FGCU-Stetson box score | 2023 FGCU baseball stats | 2023 FGCU schedule | ASUN scoreboard/schedule | ASUN standings
FORT MYERS, Fla. – Trailing by six runs after four innings Sunday and struggling to get any Stetson Hatters out, it would have been easy for the FGCU baseball team to pack it in try to get out of Swanson Stadium as soon as possible.
But not these Eagles.
FGCU (35-12 overall, 18-6 ASUN) produced a torrid late-inning rally Sunday, highlighted by a mammoth three-run homer in the eighth by senior infielder
Alejandro Figueredo (
Sucre, Venezuela/West Oaks HS/Seminole State), to earn an 11-8 victory over Stetson and maintain a grip on first place in the conference.
The Green & Blue kept pace with Lipscomb, which rallied Sunday to defeat Kennesaw State, atop the ASUN – and built a two-game cushion over Stetson (28-20, 16-8) in third place. FGCU's comeback victory was its seventh win overall in the last eight games, and secured a seventh ASUN series win in eight attempts in 2023.
Figueredo's blast in the eighth was FGCU's 113
th home run of the season, which leads the country. Senior designated hitter
Joe Kinker (
North Port, Fla./Venice HS) and senior catcher/infielder
Alejandro Rodriguez (
Cidra, Puerto Rico/Montverde Academy/Eastern Florida State) also went deep for the Eagles.
Junior infielder/pitcher
Jacob Lojewski (
West Palm Beach, Fla./Delray American Heritage HS) and sophomore outfielder
Harrison Povey (
Indian Rocks Beach, Fla. Largo HS) each cranked doubles Sunday, giving FGCU 106 doubles this season. The Green & Blue maintain the only offense in the country with 100-plus doubles and 100-plus home runs.
"This comeback is who we are," said FGCU head baseball coach
Dave Tollett. "We are going to be in every ballgame, because we are a veteran club that doesn't quit. They are fun to watch, and never out of the game. Big hits in key moments allowed us to stay in first place in the ASUN, which is huge."
A three-run first and a four-run fourth had Stetson rolling Sunday, and FGCU was struggling for any signs of offensive life. The first spark came in the fifth when Kinker – FGCU's all-time home run leader – belted a three-run shot to left to make it 7-4.
Stetson added another run in the top of the sixth, but Povey laced a two-run double down the right-field line to make it 8-6. Rodriguez smacked a solo homer one inning later, and senior pitcher/outfielder
Stephen Wilmer (
Sarasota, Fla./Riverview HS/Pasco-Hernando State/ECU) singled to right to tie it 8-8.
That set the table for FGCU's final scoring burst in the eighth. Graduate outfielder
Brian Ellis (
Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS) led off with an infield single, and Kinker earned a patient walk two batters later to deliver Figueredo to the plate.
"I just wanted to get on base," Figueredo said of his at-bat. "I was trying to focus on being on time and get the head of the bat out there in front. The wind was playing out that way the entire way, but my first few at-bats were rocky. That one, though, I didn't miss."
FGCU senior reliever
LJ McDonough (
Blanchard, Okla./Blanchard HS/Wichita State) pitched the final 3 2/3 innings to earn the victory. Anthony DeFabbia took the loss for Stetson. Ellis finished 3-for-3 with four runs scored, extending his unofficial NCAA record for consecutive games safely reaching base to 116.
The Eagles take on FAU at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday before hitting the road for a three-game weekend series at North Florida (25-23, 11-13). FGCU closes the regular season with a pivotal home series May 18-20 against Kennesaw State, with the ASUN Tournament beginning May 23 in DeLand, Fla.
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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 706-420-3 overall record (.627) and a 246-136 (.644) 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 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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