FORT MYERS, Fla. – In the midst of its best start in Division I program history and after achieving its highest-ever ranking, the #21 FGCU baseball team (14-3) welcomes #1 FSU (13-3) to Southwest Florida for the first time in program history as the Eagles and Seminoles will take the diamond at JetBlue Park Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
 
FGCU is scheduled to send right hander Mario Leon (1-1, 3.77) to the mound to make his second straight midweek start against a top-two opponent. Leon (Naples, Fla./Gulf Coast HS) also made the start and earned the win against then #2 Florida last week at JetBlue Park. With FSU also taking on Florida Tuesday night, the Seminoles' starter for Wednesday's game is yet to be determined.
 
The Seminoles are not only to first top-ranked team to take on FGCU in Fort Myers, but also represent the Eagles' fifth straight opponent that entered the 2016 NCAA Tournament as either a #1 or #2 seed. Dating back to its midweek against FAU on Feb. 28, FGCU has won eight of nine games against such opponents.
 
Fans can purchase tickets by clicking here. The action Wednesday night will also be available via Stat Broadcast. FGCU faithful are encouraged to wear Green tomorrow night as the contest has been deemed a greenout by the FGCU Marketing Department.

COACHING MATCHUP
FGCU founding head coach Dave Tollett has posted a 504-299-3 all-time record in his 15th season as the Eagles' skipper. Tollett, who secured his 500th win by defeating UNC Wilmington, 10-1, on Mar. 5, has guided the Eagles to four ASUN Regular Season Championships and has earned an equal amount of ASUN Coach of the Year awards. Wednesday night, he matches up with FSU head coach Mike Martin, who has posted a 1,911-674-4 record in his 38th season with the program. Martin has taken his teams to 37 consecutive NCAA regional appearances and entered the season with the highest winning percentage (.738) among active NCAA Division I coaches.
 
SERIES HISTORY
FSU holds a 7-3 advantage in the all-time series with FGCU that dates back to the 2009 season. After dropping the first four games of the in-state showdown, FGCU claimed its first win against then #2 FSU by defeating the Seminoles, 5-1, during the 2012 season. The win against the #2 Seminoles was the first of three wins against a team ranked that high, with the other two coming against Florida last week. The Green and Blue then dropped the next three games in the series, but has won each of the last two contests. Last season, FGCU defeated then #4 FSU, 11-8, in an extra-inning thriller.
 
SCOUTING THE SEMINOLES
FSU took over the #1 spot in this week's polls and are off to a 13-3 start this season. Like the Eagles, the Seminoles have won each of its first five series of the season, including weekend sweeps against Samford and Oakland. Prior to traveling to Fort Myers for Wednesday's showdown, FSU will take on #5 Florida in Gainesville Tuesday night.  
 
Offensively, FSU is hitting .279 as a team and has been led by a pair of underclassmen as sophomore Jackson Lueck and freshman Nick Derr are each hitting .333 to this point in the season. Senior first baseman Quincy Nieporte is the Seminoles' top power guy as he has registered four home runs and 23 RBI this season. Additionally, FSU presents a major threat on the base paths as the team has swiped 23-of-23 bags this season.
 
On the mound, FSU boasts a 2.50 staff ERA and is holding opponents to a .214 average this season. Junior Will Zirzow has made five appearances and is yet to allow an earned run in 11.1 innings pitched. Fellow junior right hander Drew Carlton serves as the team's closer and has posted a 0-1 record with a 1.32 ERA and two saves in seven appearances.   
 
LAST TIME OUT
After sweeping a pair of games against Florida, FGCU took two of three games against defending Big Ten Tournament Champion Ohio State, marking the first time in program history the two teams have played.
 
Trailing 9-4 in the ninth inning of the series opener, FGCU put together a rally to remember as the Eagles scored six runs in the final frame and defeated the Buckeyes in walk-off fashion. The two teams were right back at it the next day, and FGCU fell behind on an unearned run in the top of the second inning but responded to score 13 unanswered to take the series from the Buckeyes. Ohio State responded to win the finale, however, as the visitors held off another ninth-inning rally from the homestanding Eagles. Entering the inning trailing 5-1, FGCU scored three runs in the frame and had a runner in scoring position before a ground ball to second base ended the game and the series.
 
500-WIN CLUB…AND COUNTING
Tollett became the ASUN's newest member of the 500-win club as FGCU capped off its weekend sweep at UNC Wilmington with a 10-1 win on Mar. 5. Coming off a 4-1 week against Florida and defending Big Ten Tournament Champion Ohio State and off to its best start in Division I program history, Tollett has now pushed his win total to 504. He has recorded 30 or more wins in 11 of his 14 seasons, including a program record 41 wins in 2006 and has led the Eagles to a winning mark in conference play in eight of nine seasons in the ASUN. Tollett joins Kennesaw State's Mike Sansing and UNF's Smoke Laval as the only active head coaches in the league with 500 or more wins. Lipscomb coach Jeff Forehand is right on Tollett's heels as he entered the season with a 487 careers wins and has the Bisons off to an 8-7 start in 2017.
 
IN THE RANKINGS
Off to the best start in Division I program history, FGCU checked in at #21 in Baseball America's poll released Monday, marking the Eagles' highest ranking in program history. Additionally, the Green and Blue has been tabbed #22 by a trio of publications including D1 Baseball, Perfect Game and Collegiate Baseball News, who ranked FGCU at #24 a week ago. Rounding out the five polls this week, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) has FGCU ranked #24.

The Eagles are the fourth-highest ranked non-Power Five program according to Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and Perfect Game, fifth-highest according to D1 Baseball, sixth-highest according to Baseball America and seventh-highest according to the NCBWA.

