FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU women's soccer team continues its quest for a fourth Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Championship Sunday, Nov. 8 with a 1 p.m. kickoff in the championship final. The Eagles will take on second-seeded Lipscomb University at the FGCU Soccer Complex.
FGCU makes its fifth-straight appearance in the A-Sun Championship Final earning its sixth-straight regular season title and defeating Stetson 5-0 in Friday's semifinal matchup. The Eagles moved to 12-5-2 on the season with the shutout over the Hatters.
The Eagles have outscored opponents 46-12 through 19 games this season and held a 23-3 advantage over A-Sun foes in the regular season. The team has taken 346 shots with 166 on target overall and have averaged 18 shots per game, while limiting opponents to just 6.5 shots per game overall and outshooting foes 24.9 to 3.9 in conference play. The FGCU backline has stopped 107 shot attempts this season, with seniors
Emma Blackwell (Jenks, Okla./Jenks High School) and
Brittany Brown (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena High School) leading the way. Brown has stifled 47 shots on goal so far this season and has held opponents to 0.57 goals per game with a save percentage of .810.
2015 Atlantic Sun Player of the Year
Tabby Tindell (Ocala, Fla./Trinity Catholic High School leads the team and the league at 41 points on the season with 16 goals and nine assists through 17 games, while
Paulina Speckmaier (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep), Ally Kasun (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield High School) and
Nikki Hudson (Baltimore, Md./Roland Park County School/Rutgers) have each added four goals. Overall, 14 different players have found the back of the net for FGCU, including
Shea Rhoney (Lithia, Fla./Newsome High School) who has added two goals and three assists during her senior campaign.
The Eagles have used the same lineup in each of the nine games since battling No. 4 West Virginia and have compiled an 8-1-1 record with that crew, including the road loss against the Mountaineers and the undefeated mark in conference play.
With the recent success, the Eagles moved ahead in the official NCAA RPI and now stand at 90 among the nation's 333 teams.
WHAT TO KNOWSunday's contest can be viewed live on ESPN3 with Brice Zimmerman and Neil Solondz on the call. The stream, which offers the video stream free of charge, can be found at FGCUAthletics.com or by clicking
here. Live stats can also be found at FGCUAthletics.com or by clicking
here. As always, fans can also follow @FGCU_WSoccer on Twitter for updates as they become available during the game and can find the team on Facebook and Instagram for further information.
FEED FGCUFGCU Athletics will be collecting unperishable food items at all home games during the month of November, beginning with Friday's postseason contest. Items donated will benefit students experiencing food insecurity on our campus. FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry, 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.
TICKETSTickets for Sunday's semifinal matchups are available through the FGCU Ticket Office at a rate of $7 for adults and $5 for children and/or Military members with ID. Students with an ID from any A-Sun school will be admitted free of charge. The FGCU Ticket Office also offers a Family Pack that includes two adults and two children for $20.
LIPSCOMBThe Bisons appear in their first-ever championship final after producing a record of 12-3-4 this season and earning the no. 2 seed. The squad kicked off the season by reeling off six-consecutive shutouts and has allowed the fewest goals against in the conference at 10 with 13 shutouts on the year.
Fourth-year head coach Kevin O'Brien is looking to lead his team to their first conference championship during his tenure. Last season's Lipscomb squad entered the conference tournament as the no. 2 seed with a 4-2-1 conference record before being upset in the semifinals by the no. 6 seeded Kennesaw State Owls.
The Bisons' 36 goals ranked second in the conference. The dynamic offense is powered by A-Sun Freshman of the Year Maycie McKay. The Brentwood, Tennessee native scored eight goals with 19 points on the season, while Alex Hickey adds six goals to the team's total. The Bisons also boast the 2015 Goalkeeper of the Year, Anna Buhigas. The junior leads the conference with a .904 save percentage and 13 shutouts. Her 94 saves also ranked second in the conference.
FGCU is 7-0-2 all-time against Lipscomb since their first meeting in 2007. When the Eagles and Bisons faced off last season, Tindell scored within eight seconds to net the third-quickest goal to start a game in NCAA history. The Green and Blue eventually won that match 2-1 to clinch the top seed in the A-Sun tournament.
POSTSEASON ACCOLADESThe Eagles saw nine individuals honored in last week's Atlantic Sun All-Conference Team announcement, highlighted by Tindell's nod as Player of the Year. Blackwell became the first A-Sun Player to win back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards, while Blankenship was named Coach of the Year for the fourth time.
