TALLAHASSEE, Fla. --- In what was the conclusion to the regular season, the FGCU baseball team (27-18) split a two-game series with No. 17 Florida State (26-18) that featured a game-winning, ninth-inning home run for each team inside Dick Howser Stadium on Wednesday.
Jacob Lojewski's solo shot in the top half of the ninth provided the winning run in an 8-7 victory for the Eagles in the opener, while Elijah Cabell's leadoff homer provided a walk-off celebration in a 2-1 win for the Seminoles in the finale.
"I was happy we were able to find a way to win the opener against one of the best teams in the country, especially after giving up the lead," FGCU head coach
Dave Tollett said. "Lojewski came through in a big way, and our pitching had a fine performance in the finale despite taking the loss. We'll rest up and get ourselves ready for the conference tourney."
The series began on Tuesday night as the Seminoles took a 2-1 lead into the fifth inning before lightning forced the suspension of the game. Once action resumed on Wednesday at noon, the Seminoles tacked on an unearned run for a two-run lead.
The FGCU offense, however, exploded for a six-run rally with two outs in the sixth.
Ian Farrow walked to lead off the inning and
Alejandro Rodriguez singled three batters later to put runners on the corners.
Brian Ellis then pulled the Eagles within one on an infield single to second before
Richie Garcia sent his 25th career home run over the left field fence on a 2-1 pitch to give the Eagles a 5-3 lead.
Joe Kinker followed with a solo shot to dead center to extend the rally.
Stephen Wilmer kept the line moving with a double, and
Alejandro Figueredo finished it with an RBI single to right for a 7-3 lead.
Although the Green and Blue held FSU scoreless in the bottom of the sixth, the Seminoles used three hits and a walk to plate four runs in the seventh to tie the game.
After a pair of scoreless frames and with the first two batters retired in the ninth,
Lojewski (West Palm Beach, Fla./American Heritage Delray HS) sent a 1-0 pitch over the left field fence to give the Eagles an 8-7 lead.
Jason Woodward then finished off the Seminoles on six pitches in the bottom half, which included a strikeout looking to end the game.
Woodward (Titusville, Fla./Titusville HS) got the win in relief, improving to 3-2 as he struck out five while allowing two hits and two runs over the final three innings.
Tyler Shuck (Cape Coral, Fla./Canterbury HS) went the middle two-plus innings in relief.
Offensively, Figueredo (2-for-4, 2 RBI) and
Rodriguez (Cidra, Puerto Rico/Montverde Academy/Eastern Florida State) (2-for-4, R) each had a pair of hits. Garcia's three RBI performance led the team as he also tied
Wilmer (Sarasota, Fla./Riverview HS/Pasco-Hernando State/ECU) and
Farrow (Merritt Island, Fla./Merritt Island HS) for the team-high in walks with two.
Ronaldo Gallo tossed the game's first four innings for the Eagles on Tuesday as he received a no decision after striking out five while allowing three hits, two runs and two walks.
In the finale, a pitcher's duel featured six pitchers combined for the two teams as they allowed just 13 total hits and struck out 14. Each team's leadoff hitter produced the game's first two runs. Florida State's Tyler Martin sent an 0-2 pitch to center for an RBI single in the third, and
Ellis (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS) tacked on his third home run this year with a solo shot to right field in the fifth.
Tyler Tipton started for FGCU and allowed just two hits, one run and one walk while striking out one over four innings.
Hunter McGarry tossed the fifth inning, striking out one and allowing just one hit.
Joey Mugavero (Estero, Fla./Estero HS/FSW), who ultimately took the loss and fell to 4-2, went the final three-plus innings, allowing three hits and two walks with three strikeouts before surrendering the walk-off home run.
Ellis (3-for-4, HR) and
Figueredo (Sucre, Venezuela/West Oaks HS/Seminole State) (2-for-4) combined for five of FGCU's seven hits. Farrow added a walk while finishing 1-for-3, and
Kinker (North Port, Fla./Venice HS) extended his hitting streak to 11 with a leadoff single in the fourth.
Notes
With his 25th home run,
Garcia (Davie, Fla./West Broward HS) moved into sole possession of fourth place on the program's all-time career list, surpassing Jason Louwsma (2005-06).
Ellis finishes the regular season with a .378 average, overtaking UNF's Alex Kachler (.374) for the ASUN lead. It is also on pace for the fourth-highest single-season batting average in FGCU's Division I era.
The Eagles have now won four of the past seven matchups with Florida State dating back to 2015. They have won five games in the series overall.
Along with a win over No. 21 FAU on March 7, Wednesday's victory over FSU in the opener signified FGCU's second triumph over a ranked team this year. It is the fourth time the Eagles have defeated a nationally-ranked Seminoles squad, including a 5-2 win over No. 1 FSU in 2017.
Next Up
The top-seeded Eagles will now get some time to rest up before opening postseason play May 21-23 as they host No. 4 Jacksonville in a best two-of-three ASUN quarterfinal series inside Swanson Stadium. Stay tuned to FGCUathletics.com for the latest update on when each of those games will start. Should the Green and Blue advance, they would then move on to the final four, which will be held at Harmon Stadium in Jacksonville.
ASUN Standings
South Division
| School |
ASUN |
Overall |
| #1 FGCU |
12-6 |
27-18 |
| #2 North Florida |
11-7 |
18-20 |
| #3 Stetson |
10-8 |
25-20 |
| #4 Jacksonville |
3-15 |
10-30 |
North Division
| School |
ASUN |
Overall |
| #1 Liberty |
17-1 |
33-11 |
| #2 Kennesaw State |
12-6 |
26-17 |
| #3 Lipscomb |
8-13 |
17-25 |
| #4 Bellarmine |
8-16 |
13-31 |
| North Alabama |
6-15 |
7-39 |
Tuesday Results
Eastern Kentucky 3, Bellarmine 2
No. 2 Vanderbilt 3, North Alabama 2
Stetson 6, No. 7 Florida 1
Wednesday Results
FGCU 8, No. 17 Florida State 7
No. 17 Florida State 2, FGCU 1
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COACH TOLLETT
FGCU coach Dave Tollett currently owns a 635-383-3 overall record (.624) and a 211-115 (.647) 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.
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#FEEDFGCU
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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 40 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 21, 2020-21), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) 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 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 23 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, and 2020 Fall 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.
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