MADEIRA BEACH, FL – The FGCU softball team (13-6) fell to Miami (OH) (9-6) by a score of 3-2, Sunday afternoon at the ROC Complex.
"Today against Miami it was another close game and they were able to pull through in the end," said head coach
David Deiros. "We're one-third of the way through our season but I like where we stand. Wednesday night will be our biggest test of the year against Florida so we have to prepare and be ready to go."
Both teams exchanged runs in the first inning. FGCU plated home the first run off the bat of
Haley Morrell (Tampa, FL/Academy of Holy Names).
Mikenzie Vaughn (Kennesaw, GA/FSW/Harrison HS) stood on second with one out as Morrell drilled a liner to right-center for the 1-0 lead. The RedHawks responded with an unearned run to tie the contest.
Miami added another run in the bottom of the fourth before FGCU tied the contest again in the top of the sixth. Vaughn led off the frame with a single up the middle –
Hannah Shemansky (Lakeland, FL/Santa Fe Catholic) pinch ran for her and then swiped second. A sac bunt from
Reedy Davenport (St. Johns, FL/Bartram Trail HS) moved her to third as Morrell brought her home with an infield single to the shortstop.
The RedHawks loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh and scored the winning run off a fielding error en route to the 3-2 final.
Sarah Lawton (Waterbury, CT/FSW/Holy Cross) gets tagged with the loss moving her record to 6-2. At the dish, Morrell finished 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Up Next
FGCU hits the road traveling to Gainesville to face No. 6 Florida (17-4) in a 6 p.m. matchup.
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 655-343-3 (.657), 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.
