TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast softball (5-11) took a fifth-inning lead on No. 10 Florida State, but the Seminoles (15-4) rallied to win 5-3 in the second game of the doubleheader on Thursday evening.
Freshman
Mackenzie Leiti gave FGCU the lead with a three-run blast in the top of the fifth inning. The Eagles, who outhit FSU 8-3 in the game, got two runners on in the fifth with hits from
Nikki Gibson and
Tiffany Meek. With two outs, Leiti turned on the first pitch she saw and sent it over the fence in left-center field.
"I'm really proud of our response after a tough first game," head coach
Lindsay Fico said. "Playing on big stages like this will pay off for us as we move closer to conference play."
The Seminoles entered the week with the No. 10 ranking in the NFCA and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll for a reason, though. They leveled the game at 3-3 in the bottom half of the frame off a walk, double, fielder's choice and second double.
Sietske Drijvers caught her second runner stealing this season on an excellent throw to third base, where shortstop
Sophie Wylie was covering the bag.
In the sixth inning, Anna Hinde hit a two-run homer for Florida State to give the Seminoles the 5-3 lead.
FGCU got one runner on base in the seventh after
Emily Chiarella singled, but the Eagles were unable to bring her in to score. Taylor (2-4) took the loss despite holding Florida State hitless through the first four innings of the game. Of the Seminoles' opponents, only Alabama, Tennessee, UCLA and FAU have scored more than three runs off the Florida State staff so far in 2026.
Next, FGCU takes on Rutgers at 10 a.m. on Friday, February 27.
2026 softball season tickets, mini plans and single game tickets are on sale now at
https://fgcuathletics.evenue.net/list/SB.
For more information on FGCU Softball, follow @FGCUSoftball on
Instagram, X (Twitter) and Facebook, and visit
fgcuathletics.com.
Postgame Notes
–
Mackenzie Leiti hit her third home run of the season
–
Presley Smith went 2-for-3 in her second start of the season
– FGCU scored three runs against Florida State in both games. Only Alabama, Tennessee, UCLA and FAU have scored more than three runs against FSU so far in 2026.
