Good morning. And an extra special morning to the Old Dominion women’s soccer team for racking up enough community service hours to rank second in the country among all NCAA soccer programs!

What else are we throwing into today’s Brew?

⚾ Senior moments
🏆 Hunter Fitz-Gerald earns Dick Howser Trophy consideration
👑 And much, much more!

📈 STOCK UP 

🔼 Senior Moments. After an extra innings defeat on Thursday and a loss on Friday—Old Dominion baseball put together a come-from-behind 7-6 victory against Georgia State this weekend on Senior Day.

🎙️ Head Coach Chris Finwood:

"Guys hung in there and stayed in the game. Finally got a couple of big hits and I'm proud of how we pitched all weekend.”

⚾ How The Game Was Won:

Georgia State led for most of the game and was up 6-3 midway through the sixth innings, but the Monarchs were able to pull even with three runs in the home half of the inning. Josh Trujillo and Kenny Levari both walked to put runners on first and second with two outs. The Panthers made a call to the pen and Hunter Fitz-Gerald greeted the new hurler with a three-run homer to just right of the scoreboard.

But it was then that Georgia State threatened to retake the lead in the top of the eighth. After a pair of singles and a wild pitch moved runners into scoring position, ODU elected to intentionally walk Will Mize to set up the double play. That proved to be the right decision as Vincent Bashara fielded a grounder and turned it to a force out at home, and Robbie O'Neal fired to Hunter Fitz-Gerald at first in time to complete the twin killing.

In the bottom of the eighth, Kenny Levari connected on a 2-2 pitch as his sixth homer of the season gave ODU the 7-6 lead. The Monarchs then brought in Joey DeChiaro in the top of the ninth. After a leadoff single, a ground ball was hit to Chris Dengler at second. The Monarchs weren't able to cover first in time to get the runner, but Joey DeChiaro threw across the diamond was in time for Kenny Levari to tag the runner out at third. The next Georgia State batter popped up to Chris Dengler to end the game.

⏩ Up Next For The Monarchs:

The Monarchs earned the No. 10 seed for the 2023 Sun Belt Conference Championship this week in Montgomery, Alabama. ODU will play in a single-elimination game against No. 7 seed James Madison tomorrow at Riverwalk Stadium with first pitch scheduled for 4:00pm ET.

🔼 First Of All. Old Dominion junior first baseman Hunter Fitz-Gerald has been named a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy—given to the top player in the country after leading all ODU starters with a .321 batting average, 21 home runs, 67 RBIs, and 70 hits.

He’s tied for eighth in the country in homers and 21st in RBIs.

The Dick Howser Trophy, presented by The Game Headwear, given in memory of the former Florida State University All-America shortstop and major league player and manager, who died of brain cancer in 1987, is regarded as baseball's most prestigious award. Criteria for consideration of the trophy include performance on the field, leadership, moral character and courage, qualities that were exemplified by Dick Howser's life.

Read more about the Sunshine State’s native’s journey to become a Monarch, the program records he’s set along the way, and more.

🤔 MONARCH TRIVIA

Record scratch. Hunter Fitz-Gerald has earned a spot as a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist after leading the team in several categories and breaking some records along the way—and one particular record caught our eye.

Earlier in the season, the Old Dominion first baseman hit a home run in enough consecutive games to become the new clubhouse leader in program history. How many long balls did Hunter Fitz-Gerald hit in a row this season?

Think you got it? Scroll down to the bottom of this email for the answer!

👑 ONE BIG THING

ICYMI. Fairy tales don't often happen in college athletics. The kindest person, the best student, the hardest worker, those who appear most deserving of success, they don't always win.

But Old Dominion women's golf coach Mallory Kane says she saw a fairy tale play out earlier this week at the Sun Belt Conference Championship in Florida, where ODU's Leah Onosato led from start to finish and became ODU's first female golfer to win a conference championship.

"Leah has always been somebody who was really close to the top, but didn't quite get there. Being the first to win a conference title guarantees her place in ODU golf history.”

📬 STICK WITH US

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📅 THE DAYS AHEAD

Monday 5/22

No scheduled events

Tuesday 5/23

🚣 Rowing @ College Sailing Women’s Fleet Race Champion National Championship in Kings Point, NY

⚾ Baseball vs. James Madison @ 4:00pm ET on ESPN+ | Live Audio

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Seven!

Have a great Monday, y’all.