JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida baseball hosts FGCU in a very important series beginning Friday as the Ospreys close out their home slate for the 2023 season. North Florida currently sits two games back of the final slot into the ASUN Championship with six league games remaining.
Set for this weekend is Senior Day Saturday as the Ospreys honor
Ian Brown,
Stephen Halstead,
Dallen Leach,
Dominick Madonna,
Will Ohme and
Tony Roca. Sunday is the final Family Day at Harmon Stadium while all mother's get in for free for Mother's Day.
GAME DETAILS
Date: Friday, May 12-Sunday, May 14
Time: 6:05 p.m., 2:05 p.m., 1:05 p.m.
Location: Harmon Stadium
Opponent: FGCU
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: unfospreys.com
All-Time Series vs. FGCU
- UNF and FGCU meet in one of the longest-standing series in UNF's history
- The Eagles pace the all-time series, 31-25
- North Florida is 9-15 against the Eagles at Harmon Stadium
- The two teams played to a series split a year ago, with North Florida taking two of three in Fort Myers, while FGCU won the series at Harmon
Last Time Out
COLUMBIA, S.C. - UNF baseball (26-23) shocked one of the nation's top teams, getting five runs in the third and stingy relief down the stretch to topple No. 6/7 South Carolina (36-12) , 8-5, Tuesday, May 9.
Last Time vs. FGCU
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - If you're a fan of high-powered offense, Friday's regular season finale twin bill was the type of baseball for you as North Florida and FGCU combined for 39 runs, 17 home runs and 54 total hits as the two teams split a twin bill at Harmon Stadium Friday, May 20.
Projected Starting Pitchers
Friday
UNF | LHP
Peter Holden
FGCU | RHP Tyler Tipton
Saturday
UNF | RHP
Dominick Madonna
FGCU | RHP Justin Henschel
Sunday
UNF | RHP
Clayton Boroski
FGCU | LHP Stephen Wilmer
DI Power Rankings
Notables from Tuesday at South Carolina
- There were a number of notables from Tuesday's win at No. 6 South Carolina
- It was UNF's ninth win against a P5 team during head coach Tim Parenton's tenure
- It was UNF's highest-ranked win since defeating No. 3 Florida in 2019, which was also UNF's last win against an SEC team
- North Florida earned its first win against South Carolina in series history. It was the fifth game between the two teams
- UNF pitchers fanned 13 and stranded 16 runners
- The Ospreys scored five runs in the third, using six hits
Postseason Situation
- The top eight teams in the ASUN make the ASUN Championship
- North Florida is currently two games back with six league games remaining
- Seven teams are separated by just two games, with JU, EKU and Austin Peay all tied for fifth at 13-11, while UNF is 11-13 just two games back of that three-way tie
- UCA, Liberty and Kennesaw State are at an even 12-12
Four-Straight
- North Florida is coming off a weekend sweep of North Alabama and Tuesday's win at No. 6 South Carolina
- It was UNF's first road-weekend sweep of an ASUN team since 2021, while also the first weekend sweep of any ASUN foe since that same season. The Ospreys swept JU twice that season, the same year JU appeared in the Columbia Regional.
- Two-out hitting was the key as North Florida hit .357 with two outs and tallied 11 two-out RBI over that weekend
- UNF's win against South Carolina was UNF's first victory against a top ten team since defeating No. 3 Florida in 2019
Big Week for the Hometown Guy
- Jacksonville Beach, Fla., native Matthew Clements had a big week last week
- The third baseman hit .444 with five runs, two doubles, four RBI, .722 slugging, one stolen base, 10 assists, five putouts and two game-winning hits
- Clements' three-run home run Sunday was the first of his career
Scouting FGCU
- The Eagles are tied for first in the league at 18-6 in conference play
- FGCU defeated FAU earlier this week, improving to 36-12 overall
- FGCU reached as high as No. 15 in the league standings in mid April
- Florida Gulf Coast replies on a heavy-hitting offense
- The Eagles pace the nation in home runs with 114, as well as with a .601 slugging percentage
- They join power-hitting Campbell and Maryland as one of the only three teams nationwide with at least 110 doubles and 110 home runs
- The FGCU lineup is rife with offensive production. Edrick Felix's 21 home runs is just one behind Ian Farrow's single season record 22 set last year before he transferred to Miami
- Fifth-year Joe Kinker set the program career-home run record earlier this season, standing with 17 this year and 59 all-told
- Eight Eagles tout over a .300 batting average
- FGCU doesn't run much, attempting just 25 steals
- Brian Ellis set the national record for consecutive games reached base
MORE UNF NOTES
Marking Off More Milestones
- Aidan Sweatt surpassed 100-career runs last weekend, reaching that total in just 143 games
- The infielder is up to 183 hits and is hitting over .300 for the second-straight season
- In 148 games, Sweatt has made 147 starts
Lodise Knocks off Another Record
- Alex Lodise moved past UNF Hall of Famer Donnie Dewees for the program single season freshman record in RBI last weekend
- The freshman shortstop has 59 RBI on the year, second in the country among freshmen for RBI
- Lodise ranks tied-for-third in home runs and runs among
freshmen
Awesome in the ASUN
- UNF has five players hitting above .300 during league play, paced by Cade Reich and Austin Brinling
- Reich leads North Florida in hitting during conference play, hitting .381 with 13 runs, 32 hits, five doubles, two home runs, 12 RBI and nine steals
- Brinling leads the way, hitting .385, although his table-setting numbers are through the roof. The outfielder has scored 27 runs, laced seven doubles, driven in 16, walked 18 times and stolen eight bags.
