FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU baseball team (34-19, 16-7 ASUN) won the 2019 ASUN Regular Season Championship after defeating Liberty (37-18, 15-9 ASUN) 10-9 Saturday afternoon at Swanson Stadium. The title is the fifth in program history for the Eagles, who will enter the 2019 ASUN Championship as the top seed.

"All we wanted was to make it permanent," head coach Dave Tollett said. "We wanted to be ASUN champs. This is such a special group of guys. There isn't one guy that makes the team complete. We have a group of guys that work hard. And I know that they are still hungry for more."

The Eagles' offense exploded in the first frame of the rubber match. Junior Richie Garcia opened up the scoring by crushing his sixth home run of the season out of the ballpark after working a full count. Two batters later, senior Jay Hayes homered to the same spot and brought in junior Alex Brait to make it 3-0. Freshman Jalen Townsend added in on the spree after swinging at the first pitch he saw, which resulted in a single that pushed senior Eric Gonzalez across. Garcia (Davie, FL/West Broward HS) came back up and capped off the scoring with a bases-loaded walk that plated junior Kohl Gilmore.

Senior Evan Lumbert started on the bump for the Green and Blue and retired the first seven batters that he faced. The Flames managed to work the bases loaded in the top of the third, but Lumbert (Orlando, FL/Boone HS/South Florida State) worked out of the jam to keep the visitors off the board.

A miscue by the Eagles' defense got Liberty into the run column in the top of the fourth. The Flames worked the bases loaded again, but a fly out to Townsend (Oviedo, FL/Winter Park HS) in center field ended the frame leaving the score at 5-1.

FGCU went on its second scoring run of the afternoon in the bottom of the fourth. Hayes (Altamonte Springs, FL/Lyman HS), who leads the conference in doubles, sent one down the left field line and brought in Brait (Viera, FL/Viera HS). Gonzalez (Miami, FL/American HS/ASA College) took advantage of a Liberty pitching change and pushed Hayes across with a sac fly before freshman Joe Kinker stepped into the box and launched a two-run homer over the wall in left center, extending the lead to 9-1.

The Flames added a long ball of their own in the top of the fifth after sending the ball out to right field. The two-run shot trimmed the Eagles' lead down to 9-3 and marked the team's first two earned runs against Lumbert.

Liberty threatened to score again in the top of the sixth after working the bases loaded, but the Eagles brought out sophomore Nikolas Bitner from the bullpen who ended the inning. Lumbert finished his outing after 5.2 innings of work, allowing five hits and fanning four, and left the game lined up for the win.

Gilmore (Fort Pierce, FL/John Carroll HS/Indian River) became the sixth Eagle batter to record an RBI, bringing Gonzalez in with a sac fly in the bottom of the sixth for the team's final scoring effort of the game.

Bitner (Palm Coast, FL/Flagler Palm Coast HS/Indian River) tossed 1.2 innings and handed the mound over to junior Hunter McGarry after being tagged with two runs in the top of the eighth. The Flames used the change as an opportunity to send a third run across, cutting the Eagles' lead down to 10-7.

Liberty made things interesting in the team's final at-bats of the ballgame. A pair of RBIs pulled the Flames within one and put the pressure on McGarry (Bradenton, FL/Bradenton Christian School/State College of Florida). With runners in scoring position, the closer locked in and ended the game with a full-count strikeout, handing the Eagles the win.

The regular season title is the first for FGCU since the 2014 season, when the team clinched the championship on the road at Lipscomb. 

Up Next
The Eagles will enter the 2019 ASUN Championship in DeLand as the top seed. They will face the host, six-seeded Stetson, in the opening game of the tournament on Wednesday, May 22. First pitch against the Hatters is scheduled for 11 a.m. at Melching Field.

WE'VE GOT YOUR SEAT
Experience FGCU Baseball and Softball this season. The following ticket opportunities are on sale now:
Group Sales
Bring your group of 15 or more to an FGCU Baseball or Softball game. All group tickets include your choice of concessions or an FGCU hat ($15 value), in-game group recognition and more. For more information on group outings, click HERE or call 239-590-7145.
Single Game Tickets
Single game tickets are available for all remaining home games. Adult tickets are $7 each. Discounted tickets are available for current or former Military and Youth ages 3-15 for just $5 each. Baseball and Softball Frequent Flyer Cards allow multiple entries for more than 50 percent off the adult rate. Choose 34 baseball entries for $105 or 17 softball entries for $55. Purchase online HERE or call 239-590-7145.

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.con/FGCUBaseball. You can also find FGCU athletics on YouTube by visiting YouTube.com/FGCUEagles.

COACH TOLLETT
FGCU coach Dave Tollett currently owns a 599-356-3 overall record (.627) and a 199-108 (.648) record in the ASUN. He is the only head coach in the program's history and led the program to its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2017. He is a four-time ASUN Coach of the Year and has guided the Green and Blue to four ASUN Regular Season Championships and one ASUN Tournament Championship. His team has been ranked nationally on several occasions, including as high as No. 9 in the country in 2017, and has coached 54 all-conference selections, 31 draft picks, three current major leaguers, 15 current minor leaguers, four ASUN Pitchers of the Year, four All-Americans, three ASUN Players of the Year, one National Freshman Player of the Year, one National Player of the Year and one seven-time MLB All-Star.
 
5X CHAMPS
The 2017 season was a magical one for the Green and Blue that ended in the program's first Division I NCAA Championship tournament berth. The Eagles ended the year 43-20, which included a midweek sweep over No. 2 Florida, single wins over No. 1 Florida State, Miami, and a three-game sweep at UNC Wilmington. The wins over Miami, FSU, and UF marked the first time FGCU defeated all three programs in the same season.
 
Reaching as high as No. 9 in the polls, the highest of any program at FGCU, the Eagles struggled in April but bounced back to finish third in the ASUN. During the ASUN Championship, FGCU won four games in a span of 29 hours for their first tournament crown.
 
The Green and Blue earned the No. 2 seed in the Chapel Hill Regional, defeating Michigan 10-6 before losses to Davidson and North Carolina ended their season. The tournament title added to FGCU's four regular season crowns.
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 78 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including both men's soccer, women's soccer, and women's basketball again in 2018-19. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in spring 2018 and have outpaced their institution's undergraduate student body GPA each of the past twenty semesters. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl in 2017.
 
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