Friday, May 14, 2010

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – FGCU successfully claimed its third consecutive Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championship on Friday evening at Sessions Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. Prior to the 10-4 victory over the Dolphins, the Eagles needed just one win or a UNF loss to earn the regular season crown.

Currently 42nd in RPI, FGCU improved their record to 33-16 (21-4 A-Sun), while Jacksonville dropped to 22-24 (11-10 A-Sun) on the season. Picking up the A-Sun Conference Championship for the third consecutive year, the Eagles hold an all-time record of 69-19 in A-Sun conference contests.

Recently placed in the top 25 for the National Pitcher of the Year Award, junior Chris Sale (Lakeland, Fla.) started the evening on the mound for the Eagles. Throwing seven innings, the lefty improved to 9-0 on the year after allowing two earned runs on six hits to go with 14 strikeouts and no walks in the win. Sophomore Jacob Barnes (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and junior Jack Wagoner (Berlin, Conn.) finished the final two innings, as Barnes allowed two earned runs and Wagoner recorded three strikeouts.

The Eagles will be the top seed in 2010 A-Sun Baseball Championship hosted by Lipscomb University in two weeks.