FORT MYERS, Fla. – As five-time defending champions, the FGCU women's soccer team will begin the 2015 Atlantic Sun Conference slate Saturday, Sept. 26 as the Eagles welcome UNF for a 7 p.m. contest at the FGCU Soccer Complex.
The Green and Blue enter conference play with a record of 4-5-1 after falling in two highly-competitive matches on the road last weekend. The Eagles dropped 1-0 contests at Miami (Ohio) and No. 4 West Virginia in the final two-game nonconference swing.
Despite last weekend's outcome, the Eagles have outscored opponents 16-8 through 10 games with 140 total shots and 61 shots on goal. The FGCU backline has stopped 79 shot attempts this season, with senior
Brittany Brown (Rochester, N.Y./Greece-Athena High School) leading the way. Brown has stifled 28 shots on goal so far this season and has held opponents to 0.77 goals per game in six games.
Tabby Tindell (Ocala, Fla./Trinity Catholic High School) leads the team at 13 points on the season with four goals and five assists through eight games, while
Paulina Speckmaier (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) has added three goals and a single assist for seven points. Overall, 10 different players have found the back of the net for FGCU, freshman
Darien Davis (New Port Richey, Fla./River Ridge High School) and transfers
Nikki Hudson (Baltimore, Md./Roland Park County School/Rutgers) and
Meaghan Mulligan (Freehold, N.J./Colts Neck High School/Tennessee).
WHAT TO KNOWLive stats for the tilt with UNF will be available via FGCUAthletics.com and by clicking
here. As always, fans can also follow @FGCU_WSoccer on Twitter for live updates during the game and can find the team on Facebook and Instagram for further information.
Unfortunately, live video for Saturday's game will not be offered as the streaming equipment is damaged beyond repair. A brand-new, HD-quality video streaming kit has been ordered and is expected to be in place for the next home series during the weekend of Oct. 9. FGCU Athletics officials apologize for this inconvenience, but the new equipment will provide fans a better-than-ever viewing experience. Video highlights following the contest will be available on FGCUAthletics.com and YouTube.com/FGCUAthletics.
UNFThe Ospreys of UNF enter conference play with a record of 2-7 on the year. UNF earned a 4-0 victory over Francis Marion to open the year before falling in seven-straight contests. The Ospreys rebounded late in the nonconference season and defeated Georgia Southern last weekend for their second win of the year. The season has included similar opponents to FGCU in FIU and Miami. The Ospreys fell to FIU 2-0 and lost to the Hurricanes by a 5-1 score.
As a unit, UNF has been outscored 13-6 this season and has allowed opponents to 149 shots with 63 shots on goal. After scoring four in the season opener, the team has scored just twice since. The Ospreys average 8.6 shots per game with 77 attempts through nine contests. Junior defender Jenna Steininger was named the A-Sun's Defensive Player of the Week this week and guides the Osprey back line. Steininger has played every minute of every game thus far to lead the squad. Sarah Wasser paces the offensive efforts with one goal and one assist so far, while four others have added a single goal each.
UNF was selected to finish fifth in the A-Sun Preseason Poll after finishing the 2014 slate with a record of 5-12-1. The Ospreys went 3-3-1 in conference play in head coach Robin Confer's first season and earned the fourth seed in the A-Sun tournament. The Ospreys were ultimately upset by fifth-seed Northern Kentucky in the postseason.
The Eagles hold a 6-1-1 record against the Ospreys in eight previous meetings. The Green and Blue earned a 3-0 win in Jacksonville last season with two goals from then-senior
Shannen Wacker and a 73rd minute strike by
Kaitlin Parker (Palm Harbor, Fla./Clearwater Central Catholic High School).
THE STREAK(S)FGCU is currently riding a 26-game win streak in A-Sun regular-season contests at the FGCU Soccer Complex. The team has not dropped an A-Sun game at the FGCU Soccer Complex since Oct. 3, 2009 when they fell to Campbell by a 1-0 score. The streak stands as the nation's third longest of its kind.
The Eagles also maintain a 20-game overall win streak in regular-season A-Sun games that spans three seasons. The team's last loss in conference play was Oct. 5, 2012 at North Florida.
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 (39), game-winning goals (17) and shots on goal (107) 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 95 points in just 49 games. Tindell also entered the A-Sun Top-10 for career goals earlier this season and continues to climb the ranks.
Brown nears the top of the record books in several categories, including career saves (245, 2nd) and games played (70, 2nd) and took over as the program's and A-Sun's all-time leader in shutouts a week ago. The veteran keeper also leads the program's goals against average at 0.70.
FGCU PROGRAM RECORDS | SHUTOUTS | | | | GOALS AGAINST AVERAGE | |
| 1 | Brittany Brown (12-15) | 33 | | 1 | Brittany Brown (12-15) | 0.70 |
| 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 | 32 |
| 2 | Mirela Ninic | Mercer 96-99 | 60 | | 2 | Stephanie Powers | FGCU 08-11 | 31 |
| 3 | Jenn Stephenson | Campbell 94-97 | 60 | | 3 | April Eilering | Stetson 03-06 | 25 |
| 4 | Kara Fitzgerald | GSU 94-97 | 57 | | 4 | Staci Pugh | KSU 06-10 | 25 |
| 5 | Stine Kloster | JU 97-00 | 53 | | | Erin Switalski | Campbell 01-04 | 25 |
| 6 | Keri Zwikker | JU 05-08 | 49 | | | Molly Keating | FAU 00-03 | 23 |
| 7 | Leeanna Woodworth | GWU 02-05 | 49 | | 7 | Martha Chaney | Cent 93-95 | 23 |
| 8 | Chandra Yorgason | GSU 97-00 | 47 | | | Alyssa Obrien | UCF 95-98 | 22 |
| 9 | Marit Foss | JU 97-00 | 39 | | 9 | Adriana Finelli | JSU 98-00 | 20 |
| Tabby Tindell | FGCU 13-15 | 39 | | 10 | Alexa Rooney | JU 08-10 | 20 |
| | | | | | Julie Snaman | UCF 03-04 | 20 |
COACH BLANKENSHIPFor the second-straight year, FGCU women's soccer head coach
Jim Blankenship earned a position among the nation's top-10 collegiate coaches prior to the season's start. The three-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year holds the No. 6 position in the list compiled by AllWhiteKit.com for 2015. By creating sustained success at FGCU, Blankenship achieved a score of 69.61 in 2014 for a No. 10 ranking and improved to 74.05 this season to take the No. 6 spot. With the increase, Blankenship moved ahead of UNC's Anson Dorrance, Boston University's Nancy Feldman, Marquette's Markus Roeders, Penn State's Erica Walsh, Portland's Garrett Smith and Florida's Becky Burleigh.
In his ninth season with the Green and Blue, Blankenship has built FGCU into a yearly contender in the A-Sun and nationally. Blankenship-led squads have won each of the last five regular season championships and have captured the A-Sun Conference Championship in three of the last five seasons. With Blankenship at the helm, the Eagles have compiled a record of 105-41-18 through nine seasons with a 53-9-11 A-Sun mark. FGCU's only women's soccer coach in program history owns a career record of 345-112-29.
UP NEXTFollowing the Saturday matchup, the team will 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 against Wake Forest will stand as the team's final nonconference contest before picking up with the rest of the A-Sun schedule.
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 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 105-41-18 (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 345-112-29 (70.9 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. TICKETSSingle-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. #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.
