LEESBURG, Fla. -- Florida Gulf Coast scored three runs in the first and neither team could muster up offense after that as the Eagles scattered two hits in a 3-0 win over Cornell softball on Friday afternoon at the Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex. The first day of the Spring Games featured the Big Red's first contest since March 8, 2020. It was the 12th game of the season for FGCU (7-5) and the program's 61st since Cornell (0-1) last took the field. The loss hardly dampened the excitement of getting back to competition.

Junior Mia Burd picked right up where she left off in 2020, surrendering three first innings runs, but not allowing another while scattering two hits over the final 5.1 frames. She walked two and struck out one in taking the hard-luck loss in the circle.

Both Emily McKinney and Olivia Rooney had singles as the Big Red had just two hits on the afternoon, though McKinney added a walk, Marisa Zorrilla reached base twice. The Big Red left seven baserunners on.

Defensively, the Big Red was perfect in 27 fielding opportunities in one of its first days outside this spring.

Ally Hulme (4.0 innings, two hits, five strikeouts) and Riley Oakes (3.0 innings, zero hits) combined for the shutout, with Hulme picking up her fifth win in the circle and Oakes earning the save. Cana Davis was 2-for-2 with a double, a triple and a walk to lead the offense. She scored a run and drove in a second. FGCU had five total hits in picking up the win.

Florida Gulf Coast put three runs on the board in the first, as a hit batter, a pair of doubles and a run-scoring single staked the home state team to an early lead. Cornell threatened in the second, putting two runners on base before the Eagles got out of the jam. From there, Burd settled in for the Big Red in the circle, holding the Eagles at bay, but the offense couldn't get on track. 

Cornell will play a doubleheader against Siena on Saturday, Feb. 26 beginning at 1:30 p.m.