In addition to the major awards, Tindell and Blackwell joined Kasun and Hudson on the First Team All-Conference, while Rhoney and Speckmaier were named to the Second Team All-Conference and freshmen
Camille Knudstrup (Lakeland, Fla./George Jenkins High School) and
Darien Davis (New Port Richey, Fla./River Ridge High School) earned All-Freshmen Team accolades.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOKTindell is on the launching pad to become FGCU's most prolific women's soccer player of all time. The junior currently holds the all-time record in goals (51), game-winning goals (21) and shots on goal (138) and set the new program record in career points with a goal and an assist in the season's opening weekend. Tindell passed previous leader Wacker's 83 points and currently stands at 123 points in just 58 games. Tindell also entered the A-Sun Top-10 for career goals earlier this season and continues to climb the ranks.
Brown takes over the record books with the top career mark in saves (264) and holds the program's and A-Sun's shutout record at 36. The veteran keeper also leads the program's goals against average at 0.67 and games played at 81.
FGCU PROGRAM RECORDS | SHUTOUTS | | | | GOALS AGAINST AVERAGE | |
| 1 | Brittany Brown (12-15) | 37 | | 1 | Brittany Brown (12-15) | 0.67 |
| 2 | Stephanie Powers (08-11) | 31 | | 2 | Stephanie Powers (08-11) | 0.73 |
| 3 | Kirsi Keenan (07-08) | 8 | | 3 | Emily Barrett (07-09) | 0.84 |
| 4 | Emily Barrett (07-09) | 3 | | 4 | Kirsi Keenan (07-08) | 0.90 |
ATLANTIC SUN RECORDS | GOALS | | | | | SHUTOUTS | | |
| 1 | Shelley Marusak | Cent 93-95 | 61 | | 1 | Brittany Brown | FGCU 12-15 | 37 |
| 2 | Mirela Ninic | Mercer 96-99 | 60 | | 2 | Stephanie Powers | FGCU 08-11 | 31 |
| 3 | Jenn Stephenson | Campbell 94-97 | 60 | | 3 | Anna Buhigas | Lipscomb 13-15 | 29 |
| 4 | Kara Fitzgerald | GSU 94-97 | 57 | | 4 | April Eilering | Stetson 03-06 | 25 |
| 5 | Stine Kloster | JU 97-00 | 53 | | | Staci Pugh | KSU 06-10 | 25 |
| 6 | Tabby Tindell | FGCU 13-15 | 51 | | | Erin Switalski | Campbell 01-04 | 25 |
| 7 | Keri Zwikker | JU 05-08 | 49 | | 7 | Molly Keating | FAU 00-03 | 23 |
| Leeanna Woodworth | GWU 02-05 | 49 | | | Martha Chaney | Cent 93-95 | 23 |
| 9 | Chandra Yorgason | GSU 97-00 | 47 | | 9 | Alyssa Obrien | UCF 95-98 | 22 |
| 10 | Marit Foss | JU 97-00 | 39 | | 10 | Adriana Finelli | JSU 98-00 | 20 |
| | | | | | Alexa Rooney | JU 08-10 | 20 |
| | | | | | Julie Snaman | UCF 03-04 | 20 |
MORE ON TABBYWith seven goals in the last five games, Tindell moved ahead of Florida's Savannah Jordan among active Division I players in career points per game at 2.11 and now leads all active players. The junior trails only Jordain goals per game at 0.88 through her three year career. This season, Tindell ranks among the top-five nationally in points per game (3rd, 2.38), goals per game (5th, 0.94), shots on goal per game (2nd, 3.06) and game winning goals (5th, 6).
UP NEXTWith a win Sunday afternoon, the Eagles would earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The field for the 2015 NCAA Tournament will be announced Monday, Nov. 9 at 4:30 p.m. with the first round set to be played Friday, Nov. 13, Saturday, Nov. 14 or Sunday, Nov. 15.
COACH JIM BLANKENSHIPA 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, who was recently ranked the no. 6 collegiate coach nationally by AllWhiteKit.com, started the program in 2007 and has since guided the Eagles to nine double-digit win seasons, culminating with Atlantic Sun Regular Season Championships in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and now 2015. 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. The Eagles then won the 2014 A-Sun tournament and hosted the first NCAA Championship event on campus when it welcomed Auburn in front of a record crowd. Blankenship has guided FGCU to a 113-41-19 (65.3 W%) overall record through the first nine seasons of the program's existence, including a 61-9-10 (76.2 W%) mark in the A-Sun. Blankenship's impressive career record of 353-112-30 (71.3 W%) over 25 seasons has come while leading FGCU, the University of Miami, Lynn University and St. Thomas University. FOLLOW ALONGFor 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. #FEEDFGCUFGCU 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.
