GAINESVILLE, Fla. - FGCU softball and Ally Hulme completed the Saturday sweep of No. 10 Florida and Mercer to end the season.
FGCU (18-33) defeated the Gators (40-15) for just the second time in program history, the first time since 2012.
Today's 3-2 win over No. 10 Florida marked the second top-10 win of the season for the Green and Blue and its 10th top-25 win in the Division I era. Back on February 8, FGCU defeated No. 8 Texas 6-4 in Fort Myers.
"The Eagles had a great day today, and it was a fantastic way to end our season," head coach David Deiros said. "We started our season with a top-10 win and finished it with a top-10 win. I wish we had more time to go ahead and show what we can do, but that's just not the way it goes.
Congratulations to our senior class for all that they've done for the program. I thought that Ally (Hulme) really strong today, and they (Florida) gave us their best shot in the seventh to go ahead and she maintained. Fantastic job by us, and we will see you next year."
Hulme tossed a complete-game gem to lift the Eagles past the ranked Gators. Hulme held a no-hitter through five complete, finishing with only three hits allowed and struck out four in 134 total pitches.
With the tying run on second and the winning run on first for Florida, Hulme forced a final fly out to right to seal the deal.
Offensively, FGCU tallied eight hits on the day, scoring a pair of runs in the fifth and one in the sixth.
In the fourth, Cana Davis connected on her team-leading 13th round tripper of the year. Senior Tayli Filla followed to produce an RBI-double to score senior Emily Estroff.
Davis added an infield-single of an RBI to make it 3-0 Eagles though five complete in Gainesville. Davis, Filla and senior Hope Hernandez each produced two hits against the Gators, each finishing 2-for-3 up at the plate.
In the morning slate, FGCU rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat Mercer 6-4. A five-run fifth helped the Eagles soar past the Bears.
Both Neely Peterson and Davis homered in the first game of the day. Senior McKenna Batterton led the offensive charge over the Bears with a 2-for-3 effort, tallying two RBIs and a run scored.
Angelina Bonilla earned the start and the win in the circle for the Green and Blue, tossing 5.1 innings.
Estroff was credited with her third save of the year in relief action.
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 707-397-3 (.640), 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.
