GAINESVILLE, Fla. – With two outs and a runner on first, Florida's Jonathan India sent a drive to deep right center field, but FGCU centerfielder
Gage Morey made a SportsCenter Top-10 worthy catch to end the game as the #24 Eagles (12-2) completed a midweek sweep of #2 Florida (10-4) with a 3-2 win at McKethan Stadium Wednesday night.
Morey (West Palm Beach, Fla./PB Central HS) got a great jump as the 2-2 pitch jumped off the bat of India and covered nearly 40 yards of ground in center field to make the catch as he dove onto the warning track.
With the win, the Eagles - who entered the day at #16 in the RPI - not only completed the two-game sweep of the Gators, but also handed Florida its first home loss of the season. Additionally, FGCU has now won eight games in a row – the team's longest winning streak since taking 10 straight games in 2013 – and is off to the program's best start in program history.
FGCU starting pitcher
Peyton Gray (1-0, 6.00) went a season-high 6.0 strong innings and allowed one earned run on two hits with two walks and six strikeouts.
Gray (Columbus, Ind./Gulf Coast State/Columbus East HS) allowed the first three Gators of the game to reach base and take a 1-0 lead. However, he retired 18 of the next 19 batters he faced to turn in a gem of a game from the mound.
"It's been a great two days for this program," said FGCU head coach
Dave Tollett. "To take two games against a team like Florida, it's huge.
Peyton Gray responded from a shaky start and was unreal on the mound. The bullpen backed him up, and obviously
Gage Morey made the catch of the year to seal the deal. We'll enjoy this one, but it's also time to start getting ready for a good Ohio State team that comes to town this weekend."
FGCU responded from Florida's first-inning run with two of its own in the top of the second. After a pair of walks and a sacrifice bunt,
Elijah Eusebio (Miami, Fla./Coral Gables Senior HS) came through with a two-out, two-RBI single through the right side of the infield – his first collegiate hit – to give the Eagles the lead. Two innings later,
Corey Fehribach (Douglaville, Ga./West Georgia CC/Alexander HS) delivered with another two-out base knock to center field that scored
Nick Rivera (Cape Coral, Fla./Bishop Verot HS) from second to extend the lead. All three of the Green and Blue's runs in the game came with two outs.
Following Gray's quality outing, FGCU turned to its usual weekend starters out of the bullpen as
Josh Dye (DeLand, Fla./DeLand HS) and reigning ASUN Pitcher of the Week
Kutter Crawford (Okeechobee, Fla./Indian River State/Okeechobee HS) shut down the Gators in the seventh and eighth innings. Dye faced four batters, while Crawford struck out the side in only 13 pitches. The FGCU trio of Gray, Dye and Crawford combined to retire 24 of 26 Florida hitters following the early run.
ASUN saves leader
Sterling Koerner (Fort Pierce, Fla./John Carroll HS) entered the game in the ninth and gave up a solo home run to Florida three-hole hitter JJ Schwarz to start off the inning. However, Koerner responded to retire three of the next four hitters he faced to close the door on his fourth save of the season and 11th of his FGCU career – placing him in a tie for second place all-time.
Offensively, it was a by-committee approach for the Green and Blue as seven of nine starters recorded a hit. Eusebio picked up a pair of RBI for the Eagles and Fehribach drove in another.
In two games this week, the FGCU pitching staff held the Florida offense to five runs on 13 hits. Behind their productivity on the mound, the Eagles defense turned in a couple of clean slates against the Gators.
UP NEXT
FGCU faces a quick turnaround before hosting Big Ten foe Ohio State for a three-game series at Swanson Stadium this weekend. Game one is scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m. and will be followed by game two Saturday at 6 p.m. and the series finale Sunday at 1 p.m. The series will mark the first time in program history the Eagles and Buckeyes have met.
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. Additionally, tickets for FGCU's game versus #2 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 his 15th season of work, FGCU head coach Dave Tollett has compiled a 502-298-3 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.
