CHARLOTTE, N.C. (May 3, 2015) – The FIU softball team (30-24, 10-14 C-USA) closed its 2015 campaign with a dominating, 15-4, five-inning win over the Charlotte 49ers on Sunday afternoon.
 
Sophomore Brianna Bartuccio (4-1) tossed all five innings for the Panthers and limited the 49ers to just four runs off eight hits.
 
FIU roughed up Charlotte for eight runs in the first inning and chased the 49ers' ace, Lexi Betancourt, from the game after just eight batters. The first five Panthers to bat reached base on hits, highlighted by sophomore Stephanie Texeira's RBI triple and junior Aleima Lopez's two-run home run. Eight-straight reached first safely before an out was registered, as FIU capped off its eight-run inning by sending 14 batters to the plate.
 
Charlotte got one run back in the bottom of the first and stopped FIU's double-steal attempt at the plate in the top of the second inning to keep it an 8-1 ballgame. Bartuccio shut down Charlotte in the bottom of the frame and picked up her first strikeout of the afternoon.
 
The 49ers chipped away at its deficit again in the third inning and looked to be in good position with two runners on with no outs. Freshman Jessica Hallett fielded a grounder at third base and went home with the play to begin a 5-2-6 putout at third base. The Panthers got out of the inning with Charlotte scoring just one run to make it 8-2.
 
FIU upped its lead to 13 runs following a 7-run fourth inning. Sophomore Gabby Spallone stroked her 16^th double of the season to plate FIU's ninth run, while freshman Kaitlyn Musa tallied her first collegiate RBI with a single back up the middle. Texeira then roped a three-run home run later in the inning to bring her RBI total of the day to four.
 
Charlotte plated two final runs in the bottom of the fifth.
 
Notes: Stephanie Texeira finished the season with a .444 batting average, setting a new program record for a single-season ... Her 51 RBI this season is the second-most runs produced by a Panther in one season … Gabby Spallone's 16 doubles this season is tied for the second-most in a single-season

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of Conference USA. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and the FIU Football Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.