FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU Athletics Department has announced its seventh pair of 2020-21 monthly academic honorees. Softball senior Taylor Bauman and baseball junior Gus Carter have been named the Scholar-Athletes of the Month for February.

A female and male Eagle are chosen as the FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athlete of the Month throughout the academic year. Factors in the selection for this honor include a combination of significant athletic and overall academic success.

Bauman (Jacksonville, Fla./Atlantic Coast HS) is an Exercise Science major with a 3.61 GPA. The right-handed pitcher is a seven-time Athletic Director's Honor Roll member, a six-time Dean's List honoree, and landed a spot on the President's List (4.0 GPA) last Fall term. Bauman is currently the Secretary of FGCU's Eagles Council.

So far in the circle this season, the Jacksonville native has collected a pair of wins and boasts a 2.23 ERA. At the plate, Baumnan is fourth on the team in hitting (.250) and leads the Green and Blue in home runs (two) and RBI (eight).

"Since her early success as a freshman, Taylor has turned into a complete player as the years gone by," said head softball coach David Deiros. "When she started her major course work, she's taken on more responsibility and has become a leader for our team. When it's all said and done, she will become a great physical therapist."

Carter (Melbourne, Fla./EAU Gallie HS/Florida Southwestern State) is a Business Management major and carries a 3.75 GPA. He's a five-time Athletic Director's Honor Roll selection, four-time Dean's List honoree, and a President's List member (Fall '19).

In five appearances (one start) this year, the southpaw hurler holds a 0.68 ERA in his 13.1 innings of work. He's second on the team with 16 strikeouts and is holding opposing batters to a .204 BA.

"This is an outstanding achievement for Gus, who leads by example both on the field and in the classroom," said head baseball coach Dave Tollett. "We look to our upperclassmen to set the standard for our program and Gus has done that on a consistent basis. Congratulations to him."

FGCU Scholar-Athletes of the Month
August – Cortney VanLiew (Indoor Volleyball/Beach Volleyball) and Connor Gavigan (Men's Soccer)
September – Zoey Spitzer (Women's Soccer) and Lucas Kiprotich (Men's Cross Country)
October – Snowy Burnam (Indoor Volleyball/Beach Volleyball) and Johnny Long (Baseball)
November – Wiktoria Czarnecka (Swimming & Diving) and Caleb Catto (Men's Basketball)
December – Tyra Cox (Women's Basketball) and Aiden Jokomba (Men's Soccer)
January – Hannah VanDress (Swimming & Diving) and Brian Ellis (Baseball)
February – Taylor Bauman (Softball) and Gus Carter (Baseball)

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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 84 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.