Loudonville, N.Y. - The FGCU women's basketball team (4-0) will look to improve the second best start to a season in program history at the Division-I level when they face Siena (1-2) on the road Monday. They sit alone in second behind the 2010-11 team's 14-0 start.

SCOUTING FGCU
FGCU swept through the Akron Classic this weekend with 19-point victories over Kent State and Akron. Nasrin Ulel (Murrietta, Calif./Murrietta HS) was named the Akron Classic MVP after averaging 18 points, three rebounds and three assists in the two games. While leading the team in scoring each game, she's averaging 20.3 PPG while shooting .592 from the field and .655 from 3-point range.

Tytionia Adderly (Jupiter, Fla./Cardinal Newman HS) was named to the All-Akron Classic team after averaging nine points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.5 steals and two assists in the event. She combined to shoot 8-for-15 from the field and leads the team in rebounding this year at 10 RPG. The sophomore has four career double-doubles, which is the most among players on the current roster.

Taylor Gradinjan (Cudahy, Wis./Cudahy HS) has reached double figures in scoring three times this year, and she averaged 13 PPG in the wins over Kent State and Akron. She is third on the team in scoring at 11 PPG, and she now has 938 career points, which is 9th most in the Division-I era. Her 222 career triples is third most in the Division-I era.

Jessica Cattani (Muskego, Wis./Muskego HS) has increased her scoring output each game this year, which most recently saw her produce a season-high 11 points in the win over Akron. She is shooting 7-for-12 from 3-point range over the past three games. China Dow (Louisville, Ky./Christian Academy of Louisville HS) tied her season-high with 11 points in the win over Akron. She has four rebounds each game, is shooting .538 from the field, and is the 4th-leading scoring on the team at 9.3 PPG.

Lisa Zderadicka (Vienna, Austria/HAK Korneuburg) has started to heat up the past two games. The redshirt junior graduate transfer averaged 11 PPG in the Akron Classic while notching a season-high 11 points against Kent State. She shot 8-for-12 from the field (2-for-4 from 3-point range) and 4-for-4 from the foul line, too.

Erica Nelson (Kansas City, Mo./Lee Summit North HS) is tied with Zderadicka for the team-high in assists with 13 through four games, and she averages 6.3 PPG. Rosemarie Julien (Port St. Lucie, Fla./Treasure Coast HS) is the team's second leading scorer at 11.3 PPG while averaging 4.3 RPG. She tied her career-high with five assists in the win over Akron, and she has the team's lone double-double this season.

SCOUTING SIENA
Siena enters Monday's matchup with a 1-2 record. They have recorded both of their losses on the road to Penn State and Harvard, while picking up their lone win in a 70-62 decision over St. Bonaventure. The Saints are getting outscored 74.3 to 69.7 PPG and outrebounded 40.7 to 36.3 RPG. 

The Saints are led by 5-10 senior guard Kollyns Scarbrough, the reigning Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Player of the Week, who is averaging a team-high 22.7 PPG and 10 RPG through her team's three games. She had 30 points in the team's eight-point loss to Harvard on Wednesday.

Sabrina Piper checks in second on the team in scoring at 9.3 PPG, while Maddie Sims is third at nine PPG. Interestingly, both of those players come off the bench, while Anna Lundquist also comes off the bench and is the team's fourth leading scorer at 6.7 PPG. 

Siena's worst quarter this season has been the second. They have been outscored 58-25 by their opponents in that frame, but they've outscored teams 72-50 in the final quarter.

SERIES HISTORY
FGCU defeated Siena 66-42 on Dec. 9 of last season in the only matchup between the two programs. Julien (17), Gradinjan (12) and Haley Laughter (11) led the team in scoring. The Eagles return 45 of the 66 points from that game. The full recap can be found here.

NEXT UP
Following Monday's game, FGCU will head west to participate in the Play4Kay Shootout in Las Vegas, Nevada at Mandalay Bay Nov. 25-27. In the opening round, the Eagles will face #25/20 DePaul on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. ET. Following that, the opponent on Friday will either be Ohio State or Memphis depending on the outcome. Action will conclude on Saturday.

RAINING THREES
FGCU has now made 59 3-point field goals through four games. That's nine more than the total number of free throws the team has converted and more than half of the team's total number of field goals made (113). They are outscoring opponents by an average of 24.3 points while allowing just 59.5 points per game.

FGCU ON TOP
FGCU is one of only three non-Power 5 schools in the nation (Bucknell and Gonzaga) that can boast that both their women's and men's basketball programs won 26 games in 2016-17. In total, only nine schools accomplished the feat including Duke, Notre Dame, Michigan, South Carolina, Baylor and Florida State. Additionally, FGCU is one of only seven schools in the country which has had its men's and women's teams win at least 20 games in five-straight seasons, joining Duke, Louisville, Kentucky, Baylor, BYU and Saint Mary's.

The FGCU women's basketball program just one of six at the NCAA Division I level to win 25 or more games in each season since 2010-11. The others include: UConn, Baylor, Notre Dame, Stanford and James Madison. Only 10 schools have at least 25 wins in each of the past four seasons.
 
EXPERIENCE
FGCU returns four of five starters from last year and have added Zderadicka, who averaged a team-high 11 PPG for Houston Baptist last year. The Eagles return 66 percent of the 71.9 PPG scored last year, or 1,737 of the 2,515 points scored. Furthermore, FGCU returns 63.2 percent of last year's rebounding production in addition to 67.8 percent of their 338 3-pointers. With Zderadicka's 276 points, the Eagles will put out a roster that features players who compiled over 2,000 NCAA Division I points last year.

