FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The FGCU baseball team overpowered Kennesaw State Thursday for a 9-6 series-opening win at Swanson Stadium.
FGCU (38-15, 20-8 ASUN) took care of business Thursday, but remained one-game behind Lipscomb (31-32, 21-7) for the top spot in the ASUN Conference regular season standings as the Bisons defeated Jacksonville State 6-1 at home.
The Eagles will need to win out and get some help from the Gamecocks for the outright regular season conference title by witnessing JSU upend Lipscomb twice. However, FGCU can tie Lipscomb and still be crowned regular season champions if the Eagles win their two final games and the Bisons finish 1-1.
"It was a good win," said FGCU head coach Dave Tollett. "We've been struggling a bit in series openers of late. LJ gave us a decent start with four strikeouts. Chase (Kriebel) came in and got a big left-on-left out, and then Love was pretty special tonight."
Despite scoring at least one run in each of the opening three innings Thursday, FGCU found itself trailing the Owls 6-3 through four ½ complete. Kennesaw State spotted a run in both the second and third frames, but a 4-run fourth would lift KSU to its first lead of the night and its three-run advantage.
But no lead is ever safe against FGCU's highly potent offense. The Eagles continued to push runs across, scoring at least once during the first six innings. FGCU put up three consecutive crooked numbers during the span of the fourth, fifth and six frames.
In the fifth, sophomore Harrison Povey's (Indian Rocks Beach, Fla./Largo HS) RBI single tied the volatile back-and-forth affair for the fourth time, and sophomore Edrick Felix's (Orlando, Fla./Victory Charter HS/College of Central Florida) RBI sacrifice fly brought home the go-ahead and eventual winning run for a 7-6 lead.
The Eagles tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the sixth en route to the 9-6 victory.
FGCU battered the KSU pitching staff for 16 hits Thursday, including two doubles and a home run. Senior Alejandro Figueredo's (Sucre, Venezuela/West Oaks/HS Seminole State) solo blast in the third marked the 123rd home run this season for the Green & Blue, which leads the nation. FGCU is the only team in the country with at least 120 homers and 110 doubles.
The Eagles broke the program's single-season runs mark courtesy of senior Joe Kinker's (North Port, Fla./Venice HS) fourth-inning RBI single. FGCU's 517 runs this season toppled the long standing record of 512 set back in 2007.
Four Eagles produced two or more hits Thursday. Both Povey and redshirt sophomore Jacob Lojewski (West Palm Beach, Fla./American Heritage Delray) smacked three hits apiece.
Senior LJ McDonough (Blanchard, Okla./Blanchard HS/Wichita State) earned his first starting nod of the season and gave the Eagles 3 ⅓ of work. McDonough scattered eight hits and was credited with all six Owls runs.
In relief, senior Nick Love (Fernandina Beach, Fla./Yulee Central College of Florida/Jacksonville) baffled the Owls for some much needed zeros on the scoreboard. He pitched 5 ⅓ scoreless innings for his fifth win of the year. Love fanned seven Kennesaw State hitters as the Owls managed just three hits off the Sunshine State native.
Game two of the final series of the 2023 campaign is set for 6:30 p.m. Friday and will air on ESPN+.
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 709-423-3 overall record (.626) and a 248-138 (.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 98 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 49 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 3.57 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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