OXFORD, Ohio – Despite doubling the shot production of the home team, the FGCU women's soccer team fell to the Miami (Ohio) Redhawks by a 1-0 score Friday afternoon at the Miami Soccer Field. With the loss, the Eagles move to 4-4-1 on the year, while Miami improves to 4-3.
 
The Green and Blue outshot the Redhawks 11-5, with nine chances in the second half. FGCU challenged the Miami keeper with six shots on goal including attempts by four separate players and held Miami to a single on-target shot in the 19th-minute goal. Miami produced just two threats to the FGCU backline through 90 minutes and allowed FGCU to maintain a 9-0 advantage in corner kicks.
 
Senior goal keeper Brittany Brown (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena High School) gave up the single goal in the first half but was forced to make no other saves as the backline stifled all of Miami's chances.
 
"This is a disappointing result for us," said head coach Jim Blankenship. "We had chances, but we couldn't find the back of the net. We will have to increase our intensity for Sunday."
 
FGCU's offense took control early on as Tabby Tindell (Ocala, Fla./Trinity Catholic High School) produced a shot on goal in the 11th minute before the Eagles forced three corner kicks in the span of five minutes. The Eagles were unable to capitalize on the set pieces before Miami created its own chance in the 18th minute.
 
Miami's first shot attempt went just left of the goal post after a strong run through the middle. The Redhawks fed a forward just in front of the goal but the point-blank shot sailed wide. In the next minute, Miami worked the ball through the box but was stopped by the FGCU backline. The home team fed the ball out of the congestion in front of the goal where a midfielder fired a shot from 25-yards out and found the back of the net in the upper left corner to give Miami a 1-0 lead.
 
The Eagles saw a shot attempt by Lauren Greene (Lakeland, Fla./George Jenkins High School) in the 42nd minute but entered the break with a 1-0 deficit.
 
FGCU created nine offensive opportunities in the second half with four shots that challenged Miami's keeper but were unable to finish any chance. The Eagles best opportunity came in the 56th minute as Kaitlin Parker (Palm Harbor, Fla./Clearwater Central Catholic High School) created a run down the left side. Parker dished the ball into the box where Nikki Hudson (Baltimore, Md./Roland Park County School/Rutgers) and Paulina Speckmaier (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) controlled the ball in a pack of Miami defenders. Speckmaier passed the ball back to Parker whose shot hit the crossbar.
 
The Eagles added shots from Tindell, Ally Kasun (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield High School) and Emma Blackwell (Jenks, Okla./Jenks High School) late in the half but could not match the home team's early goal and ultimately fell 1-0.
 
FGCU will travel to Morgantown, W.V. for a 1 p.m. contest against the Mountaineers of West Virginia University Sunday, Sept. 20. No. 4 WVU defeated Buffalo 1-0 in an overtime contest Friday night to move to 8-1 on the year.
 
Following Sunday's matchup, the Green and Blue will return to Southwest Florida for the start of the Atlantic Sun Conference season. The Eagles will host North Florida in the A-Sun opener on Saturday, Sept. 26 with a 7 p.m. kickoff in their quest for an unprecedented sixth-straight A-Sun title.
 
The team will then travel to Jacksonville to face the JU Dolphins on Friday, Oct. 2 before taking on Wake Forest in a neutral match Sunday, Oct. 4 in Macon, Ga. The 3:30 p.m. kickoff the Wake Forest will stand as the team's final nonconference contest before picking up with the rest of the A-Sun schedule.
 
COACH JIM BLANKENSHIP
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, 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 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. 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 105-40-18 (65.1 W%) overall record through the first eight-plus seasons of the program's existence, including a 54-9-9 (75.0 W%) mark in the A-Sun. Blankenship's impressive career record of 345-111-29 (71.2 W%) over 25 seasons has come while leading FGCU, the University of Miami, Lynn University and St. Thomas University.
 
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.
 
TICKETS
Single-game tickets for FGCU Women's Soccer are available at a cost of $7 for adults and $5 for groups of ten (10) or more. Season tickets are also available. For more ticket information and additional deals, visit FGCUathletics.com/tickets, call or visit the ticket office at 239-590-7145.
 
#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.