DELAND, Fla. – The FGCU softball team (26-17, 15-3 ASUN) swept the doubleheader versus Stetson (8-24, 3-15) Saturday afternoon with scores of 5-4 and 7-0 at Patricia Wilson Field.

"Great effort to squeak out the first one and run away with the second one," said head coach David Deiros. "Happy graduation day to our eight seniors tomorrow – Maddy, Ahnie, Hope, Haley, Sarah, Marissa, Farley, and Taylor."

Game 1 | FGCU 5, Stetson 4
FGCU wasted no time scoring, posting three runs in the first thanks to Marissa Mesiemore's (Bushnell, Fla./South Sumter HS) third homer of the year. With two out, Reedy Davenport (St. Johns, Fla./Bartram Trail HS) doubled as Taylor Bauman (Jacksonville, Fla./Atlantic Coast HS) walked, allowing Mesiemore to blast a 0-2 pitch to center field for the 3-0 lead.

The Eagles held the Hatters scoreless until the bottom of the fourth where they scored on an RBI double. FGCU though quickly answered back with one run on two hits in the fifth. Facing two outs once again, Bauman laced a double to center to keep the frame alive for Mesiemore who drove her in with a double of her own to center field. Stetson continued to counter, this time scratching home two runs on four hits in its bottom half to make it a one-run game (4-3).

Following a scoreless sixth for both squads, the eventual game-winning running came off the bat of Davenport in the seventh. Johneisha Rowe (Avon Park, Fla./Sebring HS) roped a leadoff triple to left and with one out, Davenport laid down the safety squeeze bunt for the RBI. Stetson's final run was a home run off the bat of Shubert with two away.

Mesiemore gets the win (15-6) after tossing 3.2 innings of relief (started the game as the DP). She fanned one batter, giving up just one walk with six hits on three runs. Starter Sarah Lawton (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross HS/FSW) went 3.2 frames, scattered four hits on one run while walking two.

FGCU produced eight hits as Mesiemore finished 2-for-3 with a season-high four RBI.

Game 2 | FGCU 7, Stetson 0
Abbey Thomas (Fort Myers, Fla./Southwest Christian) put FGCU on the board in the first with a sac fly to left. Rowe originally reached on a fielding error before swiping second and moving to third on a ground ball. In the fourth, FGCU manufactured three runs on three hits with one Stetson error.

Thomas started the frame reaching on an error as Jordyn Gendron (Tampa, Fla./Wharton HS) ran for her. Moments later, Bauman smacked a doubled to right to put runners on third and second. Up next, Hope Hernandez (Tampa, Fla./Chamberlain HS/Troy) smoked a two-run single to left for the 3-0 margin. Two batters later, Haley Morrell (Tampa, Fla./Academy of Holy Names) doubled down the left-field line to cap off the scoring.

FGCU followed its three-run fourth with three more runs in the fifth. An RBI double from Thomas scored Rowe (leadoff single) from first before Bauman belted a two-run bomb to left – her team-leading fifth of the season. The senior right-handed pitcher worked 5.0 innings en route to her third win of the year. She scattered five hits with one walk. Emily Estroff (Coconut Creek, Fla./Coral Springs Charter/Villanova) threw the final two frames, holding the Hatters to one hit, one walk with one strikeout.

Out of FGCUs' 10 hits, three Eagles recorded at least two. Thomas, Bauman, and Hernandez finished with two RBI apiece.

Up Next
FGCU will face Stetson next weekend (May 7-8) at home to kick off the ASUN Tournament divisional series. The doubleheader will begin Friday a 5 p.m. and game three (if necessary) will be at 2 p.m. Saturday.

ASUN Standings

South Division

Place	Team	ASUN	Overall
1.	FGCU	15-3	26-17
2.	Jacksonville	9-9	25-16
3.	North Florida	9-9	19-21
4.	Stetson	3-15	8-24

North Division

Place	Team	ASUN	Overall
1.	Liberty	15-2	36-12
2.	Kennesaw State	10-4	22-22
3.	North Alabama	5-7	18-15
4.	Lipscomb	5-7	16-16
5.	Bellarmine	0-15	6-31

 
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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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!

COACH DEIROS
The founding father of FGCU softball, David Deiros is in his 19th season as head coach. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the dirt up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to a 687-362-3 (.653), going 162-93 (.632) in the ASUN, having 14 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 85 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 39 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.