MIAMI – The FIU baseball program hits the road for a midweek clash against Florida Gulf Coast University on Tuesday, April 15, in Fort Myers.

Tuesday, April 15 at FGCU (14-21 (6-9 ASUN)

• Time / Site: 6:30 p.m. ET at Swanson Stadium 

The game will be streamed live over the FIU Athletics YouTube channel with Corey Brooks and Nick Garrido on the call.

The Panthers (22-13, 6-5 CUSA) enter the matchup riding the momentum of a key Conference USA series win over New Mexico State, having taken the final two games of the set while outscoring the Aggies 17-4 across those contests.
 
FIU's 22-13 mark is its best start since 2014, currently placing the team fifth in the CUSA standings. The Panthers are also chasing their third consecutive midweek road win, having secured previous victories at Bethune-Cookman and Miami.
 
Offensively, FIU has been explosive, batting .288 as a team—ranking fourth in Conference USA in both batting average and total bases (564). The Panthers have driven in 250 RBI, which ranks top-three in the league, while launching 50 home runs—second-most in the conference and 41st nationally. Over their last 10 games, the team has batted .303 with 106 hits and 13 homers.
 
FIU also ranks ninth in the nation in hit-by-pitches (80) and 20th in sacrifice flies (21).
 
Redshirt senior Kishon Frett continues to lead the charge, earning his second CUSA Hitter of the Week honor after belting four home runs and driving in six runs over the weekend. Frett has homered in four straight games, including a multi-homer performance in Saturday's 8-2 win over New Mexico State. He now leads FIU with 14 homers—second in the league and 17th nationally—and shares the team lead with 30 RBI while slugging a team-best .715. His eight home runs in conference play are the most in CUSA this season.
 
Brylan West has reached base in 10 straight games, collecting 16 hits and six multi-hit outings in that span. He leads FIU in hits (46) and ranks second in home runs (8) and total bases (78).
 
Alex Ulloa, the team's everyday shortstop, is tied for the team lead with 30 RBI and tops the Panthers in doubles (9), having started all 35 games. Austin Dearing has hit safely in six of his last seven games, including six hits, three RBI, and two doubles in the weekend series. The redshirt senior is hitting .327 on the year and .485 (16-for-33) over his last 10 games.
 
Javier Crespo has driven in 13 runs over the last 11 games and has gone 8-for-25 with nine RBI and a home run in his last five contests, boosting his average to .352.
 
Andrew Ildefonso leads the team in batting average (.360) and has hits in 14 of his last 15 games. He posted four RBI and a home run on Sunday, April 13, against New Mexico State and now has 24 RBI, eight doubles, and one triple.
 
FIU's pitching staff has racked up 360 strikeouts in 35 games, leading Conference USA and ranking 18th nationally. The team has recorded 10+ strikeouts in 19 games this season.
 
Juan Villarreal, a left-hander, leads the staff with 53 strikeouts and owns a 3.16 ERA over 37 innings with a 6-1 record and two saves. He earned the win Sunday with 4.2 scoreless innings and tied his season high with seven strikeouts.
 
Owen Puk has emerged as a reliable starter since returning to the rotation, allowing just two earned runs over his last 16 innings with 27 strikeouts. He posted a career-high nine strikeouts over four innings in Saturday's win.
 
Logan Runde has made 12 appearances (nine starts) and delivered four scoreless relief innings with two strikeouts on Saturday. Easton Marks leads the team in innings pitched (42) with a 4.07 ERA and 48 strikeouts. He gave up one run in four innings on Friday.
 
Kevin Martin has allowed just two earned runs over his last 6.1 innings, including one run over three innings on Sunday. Jarek Woodward gave up one run over 2.2 innings on April 11, while Tracen Cameron notched four strikeouts over 2.1 scoreless frames in Friday's outing.

HISTORY WITH FLORIDA GULF COAST
Tuesday will mark the 27th all-time meeting between FIU and FGCU, with the rivalry dating back to 2008. The Panthers dropped the previous meeting, 8-4, on March 11 in Miami.
 
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
FGCU enters Tuesday's game with a 14-21 record (6-9 ASUN) and is coming off back-to-back series wins, including a recent road victory at Queens.
 
The Eagles are batting .255 as a team. Robert Moya leads the lineup with a .321 average, seven home runs, and 25 RBI. Harrison Povey has a team-high nine homers and 27 RBI, starting all 35 games. Mac Moise adds seven homers and 24 RBIs.
 
On the mound, Chris Diaz has 43 strikeouts across 37.1 innings and threw seven strong innings with 10 strikeouts in the April 11 win at Queens.
 
Out of the bullpen, Ryland Bozenhard leads the team with three saves and has 30 strikeouts over 28 innings. Preston Rogers holds a 2.76 ERA in 12 appearances, while Evan Dempsey has pitched to a 2.20 ERA over eight outings.
 
UP NEXT
FIU hits the road to Kennesaw, Georgia to take on the Kennesaw State Owls for their first CUSA matchup between the Owls. First pitch on Thursday, April 17 at 6 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

BAPTIST HEALTH
Presented by Baptist Health, The Official Sports Medicine Provider of FIU Athletics

SOCIAL MEDIA
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