FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU softball team (28-19, 13-6 ASUN) fell to Lipscomb (37-13-1, 15-4) by scores of 2-0 and 4-2 Thursday night at the FGCU Softball Complex. With both losses, FGCU will head into next week's ASUN Tournament as the No. 3 seed.
"Tonight it was two really competitive games and it's exactly what the conference tournament is going to be like next week," head coach
David Deiros said. "I would've liked a better result but our kids needed to be in that environment to see what works and see what we can do better next time. We're the No. 3 seed regardless so we'll play it out tomorrow and be ready for next Wednesday."
Lipscomb 2 | FGCU 0
Scoreless after a pair of frames, the Lady Bisons scored its two runs using three hits in the top of the third.
The two hits came off the bats of sophomore
Farley Callaghan (Ponte Vedra Beach, FL./Ponte Vedra HS) in the second and senior
Racquel Fournet (Windermere, FL./Windermere Preparatory School) in the fourth, both singles. It's just the third time this season the Green and Blue have been limited to a pair of hits.
Senior starting pitcher
Riley Randolph (St. Petersburg, FL./Northeast HS) fanned seven batters in the losing effort, scattering eight hits.
Lipscomb 4 | FGCU 2
The visitors scratched two runs across the board in the top of the fifth using a walk followed by a triple as the runner would come home on an errant throw.
FGCU answered right away in its half in thrilling fashion with back-to-back home runs. Looking at one out, Callaghan drove a 1-1 pitch to straight-away center that bounced off the glove of Lipscomb's center fielder for her third of the year. Up next, junior
Sammi Poehlman (Ormond Beach, FL./Daytona State) launched a full count pitch to left-center for the 2-2 tie, her first home run of the season.
Lipscomb responded in the very next inning with one run on two hits. Down just one in the bottom of the sixth, senior
Kate Kelly smacked a leadoff single before being called out for leaving the bag early. The Lady Bisons pushed across one more runner in the top of the seventh as FGCU would try to rally in the bottom frame.
FGCU produced two base hits and eventually put runners in scoring position in the final inning but two straight strikeouts ended the ball game.
Sophomore
Marissa Mesiemore (Bushnell, FL./South Sumter HS) is tagged with the loss after going 6.0 innings yielding seven hits while fanning five batters. On offense, Callaghan and Kelly each went 2-for-3.
Up Next
FGCU takes on Lipscomb in the regular season finale at 1 p.m. Friday afternoon.
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 is in his 17th season as head coach. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the dirt up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to a Eagles to a 635-333-3 (.657), going 149-90 (.623) in the ASUN, having 13 seasons with a winning record, and nine campaigns with 35 wins. 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.
#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 visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 77 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 and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the Spring, 2018 and had an ASUN Conference and State of Florida best five teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours – being recognized as one of two runner-ups for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--
