FORT MYERS, Fla. - It's nearly crunch time for Florida Gulf Coast University baseball.

Every win in Atlantic Sun Conference play is worth its weight in gold, but even more so when the season inches closer to the end. The Eagles are down to nine games to go in conference play, with the first coming up Friday night at Swanson Stadium when ASUN leader Jacksonville pays a visit. First pitch is set for 6:30 and will be available via ESPN+.

At this stage of the season, every game matters in the race for positioning in the ASUN. This includes games that aren't part of conference play as the regular season champion, plus the following three teams in RPI at the end of the regular season will be slotted into Pool A for the conference tournament. That pool sends three teams to the championship rounds after a round-robin, while Pool B will feature the following four teams based on RPI. Pool B will play a double-elimination tournament, with only the winner moving to the championship rounds.

Jacksonville currently leads the ASUN with a 15-6 conference mark, which would give it the top seed in Pool A. Stetson, Austin Peay, and Kennesaw State, each 14-7, tied for second. FGCU is at 12-9 and in fifth place in the conference; however, FGCU is third in RPI. If the season ended today, Kennesaw State (78), Stetson (120), and FGCU (148) would be the other three schools that make Pool A, with Austin Peay (183) relegated to Pool B. JU has seen its RPI bump up since Wednesday thanks to an 11-0 win over Bethune-Cookman, as the Dolphins now have a mark of 177 which would keep it in Pool A position even if they slipped out of first place.

The Eagles lead the all-time series 35-23 over JU. FGCU won three of the four meetings between the two teams last year, including a 7-0 win in the ASUN Championship.

Saturday's contest will be played at 6:30 p.m., as it was moved to later in the day due to FGCU graduation ceremonies taking place at neighboring Alico Arena. Sunday's finale is still set for 1 p.m.