ORLANDO, Fla. – The FGCU softball team closed out the non-conference schedule on Sunday with two games at the UCF Softball Complex. The Eagles dropped game one of the day to South Carolina, 12-5, before falling to #24 UCF, 10-2. FGCU falls to 7-15 on the season while the Gamecocks improve to 13-6 and the Knights to 15-7.
"I know today's scores will not accurately reflect how well we played today, but it's true," said head coach
David Deiros. "ASUN play starts next weekend and we will be ready to go."
Redshirt-senior
Cana Davis (Harrisonburg, Va./Turner Ashby HS/Virginia Tech) had a big day at the plate as she went 5-for-7 in the two games including two home runs against UCF. Graduate student
Hope Hernandez (Tampa, Fla./Chamberlain HS/Troy) also had a solid day with four hits and three RBI.
In game one against the Gamecocks, the Green and Blue took an early 1-0 on a single by Hernandez in the first, but South Carolina answered with eight runs in the home half.
The Eagles got three runs back in the third on an error and a two-run double by Hernandez, but South Carolina responded with three runs in the fourth to push its lead back up to seven. Davis picked up an RBI single in the sixth, but it was too little, too late for the Eagles.
Against the Knights, Davis opened the scoring with a solo home run in the first to give the Eagles the early lead.
In the third, Davis experienced one of the wildest sequences you will see in softball. After hitting the second pitch of the at-bat over the wall but just foul, she looked like she connected for a two-run home run a couple pitches later. However, the runner on first left early, so Davis was called back to the plate where she then proceeded to hit a home run anyway.
Unfortunately, that was the high point in the game for the Eagles as in the bottom of the third, the Knights took the lead with an eight-run inning before tacking on a run in the fourth and fifth to clinch the victory.
The Eagles will be back in action next weekend when they open ASUN action against North Florida at the FGCU Softball Complex. The teams will play a doubleheader at 2 p.m on Saturday before playing one game on Sunday at 1 p.m.
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.
COACH DEIROS
The founding father of FGCU softball,
David Deiros is in his 20th season as head coach during the 2022 campaign. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the dirt up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to a 695-376-3 (.653), going 162-93 (.632) in the ASUN, having 15 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.
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 89 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 10 seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 43 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. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) 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 25 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 2021) each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. 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.
