FORT MYERS, Fla. – The 2023 FGCU baseball season begins this weekend, as the Eagles take on Hofstra in a four-game series starting Friday night at Swanson Stadium.
 
The Green & Blue face the Hofstra Pride from the Colonial Athletic Association – with first pitch Friday set for 6:30 p.m. The Eagles and Pride play a doubleheader Saturday at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., and wrap up the series at noon Sunday.
 
All games in the FGCU-Hofstra series will be broadcast on EagleVision, which is available free on the FGCUAthletics.com site. CLICK HERE to see the individual game schedule and links to specific broadcasts.
 
FGCU baseball tickets can be purchased online at www.FGCUTickets.com or at the Alico Arena box office. No pets or emotional support animals are allowed at Swanson Stadium. Only certified service animals are allowed.
 
FGCU finished 2022 with a 35-23 record, which included a 22-13 mark at Swanson Stadium, and was 76th in the final 2022 RPI rankings. The Eagles will be led by senior infielder Alejandro Figueredo (Sucre, Venezuela/West Oaks HS/Seminole State) and senior first baseman Joe Kinker (North Port, Fla./Venice HS), who both earned ASUN First-Team All-Conference honors. Also returning for FGCU is redshirt senior outfielder Brian Ellis (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS), an ASUN Second-Team All-Conference award winner, as well as ASUN All-Freshman Team pitcher/outfielder and Freshman All-American Harrison Povey (Indian Rocks Beach, Fla./Largo HS).
 
Figueredo was named the ASUN Conference Preseason Player of the Year earlier this month, with Ellis, Povey and Kinker each making the ASUN Preseason All-Conference Team. Figueredo was the only unanimous selection to the ASUN Preseason All-Conference Team.
 
Figueredo belted 13 home runs, 21 doubles, a triple, drove in 62 runs and scored 49 runs in 2022. For his FGCU career, Figueredo sports a .339 batting average with 18 homers, 27 doubles, 88 RBIs, 69 runs scored and 56 walks.
 
Kinker is currently second in FGCU history with 42 home runs, and hit .273 with 20 homers, 14 doubles, 51 RBIs and 62 runs scored last season. Kinker is hitting .275 in his FGCU career, with 32 doubles, a triple, 142 runs scored and 142 RBIs. He has drawn 128 walks in four seasons – including 50 last season alone.
 
Ellis is the only captain coach Dave Tollett has named in his 36-year coaching career. Ellis sports a .496 career on-base percentage from the leadoff spot. He hit .379 with a team-high 74 runs, and reached base in 68 consecutive games.
 
Povey hit .288 last season with 15 home runs and 62 RBIs. The left-handed right fielder doubled 13 times and carried a .562 slugging percentage as a freshman en route to NCBWA Freshman All-American honors.
 
FGCU was tabbed to finish third in the ASUN – behind Liberty and Kennesaw State – in the ASUN Preseason Baseball Coaches Poll. The Eagles garnered two first-place votes. Liberty led the way with 10 first-place votes and 191 total points, with Kennesaw State also garnering two first-place votes and 173 total points. FGCU has 161 points.
 
Hofstra is coming off a 2022 season that saw the Pride win their first-ever CAA title and advance to NCAA Regionals for the first time in program history as well under first-year coach Frank Catalanotto. Hofstra was 30-23 last season and returns every starter from that team – including All-CAA selections Brian Morrell, Brad Camarda, Michael O'Hanlon, Kevin Bruggeman, Ryan Morash, and Jake Liberatore.
 
Morrell, a graduate outfielder, batted a team-best .346 last season with eight home runs and 39 RBIs. Camarda, a graduate pitcher, was 8-2 with a 3.82 ERA and was named the CAA Championship Most Outstanding Player. O'Hanlon, the Pride's closer, was 3-2 with six saves and a 4.74 ERA. Bruggeman, a senior catcher, batted .293 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs. Morash, a graduate infielder, hit .289 with 11 doubles and 12 stolen bases, while Liberatore, a graduate utility player, batted .292 with four home runs and 22 RBIs.
 
For complete coverage of FGCU baseball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_Baseball and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU baseball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
 
INDIVIDUAL TICKETS, MINI PLANS AVAILABLE  
Tickets for the 2023 FGCU baseball season are on sale now and can be purchased by going online to www.FGCUTickets.com or calling 866-FGCU-TIX. Group tickets can also be purchased for 10 or more people – making a memorable evening for families, businesses, or other organizations.  
 
COACH TOLLETT
FGCU coach Dave Tollett currently owns a 671-408-3 overall record (.620) and a 228-118 (.659) 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 63 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, two National Freshman All-Americans, one National Freshman Player of the Year, one National Player of the Year and one seven-time MLB All-Star.
 
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 (https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/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 https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.  
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 94 confererence regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 47 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. 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 four of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green & 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 26 consecutive semesters. The past six semesters (Fall 2019 – Spring 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative 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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