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	32
3.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	29
	Brady Anderson (2012-16)	29

 
CAREER FEWEST WALKS PER 9.0 IP

1.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	1.13
2.	Josh Dye (2015-present)	1.31
3.	Jason Short (2003-05)	1.42
4.	Michael Murray (2013-15)	1.46
5.	Jordan Desguin (2015)	1.60
6.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	1.61

RECEIVING VOTES
For the fourth consecutive year, FGCU was receiving votes in Collegiate Baseball's Fabulous 40 NCAA Division I Preseason Poll. The ASUN was represented by four teams as defending regular season champion Kennesaw State, UNF and Lipscomb were also receiving votes. Additionally, as the ASUN Preseason Honors and Awards were released in January, the Green and Blue were chosen to finish tied for fourth in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll. The Eagles garnered 35 points, matching Jacksonville's total. Lipscomb led the way with 59 points and six first-place votes and were followed by UNF and Kennesaw State with 52 and 51 points, respectively, and one first-place vote apiece.
 
2017 SCHEDULE
The Eagles' schedule features eight teams that participated in the 2016 NCAA Base­ball Tournament including a pair of College World Series participants in preseason #2 Florida and preseason #8 Miami along with Super Regional participant and preseason #3 FSU. The five remaining NCAA Tournament teams include defending Big Ten Tournament Champion Ohio State, defending ASUN Tournament Champion Stetson, defending CAA Champion UNC Wilmington, defending C-USA Champion FAU and defending MEAC Tournament Champion Bethune-Cookman. Twenty-six of FGCU's first 30 games will be contested in Southwest Florida with 24 games scheduled to be played at Swanson Stadium and two additional games at JetBlue Park, the Spring Training home of the Boston Red Sox. From Feb. 24 through Mar. 15, the Eagles are scheduled to play 13 consecutive games against five of the aforementioned NCAA Tournament teams.
 
TICKETS
Single game and season ticket packages for the 2017 FGCU baseball season are now on sale. Season tickets for games contested at Swanson Stadium can be purchased for $99, while single game tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth (12 and under), military and groups. For questions or more information, please contact the FGCU Ticket Office at 239-590-7145. Additonally, tickets for games versus preseason #2 Florida and preseason #3 FSU can be purchased online by clicking here or by calling the JetBlue Park Ticket Office at 239-334-4700.
 
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.

DAVE TOLLETT
In 14 seasons of work, FGCU head coach Dave Tollett has compiled a 490-296-3 record (.623) as the only head coach in the program's history. He is a four-time ASUN Coach of the Year and has guided the Green and Blue to four ASUN Regular Season Championships. His team has been ranked nationally on several occasions by multiple media outlets and has coached 42 All-Conference selections, 27 draft picks, three current major leaguers, 19 current minor leaguers, four ASUN Pitchers of the Year, four All-Americans, two ASUN Players of the Year, one National Freshman Player of the Year, one National Player of the Year and one five-time MLB All-Star.

#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 visitwww.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.