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MIAMI, Fla. – The No. 24 FGCU baseball team (27-10) lost its third straight mid-week game on Wednesday night, as the FIU Panthers rallied to win 5-4 in 11 innings at the FIU Baseball Stadium.
 
The setback came in FGCU's first extra-inning game of the season, was the Eagles' first loss to the Panthers in 2023, and snapped a six-game winning streak against their cross-state rivals. The Green & Blue has not prevailed in a mid-week matchup since beating FIU 12-5 on March 22 in Miami.

Two of FGCU's seven pitchers recorded six strikeouts apiece: senior Stephen Wilmer (Sarasota, Fla./Riverview HS/Pasco-Hernando State/ECU) made his collegiate debut and threw three hitless innings, and redshirt sophomore Connor O'Hara (Davie, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas HS) allowed just one hit over 2 1/3 innings.

"We had an amazing night on the mound with 18 strikeouts, which was really great to see," said FGCU head baseball coach Dave Tollett. "Our offense, which is one of the best in the country, had an off night -- which is unlike us. We really hit some balls hard into a tough wind, but we look forward to getting back home to Swanson Stadium this weekend."
 
The Eagles managed just six hits Wednesday night, but grabbed a 4-2 lead in the 11^th on a two-run homer by sophomore outfielder Harrison Povey (Indian Rocks Beach, Fla./Largo HS). Povey and senior outfielder Jalen Townsend (Orlando, Fla./Winter Park HS) each finished with two hits.
 
FIU (15-22) rallied in the bottom of the 11^th – getting two singles and then pushing across a run on an FGCU fielding error. FGCU issued an intentional walk to load the bases, then issued a seven-pitch walk to Brendan Roney to tie the game 4-4.
 
FGCU got Noel Perez to strike out and bring the Green & Blue to within an out of extending the game, but Mike Rosario looked at ball four to force across the winning run and set off a celebratory frenzy at first base.
 
FIU took a 2-0 lead in the second inning on a Cesar Franco RBI double and a Craig Palidar run-scoring single. But junior infielder Edrick Felix (Orlando, Fla./Victory Charter HS/College of Central Florida) crushed a two-run homer in the top of the third – his team-leading 16^th – to tie it 2-2.
 
Graduate outfielder Brian Ellis (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS) drew two walks against FIU, extending his unofficial NCAA record for consecutive games safely reaching base to 106.
 
Mario Fernandez earned the victory for FIU. FGCU senior reliever LJ McDonough (Blanchard, Okla./Blanchard HS/Wichita State) absorbed the loss.
 
The Eagles aim to rebound this weekend at home – heading back into ASUN Conference play tied for first place with Lipscomb at 11-4 and hosting Jacksonville State (17-18, 10-5) starting at 6:30 p.m. Friday. Swanson Award winners will be recognized in a pre-game ceremony, $3 beer and Nutrl will be on sale for all fans 21+, and it is Youth Night – with free admission for kids 12-under along with a post-game poster signing.
 
For complete coverage of FGCU baseball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_Baseball and online at http://www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU baseball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting http://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 698-418-3 overall record (.625) and a 239-133 (.642) 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 97 conference 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 48 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. Nine FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20 in 2021-22 and No. 22 in 2022-23), baseball (No. 15 in 2023), beach volleyball (No. 20 in 2022), and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as five 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 3.67 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 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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