WAITING IN THE WINGS
In addition to Zderadicka, FGCU added three transfers who will sit out this year due to NCAA Division I transfer rules who either led their school in scoring or finished in the top three last year. Davion Wingate (Atlanta, Ga./Stephenson) tied for the team-high in scoring at 11.8 PPG for Stony Brook; Keri Jewett-Giles (Fort Myers, Fla./Dunbar HS) tallied 9.0 PPG for Southern Miss; and Kerstie Phills (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Christian HS) poured in a team-high 13.1 PPG for Wagner en route to NEC Rookie of the Year recognition. Kerstie is the daughter of the late Bobby Phills, who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Charlotte Hornets.

EXPERIENCED SQUAD
Among eligible players, this year's roster features six upperclassmen, including five seniors and one junior. Gradinjan is the elder statesman on the team with this being her sixth year following two ACL tears to start her career.  Cattani and Dow are both fifth-year seniors, while Nelson and Julien are in their second season at FGCU following two years at Johnson County CC and Chipola College, respectively, and each player won an NJCAA national title. Zderadicka is a fourth-year junior.

OVERTIME HISTORY
FGCU is 6-6 all-time in the NCAA Division I era in overtime games. Three of those games have come against Stetson, and the Eagles hold a 2-1 record in those. The most recent overtime game was a 74-67 loss to Stetson on Feb. 25, 2017.
 
HEAD COACH KARL SMESKO
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko, who earned his 400th career victory on Feb. 21, 2015 with a win over USC Upstate, is now 31 wins away from 500 in his coaching career. He won his 400th in just 493 games. That's two faster than legend Geno Auriemma. His game preparation is one of the most crucial factors in the Eagles' all-time success. Last season, the Eagles went 10-4 in games when he had four or more days to prepare. Overall, in 15 seasons, Smesko holds a record of 153-25 in games with extra time to go over the film just one more time for a winning percentage of 86 percent.
 
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
The 2017-18 schedule potentially boasts 11 postseason teams from last year with seven that made The Dance and six that played in the WNIT. The guaranteed opponents that made the NCAA Tournament last year include Chattanooga, DePaul and Kentucky, while the WNIT teams include South Dakota State, Kent State, Abilene Christian, Harvard, Jacksonville and Stetson. Also, FGCU is one of eight teams in the Play4Kay Shootout in Las Vegas. Including the Eagles, there are six teams that made the NCAA Tournament last year in it including Ohio State, Stanford, Gonzaga, Belmont and DePaul (FGCU's opening round opponent).
 
MID MAJOR POWER
FGCU, which received seven votes in the first USA Today Coaches Poll of the 2017-18 season, opened at # 8 in the women's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25. Following the win over Illinois, the Eagles have jumped all the way to #4 - just behind Green Bay, Gonzaga and South Dakota State, respectively.
 
SUCCESS AT HOME VS POWER-FIVES
FGCU has previously hosted 11 teams from a power five conference including Michigan, Wake Forest, Auburn, Virginia, Virginia Tech, LSU, Michigan State, Indiana, Florida State and Florida. Of those 11 previous contests, the Eagles earned wins in eight - defeating Michigan, Wake Forest, Auburn, Virginia Tech, LSU, Michigan State, Florida and Indiana.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the-minute information and behind-the-scenes access to the women's basketball program, follow @FGCU_WBB on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook at /FGCUWBB.

COACH SMESKO
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko rallied the 2016-17 Eagles to their seventh-straight 25-win campaign, which culminated in the team's fourth NCAA tournament appearance in six seasons of eligibility. The seven-time ASUN Coach of the Year was named the espnW Mid-Major Coach of the Year in 2015-16 following a run that witnessed the Eagles finish a best-ever 33-6. Over a five-year stretch starting in 2011-12, FGCU racked up four ASUN seasons with a perfect record and capped the run with back-to-back 30 plus win seasons. In 2014-15, the team earned its first top-25 ranking and another NCAA Tournament trip as a seven seed, where FGCU won its first ever NCAA Division-I Tournament game against No. 10 Oklahoma State. With 26 wins in 2016-17, Smesko has guided the Eagles to 13-straight 20-win seasons.  He maintains a record of 408-82 (.833) at FGCU, including a 160-15 (.914) mark in ASUN play. Over the past six seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 93-3 (.969) record in conference play. Smesko earned his 400th career coaching win in 2014-15 in just 493 career games, two games faster than UConn's Geno Auriemma. He holds a career head coaching record of 469-109 (.811). Smesko ranks among an elite list of just four active Division I coaches with a career win percentage of .800 or higher, joining Auriemma, Baylor's Kim Mulkey and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer in the esteemed group.

SUPPORT THE CAUSE 
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.

IRMA RELIEF DONATIONS
In the wake of Hurricane Irma, many individuals and families throughout Southwest Florida are still in desperate need of assistance. To aid in those relief efforts, FGCU Athletics will be collecting donations at all Eagle home games for the immediate future. Donation items most needed include: non-perishable food, clothing, household items and first-aid supplies. Additionally, those unable to attend upcoming home games can drop off donations in canisters located in the Alico Arena lobby. All donations will be given to those hardest hit in Lee and Collier counties.