FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU women's soccer team (17-4, 7-0 A-Sun) had its record-breaking season come to an end on Saturday night in the opening round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament in the form of a 1-0 defeat opposite Auburn (12-6-3, 5-3-3 SEC) in front of a record-shattering crowd. The Eagles became the first program in FGCU Athletics history to host an NCAA Division I Postseason event at home and the Eagle faithful came out in droves.

The match produced an FGCU Soccer Complex record 2,014 fans and the Eagles battled Auburn all night, mostly without star forward Tabby Tindell (Ocala, Fla./Trinity Catholic HS) who left the match with an apparent leg injury in the 20th minute. The Tigers scored the go-ahead goal in the 11th minute and managed to hold off the Green and Blue attack the rest of the way despite several dangerous chances generated by the Eagles late in the second half.

"I'm very proud of our team and the season that they had," head coach Jim Blankenship said. "Program record 17 wins and they played six teams in the top 30 and I'm just proud of it. You saw the product of that schedule today, Tabby goes down and this team didn't skip a beat. It's kind of a tough pill to swallow but I'm very proud of our group and what they started and built here. I'm really pleased with their effort, we were a little unlucky and had good chances at the end but credit to Auburn. They weathered the storm and their keeper made two huge saves when they need it most … for us it's about blazing a trail and getting our feet wet. We like the direction we're going … We'll be back."

Auburn applied the pressure early in this one, firing two shots before the Eagles managed to mount any offense. It was the third shot that spelled doom for the Green and Blue as Tori Ball served a cross into the box that found its through the FGCU defense and to the foot of Haley Gerken to re-directed the pass into the back of the net for the game's lone score.

The Tigers took a 4-1 shot advantage into the break but the Eagles would come out firing in the second half without Tindell. Less than a minute into the second frame, Julia Roddar (Falun, Sweden/Shattuck-St. Mary's Academy/Wisconsin) put a shot on frame forcing Alyse Scott to make her first save of the match.

The Eagles generated their first corner kick of the night in the 69th minute and Melissa Arnold's (Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek Regional HS) service found the head of Ally Kasun (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield HS) who cleanly re-directed the try in the direction of goal but just high. Less than a minute later another FGCU corner kick found its way to Paulina Speckmaier (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep/Florida) who would have her shot blocked. FGCU would generate two more corner kicks a short time later but no more chances would come from them.

In the 85th minute the Eagles produced one last corner kick. Arnold served the ball into the box and Kaitlin Parker (Palm Harbor, Fla./Clearwater Central Catholic HS) was there for a header but the ball would be knocked away by the defense. The bouncing ball would come to rest at the feet of senior Shannen Wacker (Parker, Colo./Ponderosa HS) who settled it less than six yards away from the goal mouth and let loose the final try of her career but it found its way into the hands of Scott.

Wacker had a senior year to remember. The Parker, Colo. native contributed a career-high 29 points this season, scoring seven goals and handing out an FGCU single-season record 15 assists. Those 29 points ranked second only to her teammate Tindell in the A-Sun and her 15 assists led the league and are sixth in the nation.

Wacker has started all 21 matches for the Green and Blue and ends her career as the FGCU all-time points leader with 83 and is second all-time with 28 goals and 27 assists. She appeared on an All-Conference roster in each of her four seasons at FGCU and clearly graduates as arguably the greatest player in program history.

The Eagles are 0-3 all-time in NCAA Tournament matches, losing to Florida in Gainesville in back-to-back seasons (2011, 2012).

The magical, record-shattering season comes to an end for the Green and Blue who won a program record 17 games. After dropping a 2-0 result to No. 16 South Carolina on Sept. 14 on a neutral field, the Eagles won a program record 13 consecutive matches, outscoring their opponents 36-6 with seven shutouts, including a 15-2 advantage against A-Sun competition during the regular season. The Eagles are now 7-0-1 all-time in the A-Sun Tournament and 3-0-1 in the Championship match. The Eagles have outscored opponents in the A-Sun Final, 5-1, and have outshot the opposition 80-33.

NATIONALLY RANKED #25 – TopDrawerSoccer.com
For the third week in-a-row the FGCU women's soccer team is nationally ranked; checking in at No. 25 in this week's TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's DI Top 25 Poll. The Eagles became the first A-Sun program to complete an undefeated and untied conference regular season since the year 2000.