- Alex Lodise, Aidan Sweatt and Cherokee NIchols are all above the .300 mark against ASUN pitching. Matthew Clements isn't far behind, hitting .298.
Halstead Hauls in More Honors
- After being tabbed to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Preseason Stopper of the Year Watch List at the start of the season, Halstead earned a spot on the midseason squad thanks to his effort of six saves and a 2.50 ERA thus far.
- The righty is one of 18 hurlers from the preseason list to make the midseason squad, with the finalists being announced in early June.
Dominant Madonna
- UNF baseball took a game in the road series at Liberty, the last series between the two teams as league foes
- North Florida won game two, 8-3, behind a nine-inning complete game effort from righty Dominick Madonna
- Madonna spun 128 pitches, 30 more than his previous career high, setting an innings pitched career high as well
- It was the first complete game by a UNF righty since 2019. The last UNF righty to throw a nine-inning complete game was Nick Marchese in April of 2019.
- Madonna has gone at least seven innings over each of his last four starts
- The righty was 3-0 over five appearances during April, fanning 21 in 33.1 innings
- He's also 5-0 over his last seven outings
- Madonna went eight innings, earning the win in UNF's 9-3 win Saturday
Brooks Wallace Watch List
- Alex Lodise was tabbed to the Brooks Wallace Watch List last week
- The freshman phenom was also named ASUN Player of the Week April 3, the first UNF freshman to earn that distinction since Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist Donnie Dewees in 2013
- Lodise joined former UNF assistant coach, Andrew Hannon, as Brooks Wallace Watch List selections
Touch 'em All
- North Florida surpassed the 60 home run milestone
- It's the first time the Ospreys have reached that marker in a season since 2015
- UNF has 29 more home runs this season than all of last year
- North Florida is 4 homers shy of setting the UNF DI-era single season record
Freshman Records
- Alex Lodise has already set the UNF single season freshman home run record, belting 16, six better than the previous record
- The shortstop is well on his way to more freshman records. He's first in runs (48), fourth in doubles (12), tied for fourth in triples (2), first in RBI (59), tied for third in hits (63) tied for second in stolen bases (6).
- Alex Lodise scored five runs in a win against Fairfield this season, the most runs by a UNF freshman in a single game in at least the DI era
- Lodise set the UNF single season freshman home run record
- With his two homer day Friday against Queens, Lodise set the UNF record for single season RBI among freshman
- Lodise had five hits Saturday April 1, tying the UNF DI era program record
Green Light Means Go
Walk-Off Dubs Hit Different
- UNF has won via walk-off six times this season
- The latest was one of the wildest as North Florida walked off on Florida State, 15-14, via a wild pitch in the bottom of the tenth
- March 25 Alex Lodise hit the first grand slam of his career with a towering big fly on a hanging breaking ball, sending UNF to a 16-6 mercy rule win
- One day later, Aidan Sweatt and Austin Brinling combined for three ninth inning RBI to give North Florida an 8-7 walk-off to clinch the series
- Former UCF Knight, Jakob Runnels, mashed a walk-off three-run home run with two outs in the ninth, giving North Florida a 4-2 win against UCF March 21
- In the first game of the year, Runnels hit a walk-off pinch hit RBI single in a 3-2 10-inning win against Murray State
- Drew Leinenbach put down a walk-off squeeze bunt in a 6-5 10-inning win against Fordham March 4
