FIU Baseball Doubles Down With Comeback Win and Walk-Off Winner in FGCU Doubleheader

MIAMI, FL – In a matchup that was eight days in the making, FIU delivered two of their most exciting wins of the season as they knocked off FGCU twice in one day.

The first was a continuation of a game between the Panthers and Eagles that was postponed due to a light pole breaking. Both teams resumed that game at 3 pm, and FIU came out on top in dramatic fashion.

“When you’re playing 14 innings today with only one day before you go into the weekend series, you know you’re gonna you’re gonna stretch deep into your bullpen,” said head coach Rich Witten. “You’re seeing some guys out there today that got opportunities and we’re excited to see what they’re playing well.”

Game One Notes:

David Eckaus, who was the pitcher when the game was called off last Tuesday, entered this game. Unlike his short outing in Fort Myers, Eckaus ended up going four innings, giving up three runs off of three hits, walking two, and striking out four.

FIU’s offense, down 6-3, scored four unanswered runs in the top of the fourth inning. Jeff Liquori got the inning going with a base hit and Matt Corpas drove him in on an RBI double.

The Panthers would go on to load the bases and number three hitter Ryne Guida drove them in on an RBI double, giving FIU a 7-6 lead, which would be the final score of the game.

The starter for this first game was Owen Puk, but he unfortunately did not make it out of the first inning due to injury. Following Puk, the Panthers bullpen allowed five hits.

Closing it out for the Panthers was Ryan Cabarcas, who entering his outing was at 199 collegiate strikeouts. The first batter he faced, he notched his 200th K for the impressive milestone. He also earned his fifth save of the season.

With the win, FIU bumped up their record to 17-15 on the season and 45 minutes later, they had a chance to make it three games over .500 against the same Eagles team, and once again, the Comeback Cats emerged.

Game Two

For FIU, Cam Knox took the mound in game two and ended up going three shutout innings of perfect ball, striking out three in the process. Knox, usually a weekend pitcher, was taken out to preserve him for the upcoming series against Wofford.

In the top of the fourth, the Panthers went with Jackson Ritchey who gave up an RBI single.

Thankfully, the Panthers ranking third in home runs amongst Conference USA came into play in the bottom of the fourth inning when both Ryne Guida and Alex Ulloa took Eagles pitcher William Haberstock deep.

It was Guida’s fourth and Ulloa’s sixth bomb of the season. As a result, the Panthers took a 2-1 lead.

Unfortunately, the FIU lead would go back to a 2-2 tie when a fielder’s choice would drive in the tying run. Ritchey was then taken out and ended up giving up two runs off of six hits. He struck out two, but wasn’t enough.

After a pair of runs for the Panthers in the bottom of the sixth and FGCU in the top of the seventh, the game was knotted at four runs each. Keep in mind that this was a seven-inning game as part of the doubleheader.

So as the bases started to fill up in the bottom of the seventh, Nick Pitelli was at bat with an opportunity to bring home Austin Dearing for a potential game-winner.

And that’s exactly what happened.

The pair of wins for FIU are huge, and bump up their overall record to 18-15. An unusual opponent is swinging by for a weekend series, the Wofford Terriers of the Southern Conference. That series will begin on Friday, April 12th at 6:30pm.