Francis Marion University Athletics

FMU: 3-year returning letterman and starter....Switch-hitter....Taking advantage of NCAA-granted extra year becasuse of covid....Earned BS degree in political science in May 2021....NCBWA All-Southeast Region Team (second-team) 2022....D2CCA All-Southeast Region Team (second team) 2022....Conference Carolinas first-team All-Conference Team (DH) 2022....Conference Carolinas Spring Academic All-Conference Team 2022....Team MVP 2022....2021-22 Frankie Award for Comeback Player of the Year....Started 4 games in 2021 before an injury ended his season....Batted 8-for-16 with 3 homers and 7 RBIs in those games....3 multi-hit games and 2 multi-RBI games....Slugged 1.125 and had OPS of 1.125....2021 Pre-Season All-PBC Team (as DH)....Returning for a NCAA-granted additional year because of covid 19....Played and started 19 contests in 2020 (10 at DH, 8 at 1B, 1 at C)....Team-best OPS of 1.076....Led team in on-base percentage (.500) and was second in hitting (.356) and RBIs (14)....7 multi-hit games and 3 multi-RBI games....Reached base at a .538 clip when leading off an inning....Ranked 89th in NCAA II for walks (15) and 105th for on-base percentage....Batted .440 against southpaws....Ended 2020 on a 5-game hitting streak....Walk-off homer beat Young Harris (2-28-20)....2020 Pre-Season All-PBC Team selection....PBC All-Conference (second team) as DH in 2019....Started 41 games in 2019....Led FMU with 9 homers and was 5th in RBIs (38)....Led team in slugging (.559)....OPS of 1.010....13 multi-hit games and 9 multi-RBI games...Registered a 13-game streak of safely reaching base....PBC rankings: 6th in hit by pitches (12) and on-base-percentage (.451), 9th in slugging, 11th in homers, 20th in RBIs....Transfer from USC Sumter, where he played two seasons....Will hit in the middle of our line-up and fill a need for a left-handed hitting power guy....Registered some impressive stats at USC Sumter....Has the ability to hit the ball out of the park every time he comes to the plate....Also possesses a good eye as evidenced by his 64 walks in 93 career games with the Fire Ants....Division II ADA Academic Achievement Award 2022....Peach Belt Conference Presidential Honor Roll 2021....FMU Swamp Fox Athletic-Academic Honor Roll 2019 (spring, fall), 2020 (fall), and 2021 (fall), 2022 (spring)....Conference Carolinas Presidential Honor Roll 2022.

USCS: As a sophomore, batted a team-best .414 with seven doubles, 10 homers, and 40 RBIs....Also posted a .560 on-base percentage and slugged .679, while committing only one fielding error in 286 chances....Helped lead the Fire Ants to a 37-23 record, the Region X title, and an appearance in the NJCAA Eastern District championships in New York....Garnered first-team All-Region honors and was named to the Region X All-Defensive Team....During his freshman campaign, hit .265 with 10 doubles, four homers, 27 RBIs, and a .406 on-base percentage, while not committing a fielding error in 204 total chances.

PERSONAL:

• Born Leniel Gonzalez in Bayamón, Puerto Rico
• Graduate of Lakewood High School, where he played for coach Bill Delavan
• Named the Gators’ team most valuable player in 2016
• Also played for the Dalzell-Shaw American Legion Post 175 squad  
• Nickname is Lenny

PERSONAL FAVORITES:

• As a child what you wanted to be when you grew up: Professional Baseball Player
• Favorite Superhero: Spiderman
• Favorite Athlete: My Dad
• Favorite Sports Team: Cleveland Indians
• Favorite Movie or TV Show: The Equalizer
• Favorite Food: Pizza
• Favorite Vacation Spot: Hawaii
• Twitter Handle: Leniel9012
• Instagram Account: Leniel9012
• Your Motivation Music: Rap
• Favorite Thing About FMU: The baseball field
• Favorite Off-Field Activity: Fishing
• Goals for Upcoming Season: Win a Championship
• Why you first chose your sport: My dad played baseball so I wanted to be like him
• The biggest mental challenge to you improving faster: Be confident in your abilities
• Interesting Notes: I’m from Puerto Rico
• Brush With Greatness: Meeting Roberto Alomar