FORT MYERS, Fla. - The FGCU softball team is set to host the FGCU Invitational this weekend, beginning Friday at 10 a.m. at the FGCU Softball Complex.
The Eagles will play six games in a span of three days -- two on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday -- as the Green & Blue welcomes Boston College (4-1), Florida Atlantic (3-2), Lipscomb (0-2) and Middle Tennessee (4-1) to the City of Palms.
FGCU will square off against FAU at 12:15 p.m. Friday and Middle Tennessee at 5 p.m. Friday, then play Lipscomb at 10 a.m. Saturday and Middle Tennessee at 12:15 p.m. Saturday, and close with Boston College at 11:15 a.m. and FAU at 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
The weekend's FGCU's games will be streamed on EagleVision. Please visit the FGCU softball schedule page to view specific and individual game links to watch.
The full FGCU Invitational schedule can be seen below. Tickets can be purchased online at the FGCU Ticket Office or at the Alico Arena box office. No pets or emotional support animals are allowed at the FGCU Softball Complex. Only certified service animals are allowed.
FGCU concluded the FGCU Kickoff Classic with a walk-off 4-3 victory over LIU. The Eagles won in come-from-behind fashion three times last weekend -- rallying against UNCG once and LIU twice.
With the game tied 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh and an Eagle standing on third with one out, sophomore Kayleigh Roper (Venice, Fla./Venice HS/Michigan State) worked a nine-pitch at-bat to lift a fly ball to shallow right field. FGCU graduate student Tayli Filla (Fort Myers, Fla./Bishop Verot HS/USF) tagged up and sprinted for home -- avoiding the tag despite the ball beating her by nearly two steps to clinch the victory over LIU.
Roper has worked opposing pitching staffs this season especially well in two-strike counts, fouling off a total of 18 pitches in such situations. Roper is tied for the league lead in RBIs (7) and home runs (2).
Sophomore Avery Viancos (Orlando, Fla./Lake Nona HS) is tied for the most stolen bases in the ASUN with 4, while junior pitcher Claire Maulding (Casey, Ill./Casey Westfield HS/Lake Land College) is tied for the most wins in the circle with two. FGCU has been pitcher-by-committee thus far, as the Eagles have used seven different hurlers.
Filla leads all Eagles in total hits with six, and enters the FGCU Invitational on a five-game hit streak.
For up-to-the-minute information on the FGCU softball program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_Softball, Instagram at fgcusoftball, Facebook, and stay tuned at FGCUAthletics.com.
FGCU Invitational Full Schedule:
Day 1 (Friday, Feb. 17)
10 AM Lipscomb vs FAU
12:15 PM FAU @ FGCU
2:30 PM Lipscomb vs Boston College
5 PM MTSU @ FGCU
7:30 PM Boston College vs MTSU
Day 2 (Saturday, Feb. 18)
10 AM Lipscomb @ FGCU
12:15 PM MTSU @ FGCU
2:30 PM FAU vs Lipscomb
5 PM MTSU vs Boston College
7:30 PM Boston College vs FAU
Day 3 (Sunday, Feb. 19)
9 AM MTSU vs Lipscomb
11:15 AM Boston College @ FGCU
1:30 PM FAU @ FGCU
COACH DEIROS
The founding father of FGCU softball,
David Deiros enters his 21st season as head coach in 2023. Hired in 2001 to build the program from the ground up, Deiros has since guided the Eagles to a 709-399-3 (.638) record, gone 176-109 (.618) in the ASUN, had 16 seasons with a winning record and nine campaigns of 35+ wins. Deiros has also led the Eagles to three ASUN regular season championships (2008, 2012, and 2016) and one ASUN Tournament title (2012). In 2012, FGCU defeated No. 5 Florida in its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Last season (2022), FGCU took down both No. 8 Texas and No. 10 Florida once again. 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.
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#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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