FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast University baseball heads to Charlotte, North Carolina, for a road Atlantic Sun Conference series at Queens University of Charlotte beginning this Friday with game one at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.

Game two of the three-game series is slated for Saturday at 2 p.m. The series final is set for Sunday at noon. After posting its worst start in program history to begin conference play, FGCU responded with a home series win last weekend against in-state foe Jacksonville – taking two out of three games in dramatic fashion to improve to 4-8 in league play. Jake McKee hit a grand slam in game one, and Jon Embury hit a walk-off, three-run blast to clinch the series.

At 4-8, FGCU is fifth in the Graphite Division. Stetson leads the division at 10-2 overall. Queens is dead last and trails FGCU at 2-10.

Friday will mark just the seventh all-time meeting between the Eagles and the Royals. FGCU is 4-2 all-time in the series which only dates back to 2023. All six games in the series have been in Charlotte. The Royals took two out of three against FGCU a season ago as the Eagles avoided the road sweep in the series finale with a 7-5 win.

The Eagles had 10 hits in the win, with Mac Moise and Evan Dempsey each getting two hits. FGCU also drew three walks and had four batters hit by pitches. In 2024, Dempsey is 25th nationally in hit by pitches (14).

The Fort Myers bombers are second in the ASUN this season in total home runs with 33, but FGCU is ninth overall in batting average (.248) and in runs scored (181). Harrison Povey leads the Eagles' home run department with eight, while Moise has seven to his name.

Dempsey has been doing it all of late for the Eagles. He earned the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Week honors on Tuesday after being thrust into the starting pitching rotation. Dempsey has earned two conference starts in the last two ASUN series, striking out 10 in a victory at North Florida. He has made seven appearances this season to go along with a respectable 2.49 ERA.