WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – (March 3, 2020) – The Florida Atlantic University baseball team fell for the first time ever at FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches, dropping a 7-3 decision to No. 1 Florida on Tuesday night.
Quotable
Head Coach John McCormack:
“I thought the guys battled, we just didn’t have enough. We went down 3-0, came back and made it 3-3, had some opportunities, and they continually shut the door on us. We’ve got to be better with runners in scoring position, and I thought that we had some pretty good individual performances, but we need to get everybody on the same page, quickly.”
Full Opening Statement from Coach Mac
https://fausports.com/showcase/embed.aspx?Archive=3476
The Turning Point
As McCormack alluded to, UF (12-0) scored three times in their first at-bat, but FAU (7-4) quickly cut it to one on a BJ Murray home run in the bottom half. Wilfredo Alvarez’s RBI single in the second tied it, but the Gators scored twice in the third for a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
The Finish
From there, each bullpen clamped down, with the exception of UF adding two insurance runs in the eighth. Gator relief pitching didn’t give up a run over the final seven innings; FAU’s Adrien Reese, Mike Entenza and Michael Schuler all threw scoreless frames spanning 4 2/3. The Owls had two on in each of their last two turns but couldn’t push anything across.
The Arms
· Marc DeGusipe (0-1) lost his first collegiate decision
· Reese threw two innings of scoreless baseball, with two strikeouts
· Entenza was perfect in 1 2/3, with three K’s
· Schuler tossed up a zero in the top of the ninth
The Bats
· Murray’s two-run shot was his third of the year, and he added a single as well. He brought in Garrett Evans with the homer, on Evans’ first collegiate hit
· Mitchell Hartigan had two doubles and a single
· Alvarez’s run-scoring single knocked in Jackson Wenstrom, who had tripled (Wenstrom added a double in the eighth as well)
· Out of the leadoff spot, Francisco Urbaez had two hits and drew the Owls’ only walk
What’s Next
FAU hosts Miami on Tuesday night, at 6:30 p.m., and Northeastern for the upcoming weekend set. Tickets are available by visiting HEREor calling 1-866-FAU-OWLS.
– FAUSports.com –
Florida Atlantic University Athletics:
FAU Athletics is comprised of 21 intercollegiate teams involving 450 student-athletes that compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, volleyball, beach volleyball, cheer and dance. The Owls are a NCAA Division I-A (FBS) institution and compete in Conference USA and the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) (beach volleyball, men’s swimming). The Owls have been playing football since 2001 and are a perfect 4-0 in bowl games, the most recent being a 52-28 victory over SMU in the 2019 Cheribundi Boca Raton Bowl. The dance team finished its 2014 season No. 8, nationally. FAU cheer won a national championship in 2016.
About Florida Atlantic University:
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visitwww.fau.edu.
