ATLANTA – The ASUN Conference released its 2021 baseball slate on Thursday afternoon, reporting that league play will commence in March. The announcement also shared that the conference will be split into North and South Divisions with FGCU falling into the second group.

The Eagles, who are the reigning ASUN Regular-Season Champions after capturing their fifth crown in 2019, will be joined in the South Division by Jacksonville, Stetson and UNF. The North Division will be comprised of Lipscomb, Liberty, North Alabama, Kennesaw State and newcomer Bellarmine.

"The start of conference play is something that we have always circled on our calendar," head coach Dave Tollett said. "This league has become extremely competitive over the years and there's not a single program in it that you can ever count out. Obviously, we would prefer to get a chance to play all of the teams in our conference. That being said, we understand the decision and appreciate the measures that the ASUN Conference is taking to protect both our student-athletes and our season. We are excited about the group that we have this year and will be ready come that first series against Stetson."

Though the North Division will kick off the 2021 ASUN Conference slate the weekend of March 12, the Eagles and the rest of the South Division will have to wait an additional two weeks. On March 26, FGCU will begin the conference portion of its schedule with a three-game series on the road at Stetson. While in DeLand, FGCU will look to maintain its all-time advantage against the Hatters, which currently sits at 20-19. That edge also holds true in road contests, which favor the Eagles 11-9.

FGCU will then remain on the road for an Easter weekend matchup against UNF (April 1-3). Like Stetson, FGCU has also earned an edge in contests against the Ospreys, as the Eagles currently sit at 23-21.

Following the road stint, FGCU will return to Swanson Stadium for its ASUN home-opener against Jacksonville (April 9-11). The Dolphins were one of three conference teams that the Eagles swept during their dominant 2019 season. Over the course of that series, which was played at Swanson Stadium, FGCU outscored the visiting Dolphins 17-3.

After the series against the Dolphins, the Eagles will head up to DeLand for a round-robin weekend hosted by the Stetson Hatters (April 16-18). The Green & Blue will face off against the three other schools in the league's south division, starting with Jacksonville on April 16. The following two days will see the squad match up against Stetson (April 17) and UNF (April 18).  

The round-robin weekend marks the halfway point in the 2021 conference slate, meaning that FGCU will make return trips to teams it previously hosted and take on the other ball clubs at home.

The second half of the conference slate will kick off with back-to-back weekends at home against Stetson (April 23-25) and UNF (April 30-May 2). FGCU will then make a trip to John Sessions Stadium to take on Jacksonville (May 7-9) for its final regular season series.

In its last weekend of league play, the Eagles will head to Kennesaw State to take on the Owls, as well as Liberty, in a crossover series between the North and South Divisions (May 14-16). FGCU will face off against Kennesaw State both Friday and Sunday with a game against Liberty set to be played on Saturday.

Further information regarding the non-conference schedule, as well as the ASUN Championship, will be released as contests become finalized. The ASUN has also stated that its 2021 baseball slate, including dates, times and format, is still subject to further change. The full schedule can be found HERE.

For complete coverage of FGCU baseball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_Baseball and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU baseball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.

COACH TOLLETT
FGCU coach Dave Tollett currently owns a 608-365-3 overall record (.624) and a 199-109 (.646) 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 five-time ASUN Coach of the Year and has guided the Green and Blue to five 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, 33 draft picks, three current major leaguers, 13 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.

SUSTAINING FLIGHT CAMPAIGN
To help offset the financial impact of COVID-19, FGCU Athletics has launched the Sustaining Flight Fundraiser and Auction. The fundraising campaign will help mitigate operational revenue loss and the additional expenses incurred as a result of COVID-19 protocols. All funds raised during the campaign will go to support areas that directly impact student-athletes.
 
In lieu of hosting the annual Night at the Nest gala this year, one of FGCU's most successful fundraising events, the department will be hosting a virtual, online auction from Monday, Nov. 30 through Friday, Dec. 4. Fans and supporters will be able to bid on exclusive memorabilia, trip packages, unique event experiences and more. For more information, visit www.fgcuathletics.com/sustainingflight. 

E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
#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 82 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 38 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 (No. 24, 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 (APR) in their sport and have had the highest percentage of teams so honored from these two groups over each of the past three years. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each 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.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--