GAINESVILLE, Florida (February 19. 2017) -- For the eighth time in program history, the FIU softball program stood tall against the current No. 1 team in the nation, but two swings of a Florida Gator bat were the difference in a 5-0 loss at the Aquafina Invitational in Gainesville Sunday afternoon. The loss is the second-straight for the Panthers, dropping their overall record to 8-3. Florida, the consensus No. 1 team in both national polls, improves to 10-1 overall.
 
The task of facing the top team in the nation was handed to freshman FIU pitcher Shannon Saile (Land O'Lakes, Florida / Land O'Lakes HS), who retired eight Gators in a row at one point. She started as FIU hoped, getting a strikeout and a groundout, but the nerves came out a little in three-straight, two-out full-count walks in the first. The game then turned on the bat of Florida freshman Jaimie Hoover, who took a 2-1 pitch out to left center for the grand slam and a 4-0 lead. It was the only hit of the inning and only one of two Saile allowed in the first four innings.
 
The Panther bats had no answer for sophomore Kelly Barnhill, who gave up four walks and three hits, but did not allow a Panther to reach third in the contest. Barnhill struck out 12 Panthers in 5.2 innings, while senior Delanie Gourley, who allowed one hit to FIU in a 3-1 win last season, finished the game by recording two more strikeouts.
 
The Gators added run number five on a leadoff single and two-out double in the seventh inning for the final margin.
 
FIU's three hits came from sophomore Jackie Schoff (Bradenton, Florida / Lakewood Ranch HS), senior Ashley Leon (Miami, Florida / Gulliver Prep) and Araceli Peralta (Tucson, Arizona), with Schoff and Leon collecting back-to-back singles in the third inning.
 
The damage came to FIU's 3-4-5 hitters, with that trio striking out seven times, drawing one walk and stranding five of the eight runners on base.
 
Saile tossed the complete game (2-2), allowing seven Florida hits and four walks. All five runs were earned and she struck out six. She now has 49 strikeouts in 37 innings of work this season.
 
The loss gives FIU its first consecutive losses of the season, while still going 3-2 at the invitational. It was the first shutout of the Panthers since April 30, 2016.
 
The Panthers will play next at the FGCU/Four Points by Sheraton Invitational in Fort Myers, with five games in total. The Panthers will play the first two games of the weekend on Friday morning, February 24, taking on Wisconsin at 9 a.m. and Rutgers after, at approximately 11:15 a.m.

#######
 
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/.