Skip To Main Content

2022 SB
4
FGCU FGCU 16-32
9
Winner Mercer MER 16-35
FGCU FGCU
16-32
4
Final
9
Mercer MER
16-35
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
FGCU FGCU 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 4 5 1
Mercer MER 0 0 1 0 3 5 X 9 14 1

W: Bailey Pattison (1-0) L: Oakes, Riley (2-11)

0
FGCU FGCU 16-33
8
Winner Florida UF 40-14
FGCU FGCU
16-33
0
Final
8
Florida UF
40-14
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 R H E
FGCU FGCU 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2
Florida UF 1 3 1 1 1 1 8 14 2

W: Elizabeth Hightower (13-7) L: Estroff, Emily (3-5)

Game Recap: Softball |

Eagles Falter Against Mercer and No. 10 Florida On Friday

GAINESVILLE, FLA. - FGCU softball dropped a pair of contests in Gainesville on Friday. The Eagles lost to Mercer 9-4 in the afternoon slate and capped the night off with a 8-0 defeat against No. 10 Florida.

FGCU fell to 15-33 on the season in Friday's losses. Mercer split the day with the Eagles and the Gators and now sits at 16-36. Florida swept the doubleheader action to improve to 40-14 overall.

The Green and Blue is now set to close out the regular season tomorrow, facing Mercer at 9:30 a.m. and then No. 10 Florida once more at 12 p.m. on SECN+.

"Well, I'm proud of how we started the first game of the day, jumping on 'em early," head coach David Deiros said. "We just have to do a better job of sealing the deal and playing a complete game from start to finish for tomorrow's games. Tonight, Florida showed us what it takes to be a top-10 and a 40-plus win squad. We hit the ball well against the Gators, but just right at them it seems like. A couple hard hit balls were just a few feet short as we battled every pitch. Looking to finish the season on a high note tomorrow."

In the first game of the day against Mercer, FGCU soared out of the starting gates. The Eagles plated two in the first inning courtesy of a 2-RBI double by Neely Peterson.

Sam Leski added her first career home run in the second as the Eagles led 3-0 through two complete.

Cana Davis would collect her team-leading 39th RBI of the year to put the Green and Blue up 4-1 through four. Mercer then answered with eight unanswered runs to win 9-4.

The Bears scored three in the fifth and five in the sixth, posting 14 hits on the day to FGCU's five.

Davis finished 2-for-3 in game one. Emily Estroff also added a hit for the Green and Blue.

Ally Hulme got her 25th start in the circle for the Eagles against the Bears, tossing 5.0 innings. Hulme allowed four runs on nine hits and struck out four. Riley Oakes was credited with the loss in the defeat to Mercer.

In the night cap against No. 10 Florida, FGCU tallied two hits. Both Estroff and McKenna Batterton produced singles to give FGCU life, but the Green and Blue was shutout for just the eighth time all season.

Tonight's battle against the Gators marked the 12th game of the season in which FGCU has faced a top 25 opponent, a program single-season record in the Division I era for the Eagles. 

Florida scored at least one run in every inning as the Eagles surrendered 14 hits once again. In the circle, Estroff earned the starting nod for FGCU and was credited with the loss in 5.0 innings of work.

In today's ASUN action, FGCU was officially eliminated in hopes of capturing the final qualifying spot for the upcoming conference tournament.

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 705-397-3 (.638), going 176-109 (.618) in the ASUN, having 16 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 92 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 44 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.

Print Friendly Version