FORT MYERS, Fla. – Following a trip south of the border, FGCU softball returns home for the FGCU/Four Points by Sheraton Invitational. The Eagles welcome Boston College, Hofstra, Rutgers, Wisconsin and FIU to Southwest Florida for the three-day tournament with action beginning Friday at 9 a.m. The full tournament schedule can be found by visiting the tournament central page.

TICKET INFORMATION
Ticket prices are $7 for adults and $5 for youth. Season tickets meanwhile are $39 for adults and $29 for youth. For those interested in purchasing single-game or season tickets, contact the FGCU ticket office at 239-590-7145 or visit FGCUTickets.com.

WHITEOUT
Sunday's weekend finale against FIU (2:30 p.m.) is a white out and fans are encouraged to wear white to the game.

LAST TIME OUT
FGCU's trip to Mexico ended with a 1-4 record but the lone win for the Eagles was the first over a ranked opponent since 2012. The Green and Blue opened the weekend with a 4-3 victory over then #21 Fresno State, the first win over a ranked foe since FGCU's historic triumph over Florida in the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

The Eagles then nearly completed come-from-behind wins over Texas Tech and Cal State Fullerton only for their efforts to fall short in the late innings. The 1-4 record in Puerto Vallarta brought FGCU to 5-4 on the season.

The Green and Blue still boast four batters with a .400 average or better on the season. Leading the pack is Bri Innamorato (Mullica Hill, N.J./Bishop Eustace HS), who enters the weekend with a .474 average. Kelsey Huff (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./Dwyer HS) leads the team with 11 RBIs to go along with her .419 average.

In the circle, Riley Randolph (St. Petersburg, Fla./Northeast HS) has posted a 3-1 record and a 2.70 ERA through the first two weeks of the season. Randolph earned the win over Fresno State in Mexico.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES
Boston College's latest win in its 7-3 season came over #21 Arizona State to begin the week. The Eagles used a complete game from Jessica Dreswick, who fanned nine batters while keeping the Sun Devils off the board for six innings. Dreswick is 4-1 on the year with a sub-4.00 ERA.

Offensively, Jordan Chimento is hitting .400 with three home runs and 10 RBIs, both lead the team. Taylor Coroneos and Chloe Sharabba are both hitting above .340, but Sharabba has supplied three home runs and eight RBIs.

FGCU is 2-1 all-time against Boston College in the Battle of the Eagles. After shutting out BC twice in 2008, FGCU lost the latest matchup in 2012.

SCOUTING THE PRIDE
Hofstra opened the year in Clearwater, posting a 2-3 record last weekend. Lacey Clark and Nikki Michalowski led the Pride offensively, both hitting above .500. Clark provided the power in the duo collecting a home run and three RBIs. Brielle Pietrafesa and Megan Patierno both have driven in a team-high six RBIs.

Sarah Cornell has the earned both wins for Hofstra this season. Through 11.0 innings of work, Cornell has posted a 6.36 ERA with eight walks and eight strikeouts.

The Eagles are 1-3 all-time against the Pride. FGCU's lone win came in 2009, a 3-2 win in Clearwater. Last season, Hofstra defeated FGCU 8-7 behind a sixth inning rally.

SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers was forced to wait an additional week to open its 2017 campaign. After their season-opening tournament in Miami was cancelled the Scarlet Knights went 0-4 in Athens, Ohio last weekend. Carly Todd was one of the bright spots offensively for Rutgers. Todd hit .462 with three doubles and three RBIs in the first weekend. Nicole Bowman drove in a team-best six runs while hitting .400.

In the circle, Whitney Jones and Cambria Keefer split the four decisions, both coming to Fort Myers with an 0-2 mark. Shayla Sweeney though has worked a team-high 13.1 innings this season.

FGCU and Rutgers have only met once prior to this weekend, a 5-2 victory for the Eagles in 2012.

SCOUTING THE BADGERS
Wisconsin opened the season with seven consecutive wins and the Badgers come to Southwest Florida with an 8-1 overall record. Now receiving votes in the USA Softball poll, Wisconsin is led at the plate by Chloe Miller who is hitting .500 through two weekends. Meanwhile, Brooke Wyderski leads the team in both home runs (2) and RBIs (9).

Wisconsin's success comes from its pitching staff led by Kailyn Menz and Kirsten Stevens. Menz has earned five of the team's eight wins while posting a 1.14 ERA while Stevens is 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA.

The Eagles and Badgers have met three times, with Wisconsin holding a 2-1 edge. FGCU's lone win came in 2014, an 8-0 final in favor of the Green and Blue.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Also receiving votes in the latest USA Softball poll, FIU makes the trip across Alligator Alley with an 8-3 record after seeing its seven-game win streak end against Northwestern State followed by a loss to then-#1 Florida. Averaging more than five runs per game, the Panthers bring a well-rounded team to Fort Myers. At the plate, Jackie Schoff, who has scored 16 runs while hitting .528, leads FIU.

Defensively, FIU also boasts one of the best defensive teams in the country, bringing a .987 fielding percentage into the weekend.

Panther pitching has limited opponent to just 22 runs in 11 games. Abby Summers is 3-0 early in the 2017 season with a 1.72 ERA while Shannon Saile has recorded 46 strikeouts in 31 innings of work en route to a 2-2 record.

After dropping two-of-three games last season, the Eagles are 7-13 all-time against FIU and 4-5 at the FGCU Softball Complex.

UP NEXT
FGCU has a midweek contest against UCF March 1 at the FGCU Softball Complex before making the trip to Orlando to face both Providence and UCF over the weekend.

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 recently enters his 15th 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 .669 (547-272-3). 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.