Florida Gulf Coast Steals Win from FAU

Wednesday, May 7

Boca Raton, Fla.

6:30 PM

Florida Atlantic

Florida Gulf Coast

5/7/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

May 7, 2008

Box Score

BOCA RATON, FL - What was shaping up to be a two-hour and 30 minute Florida Atlantic University victory turned into a four-hour eleven-inning defeat, 7-5, at the hands of visiting Florida Gulf Coast University Wednesday night.

The Eagles scored twice in the ninth to send it to extra-innings and Jason Peacock hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the eleventh.

For the third time in five days Florida Atlantic (26-22) lost in the late stages, having dropped two games in walk-off fashion at New Orleans over the weekend.

Florida Gulf Coast (33-13) is in the midst of an outstanding season for a first-year Division I program.

Freshman outfielder Colby Gratton hit a three-run homer to give Florida Atlantic an early lead.

FAU senior starter Chris Eberhart worked six strong innings and lefty reliever Alex Pepe struck out five hitters in the seventh and eighth before FGCU rallied to tie the game with two runs in the top of the ninth off Brett Cannon.

Stephen Wickens drove a ball into left field, just beyond the diving reach of Jeremy Griffiths, plating a pair of second-inning runs on a two-out double.

Gratton erased the Eagles' 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second, responding to Wickens' two-out double by hitting a two-out three-run homer out to right field to put FAU in front 3-2.

A hit batter and a walk with two outs in the bottom of the fifth was the beginning of the end for FGCU right-handed starter Richie Erath.

After issuing the free passes, Mike McKenna ended Erath's night by hitting a full-count pitch into center field, driving in his team-leading 64th run on an RBI-single that extended FAU's lead to 4-2.

Thanks to McKenna, Eberhart went back to work in the sixth with a two-run advantage. Eberhart, a senior from Lake Worth, had retired ten consecutive batters before Mikel Alvarez led off the inning with a single.

Eberhart worked a season-high six innings, allowing just four hits and both runs that came in to score in the second were unearned.

Pepe came on to strike out the side in the seventh, but a fielding error extended the FGCU eighth and a pair of subsequent hits resulted in a run that closed the gap to 4-3. The first came off the bat of Casey Coleman and the second was an RBI single through the right side by Stephen Rassel.

Rassel's single moved Coleman to third base and with FGCU threatening to plate the tying run with two outs Pepe struck out Vinnie Scarduzio to preserve the lead and send the Owls to the ninth in position to win.

Timely hitting in the FAU eighth, via consecutive two-out hits by William Block and Tom Hatcher gave senior teammate Brett Cannon, a two-run lead to work with in the top of the ninth.

Block and Hatcher both went 2-for-5.

Cannon gave up a lead-off single to Graig Smith in the top of the ninth and Wickens drew a walk to put two runners on with no outs. A sac bunt moved the runners up to second and third and Alvarez followed with a single on a 3-1 pitch from Cannon to make the score 5-4.

Moments later Peacock tied the game at five apiece, lifting a shallow fly ball out into center field that scored a tagging Wickens.

Brandon Kloess (1-1) was able to get freshman Kyle Forney out of the tenth unharmed, inducing a groundball out and striking out Wickens with runners on the corners to keep the score even at 5-5.

Eagles' lanky left-hander Chris Sale (2-0) retired FAU in order in the bottom of the ninth and pitched a scoreless tenth.

With Kloess still working in the top of the 11th, Peacock's go-ahead homer followed a one-out single by Alvarez to give FGCU the decisive two-run edge 7-5.

GAME NOTES: It was the first meeting between the two South Florida schools... FGCU only began its baseball program six years ago, playing as an NAIA independent in 2002 and 2003, and as a Division II independent from 2004-07... Making the Eagles' 33-13 record even more impressive is the fact that 2008 is the program's first year in Division I and the the Atlantic Sun Conference... They came into the game atop the ASUN standings with a 21-6 league record... FAU 3B Daniel Cook started for the first time since being injured on March 14, walking twice in three plate appearances... FAU is 0-2 in extra-inning games this season, previously losing to South Florida in ten innings at home on April 22.