Tollett earns 350th career victory

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Behind 7.1 strong innings from senior right-hander Jason Forjet (Pembroke Pines, Fla./Nova HS) and a season-high eight runs, the FGCU baseball team bounced back from a heartbreaking loss in the series opener with a convincing 8-2 victory over Lipscomb Saturday night at Dugan Field.

Despite lowering his ERA to 3.08, Forjet earned his first win of the season to help the Eagles (19-27) pull even with Lipscomb (21-25) for fifth place in the Atlantic Sun standings at 10-10. The series finale, which could serve as a tie-breaker heading into the postseason tournament, is slated for a 12:30 p.m. ET first pitch on Sunday.

Forjet now stands at 1-4 on the season after going 7.1 innings with two earned runs on five hits and four strikeouts. Over the last two weekends, the Pembroke, Fla. product has gone a combined 15.1 innings with just eight hits given up, one walk and 16 punch outs.

Equally as impressive as Forjet’s team-high 12th start, the FGCU bats supplied a season-high eight runs on 10 hits. Eight of the nine positional starters for the Eagles supplied a hit, led by multi-hit evenings from redshirt freshman Alex Diaz (Miami, Fla./John A. Ferguson HS) and junior Mike Reeves (Peterborough, Ontario/St. Peter’s Secondary). Diaz went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, his fourth home run of the season and two RBI from the No. 9 spot in the lineup. Reeves reached base in four of five plate appearances, going 2-for-3 with two walks and an RBI.

After scoring just two runs in Friday’s 11-inning series opener, FGCU wasted no time getting on the scoreboard by taking a 2-0 lead in its first trip to the dish. An RBI double to right center by sophomore Sean Dwyer (Tavares, Fla./Tavares HS) brought home redshirt freshman Kirby Retzer (Boca Raton, Fla./Boca Raton HS), who walked and stole second base. Reeves made it 2-0 with an RBI single into right field that scored Dwyer from second.

Diaz made it 3-0 in favor of the Green and Blue in the top of second with a solo home run, while Forjet faced just one over the minimum over the first five innings, retiring the first 10 batters he faced. Still leading 3-0 with Forjet cruising on the mound, the FGCU bats provided the righty five more runs of support in the top of the sixth to stretch the lead to 8-0.

The five-run sixth for the Eagles was highlighted by a bases-clearing double by sophomore Andrew Valencia (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep). All five runs came with two outs, as Diaz also singled home and run and later scored on a wild pitch.

Armed with his largest support of the season, Forjet went 7.1 innings and 94 pitches before being replaced by junior left-hander Andrew Poly (Broken Arrow, Okla./Tulsa Union HS/Cowley County CC). Poly went the final 1.2 innings of the contest.

Valencia and Dwyer’s doubles gave the 12 and 11 two-baggers on the year, respectively, to rank first and second on the squad. Dwyer has a hit in 12 of his last 14 games, while Valencia’s three-RBI game was his third of the year.

Lipscomb lefty Blake Fonfara (2-6) got the loss after leaving the game after a 23-pitch first inning that saw the Eagles jump out to a 2-0 lead.