DELAND, Fla. -
Justin Henschel pitched all seven innings, Florida Gulf Coast University connected on three homers, and the Eagles rolled to a run-rule win over top-seeded Austin Peay State University 13-3 at Melching Field in the opening game of Pool A of the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship.
"We've been playing really well offensively and we got some key hits early," said FGCU head coach
Dave Tollett. "I think that let Henschel settle in, and once he was settled in, I thought it he was pretty good."
The sophomore from Plantation was excellent on the mound for FGCU (30-24) in the win, going all seven innings and giving up just three runs on nine hits to the top-ranked offensive team in the country. He tossed 103 pitches and allowed five walks (two intentional) with six strikeouts in the mix.
"We decided [to go with Henschel] two weeks ago, because he, out of all of our pitchers, would throw every day. He's the kid we have to say, 'Hey, you're not throwing today.' He's the guy that can bounce back for us and pitch Saturday or Sunday."
It seemed at first like the game would feature FGCU playing small ball and Austin Peay playing for the big swing. The Eagles took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first as
Evan Dempsey knifed a single through the left side with two men out to score
Mac Moise. APSU (35-20) answered back as Lyle Miller-Green connected for his 30th homer of the season to tie the game, 1-1.
In the second, though, the Eagles proved they had power in their bats as well. With two men on and two out, Moise powered a three-run blast over the wall in right center to make it a 4-1 game. An inning later, Dempsey added to his day as he sent a shot over the wall in right for a two-run homer, making it 6-1.
Every time the designated home side looked to gain momentum, Henschel and the FGCU defense was there to shut the Governor's down. With two men on and two out in the third, Henschel induced a foul out to keep it a five-run margin. Then in the fourth, after the leadoff man got on for APSU, Henschel was able to get a double play from his defense as
Jacob Lojewski stepped on second and threw to first for a 6-3 double play.
Dempsey's hot bat continued to pay dividends in the fifth. He would single to lead off the inning, then stole second and came around to score on Lojewski's single to left. From there, the Eagles would manufacture two more runs in the frame as
Javier Gorostola and
Trevor Kole each had sacrifice flies to score runs, making it 9-1 for the Eagles.
APSU would threaten again in the fifth, plating one but not getting any additional men across the plate. With men on first and second, Henschel would get a strikeout on three pitches to leave both runners stranded.
Momentum threatened to swing in a big way in the sixth. The Eagles loaded the bases with no one out, but couldn't push a run across. The Govs came back with a leadoff solo homer to make it 9-3 and then loaded the bases with only one man out. In one of the biggest moments of the game, Henschel came through a gain. On a 1-2 pitch, Henschel would field a chopper back to the mound to start a 1-2-3 double play, extinguishing the threat and keeping the Eagles ahead by six.
The seventh would be the last inning of the game. Reigning D1Baseball.com National Player of the Week
Robert Moya would hit his sixth homer in five games as he hit a towering drive to right that carried over the wall for a three-run blast. With two men out, Lojewski would triple off the wall in right and then score one batter later as
Harrison Povey blooped a single into left center to give the Eagles a 10-run advantage.
While there had been an arm warming up in the bullpen for FGCU, no one would be needed to relieve Henschel on this day. Two men would reach in the bottom of the seventh, but the final swing of the game would result in a ground out to
Trevor Kole at second, giving the Eagles a run-rule win over one of the co-champions of the ASUN regular season.
Dempsey and Lojewski each went 4-for-5 on the day, with the duo combining to score four runs and drive in four. Eight different men crossed home for the Eagles in the game. The Green & Blue were hit with six pitches during the game, with Moise taking three of those lumps to bring his season total to 26.
FGCU will next be in action Wednesday at 10 a.m. as the Eagles take on No. 2-seeded Kennesaw State at Melching Field.
