FORT MYERS, FL – The FGCU softball team (9-3) opened the Spring Break Invite with a 3-1 win over Fordham (1-11) Friday night at the FGCU Softball Complex.
"Tonight was a great win over a very quality opponent – don't let their record fool you," said head coach
David Deiros. We were able to battle back and get enough run support for our pitching staff who did a fantastic job tonight keeping them at bay. I'm very proud of our kids tonight and their effort."
The visitors scratched a run across the board in the first inning off an error to take the early 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the third, catcher
Ahnie Jumper (Clewiston, FL/Plantation American Heritage) led the bottom half off with a double to dead center.
Johneisha Rowe (Avon Park, FL/Sebring HS) moved her over on a sac bunt as
McKenna Batterton (Norco, CA/Eleanor Roosevelt HS) brought Jumper home hitting a ground ball to first.
FGCU took over the 2-1 lead thanks to a sac fly to left from
Nicole Hayslip (Royal Palm Beach, FL/Royal Palm Beach HS) in the bottom of the fourth.
Sammi Poehlman (Ormond Beach, FL/Daytona State/Seabreeze HS) started the inning off with a walk, stole second and was moved to third on a sac bunt from
Reedy Davenport (St. Johns, FL/Bartram Trail HS). Hayslip then skied one to center to score Poehlman.
Starting pitcher
Marissa Mesiemore (Bushnell, FL/South Sumter HS) exited after four frames scattering just three hits, fanned three batters while giving up one unearned run.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Green and Blue added some insurance scoring one run on three hits. With the bases loaded,
Mikenzie Vaughn (Kennesaw, GA/FSW/Harrison HS) brought home pinch-runner
Hannah Shemansky (Lakeland, FL/Santa Fe Catholic) – running for Jumper who singled to lead off the inning.
Sarah Lawton (Waterbury, CT/FSW/Holy Cross) faced 10 batters, striking out seven of them as she earned her first save of the year. Mesiemore moved to 5-2 overall in the circle.
At the dish, Vaughn finished 3-for-3 with one RBI as Jumper went 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Up Next
FGCU faces UMass Lowell Saturday evening at 6 p.m. followed by Michigan State at 8 p.m.
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.
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COACH DEIROS
The founding father of FGCU softball, David Deiros is in his 18th season as head coach. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the dirt up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to a 651-340-3 (.656), going 147-90 (.620) 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.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 81 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just eight-plus 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 women's basketball (2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. 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. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty-one consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall semester saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 – being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