The Eagles fall in behind No. 20 Kansas (15-5, 5-3 Big 12), No. 21 BYU (13-4-3, 7-1-1 WCC) No. 22 South Carolina (13-5-3, 5-3-3 SEC), who were the last team to beat the Eagles, No. 23 Rutgers (12-5-1, 8-4-1 B1G) and No. 24 Washington State (10-4-4, 5-4-2 Pac-12). La Salle (14-5-2, 8-0 A10), who the Eagles defeated 3-2 on the road, checks in at No. 29. FGCU is one of four ranked teams from the state of Florida along with No. 2 Florida State (18-1-1, 9-0-1 ACC), No. 11 Florida (14-4-1, 9-2 SEC) and No. 17 UCF (16-4, 8-2 American). Only California has as many schools listed in the Top 25. The Women's Top 25 poll in its entirety can be found here.

RECEIVING VOTES - NSCAA
The Eagles received 15 votes in National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll on Tuesday afternoon, falling into the No. 28 spot. It is the fourth time this season that the Green and Blue have been considered in this poll. FGCU sits behind UConn (29) and Michigan (21). Everyone is chasing No. 25 Rutgers who received 51 votes this week. The entire NSCAA Top 25 poll can be found here.

A-SUN POSTSEASON AWARDS
The Eagles matched their own A-Sun record, set a season ago, with six individuals named to the A-Sun All-Conference First Team. Alongside Player of the Year Tabby Tindell and Defensive Player of the Year Emma Blackwell (Jenks, Okla./Jenks HS), Brittany Brown (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena HS), Paulina Speckmaier (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep/Florida), Ally Kasun (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield HS) and Shannen Wacker all received recognition on the A-Sun First Team. Melissa Arnold (Sicklerville, N.J./Timber Creek Regional HS) was the lone FGCU representative on the Second Team, giving the Green and Blue a league-best seven honorees.

*PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Tabby Tindell, FGCU
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Emma Blackwell, FGCU
GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR – Anna Buhigas, Lipscomb
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR – Macy Hamblin, Northern Kentucky
COACH OF THE YEAR – Jim Blankenship, FGCU

FGCU OPPONENTS RPI
3 – Texas A&M
11 – South Carolina
21 – USF
25 – La Salle
26 – FGCU
29 - Auburn
30 – Arizona
134 – Kennesaw State
160 – FIU
161 – Jacksonville
166 – Miami
186 – Lipscomb
187 – Murray State
233 – Wofford
239 – Northern Kentucky
269 – North Florida
278 – Stetson
295 – CSU Bakersfield
321 – USC Upstate

NATIONAL RANKS (As of Nov. 10)
1 - Game-Winning Goals – Tabby Tindell (11)
3 – Points – Tabby Tindell (48)
3 - Goals – Tabby Tindell (20)
4 – Points Per Game – Tabby Tindell (2.40)
4 – Goals Per Game – Tabby Tindell (1.000)
6– Assists – Shannen Wacker (15)

A-SUN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
The Eagles can boast a league-best seven Player of the Week selections this season.
Aug. 25 – Tabby Tindell – Player of the Week
Sept. 2 – Ashley Parks – Defensive Player of the Week
Sept. 8 – Tabby Tindell – Player of the Week
Sept. 22 – Tabby Tindell – Player of the Week
Sept. 29 – Shannen Wacker – Player of the Week
Oct. 6 – Melissa Arnold – Defensive Player of the Week
Oct. 20 – Brittany Brown – Defensive Player of the Week

JIM BLANKENSHIP – 2014 A-SUN COACH OF THE YEAR
A veteran of over two decades in collegiate coaching, head coach Jim Blankenship, who was named the 2012 and 2013 A-Sun Coach of the Year as well, has built FGCU women's soccer into a yearly contender in the Atlantic Sun Conference and a rising program in the South Region in just eight seasons. Blankenship started the program in 2007 and has since guided the Eagles to eight double-digit win seasons, culminating with Atlantic Sun Regular Season Championships in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. In 2011 and 2012 he also led the Eagles to back-to-back A-Sun tournament championships and became the first team in the history of the university to make it to the NCAA Tournament. Blankenship has guided FGCU to a 101-35-17 overall record over the first eight seasons of the program's existence, including a 54-9-9 mark in the A-Sun.

#WINGSUP
Fans are encouraged to download the brand-new Wings Up mobile app in conjunction with SuperFanU. The fully-customized loyalty-rewards platform allows fans to check in at each of FGCU's sporting events to earn points throughout the school year toward exclusive prizes that can't be offered anywhere else.

FOLLOW ALONG
For constant, news, photos, videos and updates you can follow the women's soccer team on Twitter @FGCU_WSoccer, on Instagram @FGCU_WSoccer or on Facebook: Facebook.com/FGCUWSoccer. You can also find FGCU athletics on YouTube by visiting YouTube.com/FGCUEagles.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.