FORT MYERS, Fla. - The FGCU softball team suffered a 7-2 setback Wednesday against UCF at the FGCU Softball Complex.

With the midweek loss, the Eagles fell to 24-16, while the Knights improved to 24-18 and ran their win streak against the Green & Blue to five straight.

"Today served its purpose," said FGCU softball head coach David Deiros. "We got everybody into the game against a very good team, except for Ally and Angie. Now, our sights are set on this weekend in Conway, Arkansas. Great opportunity for us to try and make a dent in Central Arkansas' lead. Looking forward to it."

UCF made a statement early, scoring three times in the first inning off FGCU junior Claire Maulding (Casey, Ill./Casey Westfield HS/Lake Land College) -- who earned her eighth start of the season in the circle.

Maulding (4-4) pitched three innings and surrendered four runs on eight hits in the loss. Senior Baylee Haggard (Naples, Fla./Palmetto Ridge HS/Florida SouthWestern State & South Florida State College) entered the game in the fourth in relief, shutting down the Knights' offensive front with scoreless innings in the fourth and fifth to keep the Eagles within reach.

After remaining hitless through four complete, FGCU began to figure out American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week Grace Jewell (8-5).

Both sophomore Riley Oakes (Oviedo, Fla./Bishop Moore Catholic HS/Radford) and sophomore Avery Viancos (Orlando, Fla./Lake Nona HS) produced fifth-inning singles to provide life to the Eagles bench. FGCU would even load the bases in the fifth to put pressure on Jewell and the Knights, but failed to push across a run. 

The Eagles offense finally found paydirt in the sixth via a bunt single by redshirt sophomore Meagan Ricks (Winter Haven, Fla./Winter Haven HS) and an ensuing RBI double by sophomore Kayleigh Roper (Venice, Fla./Venice HS/Michigan State) -- pulling FGCU to within three, 4-1. FGCU also forced an UCF pitching change to end Jewell's day.

UCF responded, however, with its second three-run inning in the top of the seventh to squelch any hope of an Eagles comeback. 

Graduate Tayli Filla's (Fort Myers, Fla./Bishop Verot HS/USF) RBI double in the bottom of the seventh was the final burst of offense for the Eagles, her team-leading 26th RBI of the season and also extended her reached-base streak to 16 games.

Viancos produced two of FGCU's six hits, finishing 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored. Three of FGCU's six hits were doubles.

Oakes threw out a Knight from shallow center, and freshman Tiffany Meek (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla./William T. Dwyer HS) made a diving grab at shortstop to highlight the Eagles' defensive effort.

FGCU failed to record a stolen base against UCF, and is now 1-9 in such games this season. Entering Wednesday's battle, the Eagles ranked eighth in the nation in total stolen bases.

With the non-conference slate now complete, FGCU will return its focus to ASUN Conference play -- starting Friday at current second-place Central Arkansas (24-8, 8-1 ASUN) for a three-game road series. Central Arkansas was picked to finish second in the preseason ASUN Coaches Poll.

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.

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 730-413-3 (.637) record, gone 182-112 (.619) 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.

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 FGCUCampus 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 96 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. 16 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.

---FGCUATHLETICS.COM---