JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Hitting the road for the first time in three weeks the FGCU softball team continues ASUN Conference play with a three game series against UNF. The weekend series with the Ospreys begins Saturday at 1 p.m. with the finale slated for the same time Sunday.

Live stats for all three contests are available through UNFospreys.com and the first two contests of the series will be broadcast on ASUN.tv.

THE GREEN AND BLUE
The Eagles find themselves in a three-way tie for first place following the first weekend of the conference season. FGCU took two-of-three from the Dolphins, claiming the rubber match Sunday afternoon by a 4-2 final. Joining FGCU with a 2-1 record in the ASUN is USC Upstate and Kennesaw State.

Kelsey Huff (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./Dwyer HS), Natalie Lopez (Miami, Fla./Westminster Christian HS), and Racquel Fournet (Windermere, Fla./Windermere Preparatory School) continued to pace the Green and Blue last weekend, scoring six runs on a triple and two home runs. Fournet hit both homers in the weekend-opener against the Dolphins to bring her season total to three.

Both Huff and Fournet find themselves among the nation's best. With a triple against the Dolphins, Huff brought her season total to five, good for fifth in the country. Fournet meanwhile sits second in doubles with 13.

Further down the order, Ashley Swiderski (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier HS) got in on the action going 3-for-8 from the plate with a triple to set up what was then the game-tying run in the second game of the series.

Taylor Wade (Pace, Fla./Pace HS) had a run of 31.1 innings without conceding an earned run come to an end Saturday against the Dolphins. The stretch lowered the senior's ERA from 4.25 to 3.08 and brought her win total to seven this season.

Riley Randolph (St. Petersburg, Fla./Northeast HS) leads the Eagles' pitching staff with 11 victories behind a 2.40 ERA. The lefty is expected to surpass the 100 inning mark for the season this weekend and has three shutouts to her name.

A LOOK AT THE BOOK
A number of Eagles have made their mark in a very short period of time. A career .362 batter through three seasons, Huff holds the highest career batting average amongst players that played their entire career at the Division I level. Overall, the junior sits fifth all-time in program history. Two spots behind Huff, Fournet's .356 average is good for seventh in the history of the program.

Fournet's 29 doubles is good for fifth all-time as well, while also sitting third in Division I history.

Randolph's 1.76 ERA puts her fifth in FGCU history, however the left-hander holds the lowest ERA in Division I history.

FGCU Career Records (FGCU transitioned to Division I in 2007-2008)
Batting Average

	Name	Years	Avg.
1.	Carmen Paez	2007-08	.430
2.	Jessica Carter	2007-09	.427
3.	Ashley Cecil	2003-05	.425
4.	Cheyenne Jenks	2006-09	.381
5.	Kelsey Huff	2015-17	.362
6.	Kelsey Carpenter	2012-15	.359
7.	Racquel Fournet	2016-17	.356
	Lauran Ziegler	2009-10	.356
9.	Courtney Platt	2008-11	.355
10.	Jessica Gary	2007-10	.342

 
Doubles

	Name	Years	2Bs
1.	Courtney Platt	2008-11	49
	Cheyenne Jenks	2006-09	49
3.	Jessica Rouse	2004-07	38
4.	Kelsey Carpenter	2012-15	32
5.	Racquel Fournet	2016-17	29
	Jessica Carter	2007-09	29
7.	Louie Ross	2012-16	28
	Desiree Miller	2012-16	28
9.	Kirsten Bembnowski	2011-14	27
	Blaire Toleman	2003-05	27

 
Earned Run Average

	Name	Years	ERA
1.	Kelly Powe	2004-05	0.87
2.	Sarah Backe	2006-07	1.18
3.	Rachael Edinger	2006-08	1.29
4.	Annie Voyles	2004-05	1.53
5.	Riley Randolph	2016-17	1.76
6.	Dana Frantz	2006-09	2.10
7.	Catherine McDaniel	2009-11	2.16
8.	Shelby Morgan	2012-15	2.33
9.	Christine Beck	2003-06	2.34
10.	Stephanie Sullivan	2010-11	2.56

 
RPI WATCH
Five of the ASUN's seven teams find themselves in the top 100 of the first RPI of the season with the potential for six teams to break the Top 100 by next week. FGCU checks in at #89 with a 20-14 record and an RPI Top 50 win over Fresno State and two Top 100 wins over Boston College and Hofstra. Lispcomb paces the field, coming in at #42 with Kennesaw State behind at #47.

Defending tournament champions USC Upstate is positioned #62 followed by the Eagles. UNF (95), Stetson (102), and Jacksonville (142) round out the RPI rankings.

As a conference the ASUN has produced 153 non-conference victories, good for sixth amongst conferences nationally. The win total is also more than the win totals from both the ACC and Big 12.

THE ROAD AHEAD
Coinciding with a strong presence in the RPI, the ASUN also presents a tough road ahead for the defending ASUN champions. With the bulk of conference play in front of them and two formidable non-conference foes also waiting, the Eagles have one of the toughest schedules in the nation to close out the season.

FGCU's future opponents have combined for a 192-83 record and a .698 winning percentage, tied for the 12th toughest schedule in the country to end 2017. In comparison, FGCU has a tougher road ahead than Missouri, Tennessee, LSU, Florida, and Alabama.

Overall, FGCU currently boasts the 39th toughest schedule in the country, alongside the likes of Mississippi State, USF, and Ohio State.

SCOUTING THE OSPREYS
Entering the week as one of the hottest teams in the country, the Ospreys saw their nine-game winning streak end with a midweek defeat at the hands of UCF Wednesday. UNF heads into the weekend as one of the best hitting teams in the conference, hitting .322 as a team. Leading the way for the Ospreys is Navia Penrod and her conference-leading .455 average. Behind Penrod, Domincia Cocuzza has provided the power with 10 doubles, three home runs and 31 RBIs this season. UNF likes to keep its baserunners active, attempting 73 stolen bases this season but the Ospreys have been caught 19 times.

In the circle, Logan Green and Morgan Blourne get most of the action, combining for nearly 196 innings of work and 15 of the team's 19 wins. Green leads the way with a 2.25 ERA for eight wins while Blourne is just behind her, coming into the weekend with a 2.86 ERA and seven victories.

With a sweep in Fort Myers last season, the Eagles improved to 15-11 against the Ospreys all-time. FGCU has claimed seven of the previous nine victories, though six of those wins were in Fort Myers.  

UP NEXT
FGCU returns home to face the defending tournament champions USC Upstate in a crucial ASUN series. The three-game series begins Saturday April 8 with a doubleheader before the two sides meet Sunday April 9. The finale also marks Senior Day for four graduating seniors.

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 (560-280-3). 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.