By Scott Morganroth
There is one thing that FAU Baseball has successfully accomplished that football is working on, and that’s being a good feeder system for the professional ranks as it builds a tradition.
Football Coach Howard Schnellenberger is working on that after being on the gridiron 10 years. With a new on-campus stadium on the way, there is plenty to look forward to.
Meanwhile, the Owls just completed their baseball season with a 32-25 record and finished 25-9 at home. They were 17-13 in conference play to tie for fourth place.
A real major bright spot for FAU was the performance of senior shortstop Nick DelGuidice, who enhanced his chances of getting drafted this month in the Major League Baseball Draft by ending his career in style. He was named to the Sun Belt Conference’s All-Tournament Team.
He drove in six runs, scored four more and posted a .417 batting average in the Owls three games.
The Miami native had five RBIs, including a two-run home run on Wednesday, June 1, during an extra-inning game against the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers.
He added a pair of singles in FAU’s game on Saturday against the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, the eventual tournament champion. He went 5-12 at the plate in the tournament.
DelGuidice earned second team all-conference honors for a regular season in which he led the team with 50 RBIs and 20 doubles. He set a school record with 58 career doubles.
He ended the season with a .341 batting average and scored 34 runs.
Meanwhile, the Florida Atlantic Softball team lost to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL), 8-0, in five innings in the championship game of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament on Saturday, May 14.
It was the second trip for the Owls to the Sun Belt championship game in three years. The Owls (34-25) lost to ULL, 8-3, in the finals of the Sun Belt Tournament in 2009.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (49-9) scored in the first inning when an FAU fielding error allowed the run to score. ULL hit three homers on the day, which scored six of the eight runs. Rose Gressley and Ashlyn Parmerter had hit for the Owls in the game.
FAU has never had a losing season in its 17 years of softball, recording a .500 record only once. Senior pitcher Gressley and junior second baseman Heather Barnes were both named to the Sun Belt All-Tournament Team.
Scott Morganroth can be reached at www.scottsports33.com.
