The FAU Owls baseball team (30-19, 15-9 C-USA) lost 7-2 against the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) Eagles (30-18, 14-10 ASUN) in Fort Myers Tuesday evening. This was the third and final meeting between the schools in 2022 with FAU winning just one.

The Eagles started early with a run in the first inning. Sophomore left-fielder Ian Farrow singled, junior third baseman Alejandro Figueredo grounded into a fielder’s choice, junior first baseman Joe Kinker singled, and junior catcher Alejandro Rodriguez found a gap in right-field for an RBI.

FAU answered in the third, scoring a pair of runs to get a 2-1 lead. Sophomore shortstop Armando Albert opened the inning with a walk, sophomore center-fielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. followed with a single, sophomore first baseman Nolan Schanuel walked, and sophomore left-fielder Dylan Goldstein found a gap on the right side for a two-RBI single.

FGCU answered with a run in the bottom half. Redshirt junior center-fielder Brian Ellis reached base on a throwing error, Farrow singled, and Kinker singled to tie the game at two apiece. 

Sophomore right-handed starter Nicholas Del Prado sat down after throwing 66 pitches in three innings. He gave up two runs (one earned) on five hits and a walk before junior southpaw Evan Waterbor entered in the bottom of the fourth. 

The Eagles regained the lead in the fifth inning after scoring twice. Junior left-fielder Jalen Townsend singled and stole second, then Figueredo cracked an RBI double. Rodriguez singled and freshman right-fielder Harrison Povey knocked a sacrifice fly to extend FGCU’s lead to 4-2.

Sophomore left-hander Sam Drumheller took over the mound for the Owls in the sixth inning after Waterbor gave up two runs on three hits and a hit batter. 

Graduate shortstop Bobby Head unleashed a homer to left field in the sixth inning to increase the Eagles’ lead to 5-2. Townsend walked and stole second and Figueredo singled to add another run. 

Freshman left-handed pitcher Max Martzolf took over for Drumheller in the seventh. Drumheller allowed a pair of runs on two hits and a walk in the sixth inning.

The Eagles scored again in the seventh. Povey singled, sophomore designated hitter Kyle Machado and Head were each hit by a pitch, then Ellis singled to extend FGCU’s lead to five.

Despite the loss, junior right-fielder Mitchell Hartigan earned his first single of the season.

FAU will return to Boca Raton for the final time in 2022 to take on the University of North Carolina at Charlotte 49ers starting Friday, May 13, and concluding Sunday, May 15. C-USA TV will broadcast all three games.

Bryce Totz is the Sports Editor at the University Press. For more information regarding this or other stories, email him at [email protected] or tweet him @brycetotz.