Along with the team's ranking in five nationally-recognized polls, FGCU was the first team left out of the USA TODAY Coaches Poll as the Eagles garnered 65 points and came up three points shy of #25 Missouri.  
 
TORRID STRETCH
FGCU's three-game series with Bethune-Cookman from Feb. 24-26 began a stretch of 13 straight games against 2016 NCAA Tournament teams. After sweeping Florida in the midweek and take two of three from the Buckeyes, the Eagles are 10-2 in its first 12 games of the torrid stretch. Beginning with the midweek matchup against FAU, the Green and Blue will play in 10 consecutive games against teams that entered the 2016 postseason as either #1 or #2 seeds. Thus far, FGCU is 8-1 during the stretch with Wednesday's game against the Seminoles capping it off.
 
NCAA ACTIVE LEADER
In his final season with the Green and Blue, redshirt senior designated hitter Nick Rivera (Cape Coral, Fla./Bishop Verot HS) continues to not only climb FGCU's all-time records, but also ranks among the top-five in active NCAA players in a number of offensive categories. Rivera leads the nation in career games played (204), doubles (64), RBI (167), total bases (384) and walks (136). He also ranks second in at bats (738) and tied for fifth in hits (229).

ASUN WEEKLY SWEEP
After their impressive weeks against the Gators and Buckeyes, junior pitcher Peyton Gray and junior infielder Matt Reardon were named the ASUN Pitcher of the Week and ASUN Player of the Week, respectively. Gray (Columbus, Ind./Gulf Coast State/Columbus East HS) earned his first win with the program at #2 Florida as he retired 18 of the last 19 batters he faced and also tossed 2.0 near perfect innings against the Buckeyes. Reardon (Palm City, Fla./Martin County HS) tied a career high with four hits and two doubles while also matching the Division I program record with eight RBI in Saturday's 13-1 win against Ohio State. The awards were the first of the season and career for both Gray and Reardon and mark the third and fourth of the season for the Green and Blue. Junior right hander Kutter Crawford (Okeechobee, Fla./Indian River State/Okeechobee HS) was named the Pitcher of the Week after tossing 7.0 scoreless inning at UNC Wilmington, while freshman infielder Richie Garcia (Davie, Fla./West Broward HS) was named the ASUN Player of the Week after opening weekend.

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)	312-215-1	162-83 (.661)
2.	UNF (2008-present)	297-227	132-108 (.550)
3.	Kennesaw State (2008-present)	278-251	143-95 (.601)
4.	Stetson (2008-present)	276-273	132-111 (.543)
5.	Lipscomb (2008-present)	261-276	124-118 (.512)
6.	Jacksonville (2008-present)	252-274	119-122 (.494)
7.	Mercer (2008-14)	243-156	115-82 (.584)
8.	USC Upstate (2008-present)	204-304	82-156 (.345)
9.	ETSU (2008-14)	197-201	88-110 (.444)
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)	19-47	2-18 (.100)

 
CLIMBING THE RANKS
Along with his aforementioned NCAA active ranks, Rivera has already made his mark in FGCU program history as he not only holds the career record for doubles, 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 (29) and RBI, fourth in games played and games started (199), fifth in total bases, and seventh in hits and runs scored (140).

CAREER GAMES PLAYED

1.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	216
2.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	214
3.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	205
4.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	204

CAREER GAMES STARTED

1.	Josh Upchurch (2006-09)	216
2.	Mikel Alvarez (2008-11)	212
3.	Stephen Wickens (2008-11)	204
4.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	199

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)	229

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.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	140

CAREER RBI

1.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	180
	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	180
3.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	167

CAREER HOME RUNS

1.	Zach Maxfield (2009-11)	41
2.	Tim Roberson (2008-11)	40
3.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	29

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.	Nick Rivera (2013-present)	384

 
Like Rivera, senior pitchers Garrett Anderson (Arcadia, Fla./DeSoto County HS) and Sterling Koerner (Fort Pierce, Fla./John Carroll HS) make their way up the list of a number of top-10 career pitching records. Additionally, Josh Dye (DeLand, Fla./DeLand HS) tops the list in fewest walks per 9.0 innings pitched and Kenton Hering (Melbourne, Fla./Eastern Florida State/Viera HS) ranks in the top-five in most strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched and lowest opponent batting average.

CAREER APPEARANCES

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	86
2.	RJ Brown (2010-13)	82
3.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	76
	Brady Anderson (2012-present)	76
5.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	72

CAREER SAVES

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	14
2.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	11
	Brady Anderson (2012-16)	11
4.	Jack Wagoner (2010-11)	9
	Harrison Wagoner (2011-13)	9
6.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	8

 
CAREER GAMES FINISHED

1.	J.J. Crumbley (2005-08)	51
2.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	39
3.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	31

 
CAREER FEWEST WALKS PER 9.0 IP

1.	Josh Dye (2015-present)	0.94
2.	Sterling Koerner (2014-present)	1.15
3.	Jason Short (2003-05)	1.42
4.	Michael Murray (2013-15)	1.46
5.	Jordan Desguin (2015)	1.60
6.	Billy Phillips (2004-05)	1.78
7.	Garrett Anderson (2014-present)	1.78

 
MOST STRIKEOUTS PER 9.0 IP

1.	Chris Sale (2008-10)	11.53
2.	Brandon Bixler (2001-13)	10.91
3.	Kenton Hering (2016-17)	10.44

 
LOWEST OPPONENT BATTING AVERAGE

1.	Brandon Bixler (2011-13)	.201
2.	Chris Cahil (2003-04)	.207
3.	Jordan Desguin (2015)	.216
4.	Kenton Hering (2016-17)	.230

 
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 Wednesday's game versus #1 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 15 seasons of work, FGCU head coach Dave Tollett has compiled a 504-299-3 record (.625) 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.