DELAND, Fla. – Jaret Nelson hit a grand slam in the top of the first inning and FGCU never looked back as the Eagles overpowered Stetson Friday night in front of 932 at Melching Field at Conrad Park. The Eagles secured an 8–1 victory over SU, led by a strong start and a solid finish as all nine players for FGCU reached base.
Florida Gulf Coast tallied two home runs while the pitching duo of
Evan Dempsey and
Ashton Pocol combined to strike out 10 Stetson batters. With the win, FGCU (27-17, 11-10 Atlantic Sun) moved within a half-game of second-place Jacksonville (25-19, 12-10) in the Graphite Division standings. Stetson (18-27, 9-12) dropped its fourth consecutive game to the Eagles after only managing one run on six hits.
Dempsey (4-2) totaled six strikeouts in the game, moving him to 97 strikeouts so far this season. That gives the Tampa native the fourth-most Ks in a single season in FGCU history, and he needs only two more to match Kutter Crawford's 99 strikeouts for the third-most.
Pocol (4) added four more strikeouts and did not allow a hit over three innings of work, earning his fourth save of the year and ninth of his career. With nine saves, Pocol moves into a tie for sixth all-time at FGCU, matching the nine career saves recorded by Jack Wagoner (2010-11), Harrison Cooney (2011-13) and Garrett Anderson (2014-17).
Jon Embury posted three hits and scored two runs while adding two of FGCU's season-high five stolen bases in the game.
Jaret Nelson scored twice and earned two walks while also hitting that game-altering grand slam, his second grand slam of the season.
Jeremy Comer also hit a home run and collected two RBIs, finishing with two hits in the game.
Anthony Gonzalez drove in Steton's only run with his single hit. Jayden Hylton also made an impact, scoring that run from his solo hit while making a diving catch in left center to prevent further damage by the potent Eagles' offense.
On the mound, James Hays (3-3) was charged with the loss after allowing four runs on six hits in four innings, walking three and striking out just one. Zane Coppersmith delivered an effective relief appearance, allowing just one hit over three innings while striking out four.
In the first inning, Florida Gulf Coast's offense made an early impact. Embury singled, followed by
Javier Gorostola's single up the middle. Willfred Gonzalez walked to load the bases, setting the stage for Nelson, who delivered a grand slam with a home run to left field, giving the Eagles a 4–0 lead.
The sixth inning saw the Green & Blue extend its lead. Dempsey singled and advanced to third on a hit by pitch and a steal. Gorostola's sacrifice fly allowed Dempsey to score. Later in the inning, Embury stole home, bringing the score to 6–0.
The Hatters scored their only run in the seventh inning. Hylton singled and advanced on a hit by Samuel Fernandez. Gonzalez then singled to drive in Hylton, narrowing the Eagles' lead to 6–1.
In the ninth inning, the Eagles solidified their lead with a two-run homer by Comer, scoring Nelson, who had walked and advanced on a balk. This brought the final score to 8–1 in favor of Florida Gulf Coast.
The two teams meet again on Saturday with a new start time of 1 p.m., moved up in an effort to avoid anticipated rain in the area. The game will air on ESPN+.
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Game Notes:
- Dempsey finished the game with 97 strikeouts for the season, ranking as the 4th most strikeouts any Eagles pitcher has ever recorded in a single season.
- Pocol earned his 9th save in the game, moving him into a tie for 6th in career history for saves at FGCU.
- The Green & Blue now leads the all-time series over Stetson, 37-30. It marked the fourth consecutive win over the Hatters. Florida Gulf Coast leads the series when playing in DeLand, 20-16.
- Jaret Nelson hit his ninth home run of the season, which also marked his second grand slam of the year. His previous grand slam happened in the Feb. 14, 19-18 win over North Dakota State.
- Jeremy Comer hit his sixth home run of the season.
- FGCU pitchers recorded 10 total strikeouts marking the 27th game this season that the Eagles pitching staff has recorded 10+ strikeouts in a game.
- Team - Achieved a season-high of 5 stolen bases in the game. Jon Embury tallied two and three players – Evan Dempsey, Jaret Nelson and Drew Seidel – each stole one base.
- Evan Dempsey recorded his 34th career stolen base in the game, moving him into a tie with Jalen Townsend (2019-23) for the sixth in program history in career stolen bases. His career stolen base percentage of .944 remains a program record.
- Pocol - Recorded a season-high of 3 groundouts.
- Merrick Raposa - Recorded a season-high of 1 walk.
