FORT MYERS, FL- Losing isn't in the blood of anyone associated with the FGCU Women's Soccer program, so on the heels of a three game skid, the Eagles (10-3-2, 4-3-0) came out with a renewed focus Thursday night in front of their home crowd, getting a first half goal from
Evdokia Popadinova and a pair of big second half saves from
Melissa Weck to come away with a 1-0 win over Liberty (3-10-0, 2-3-0) to earn three key points in the ASUN standings.
"I thought our kids played with great energy" head coach
Jim Blankenship said. "It was a playoff type game just like we knew it was going to be, I was very proud of the tempo and energy that our kids brought to the game." Blankenship also talked about the teams annual Pinkout, supporting breast cancer awareness, "it was nice for us to be able to recognize our cancer survivors and those that we have lost before the game. All of us have been touched by cancer. I lost my father to cancer and my mother beat cancer, so it is even a little bit more special to me" he said. All donations and proceeds from the sale of their 'Think Pink' shirts will go towards the Susan B Komen Foundation.
The Eagles came out Thursday with their hair on fire, getting a pair of good looks at net in the first 90 seconds of action.
They continued their onslaught moments later, getting two more shots and back to back corners before the 10 minute mark.
Marjorie Boilesen (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Porto Seguro/West Florida) puts a pair of shots on net in the 11th and 20th minutes, but couldn't sneak either past the keeper as it remained a scoreless game to the midway point of the first.
The Green and Blue stung together a beautiful run in the 31st minute, getting a long pass from
Holly Fritz (Cape Coral, FL/Mariner HS/Florida State) to Boilesen who carried the ball into the attacking third before dishing it to Popadinova (Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria/Nikola Vaptsarov/Northwestern Ohio) who blasted a right footed shot to the top of the goal for her 11th of the year to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.
Popadinova had another chance in the 41st minute, attempting a bicycle kick from inside the box off of a well-placed free kick from
Camille Knudstrup (Lakeland, FL/George Jenkins HS), but it sailed just high to keep it a one goal game.
At the end of 45 minutes it was all FGCU. The Eagles outshot the Flames 16-3 and drew five corners to just one for the visitors. Nine of the Eagles shots found their way on goal while Liberty managed just a single shot on target.
The pressure didn't subside as the second half got underway as
Alyssa Abbondandolo (Cape Coral, FL/Oasis HS) and Boilesen both put shots on goal in the first three minutes of action for the Eagles.
It wasn't until the 66th minute that Liberty would put their second shot on goal, in the meantime, FGCU was already nearing their 20th shot on the night by that time.
In the 75th minute, the Lady Flames had their best scoring chance of the night as they found their first crease in the Eagle defense. From just inside the box, Sierra Lam let a right footed shot go and watched as Weck (Yorba Linda, CA/Esperanza HS) made a highlight reel save to keep FGCU on the right side of a 1-0 score.
The Green and Blue continued to push forward looking for an insurance goal, but couldn't find it as they continued to cling to a one goal lead with time winding down.
With just over five minutes remaining in regulation, the FGCU faithful held their breath as a Liberty shot sailed towards the Eagle goal and got past Weck, but clanged off the crossbar to keep it a 1-0 game.
That would be the end of the chances for the Lady Flames as FGCU dug in on defense finished Liberty off 1-0 to claim a huge three points in the ASUN standings.
The Eagles pounded 23 shots at the Liberty net, 12 of those finding their target, while the Lady Flames finished with eight shots and three on cage at Weck. FGCU earned 10 corners on the night to four for Liberty.
Along with her 11th goal of the season, Popadinova got off six shots, four on net while Boilesen had a team best seven shots and also finished with four on goal to go along with her assist on Popadinova's tally.
Weck stopped all three shots she saw on net, putting together her eighth clean sheet of the 2018 season.
FGCU improves to 10-3-2 overall and 4-3-0 in ASUN action with the win while Liberty snaps a mini two game win streak to drop to 3-10-0 overall and 2-3-0 in league play. The Eagles are now tied with NJIT for second place in the ASUN standings with 12 points and will have one more try at improving that position next Saturday when they host 4-8-3, 1-4-1 Stetson in The Nest at 7 PM.
The Eagles will step out of ASUN action on Monday when they host Webber International at 7 PM. The Green and Blue ask fans to bring relief items such as hygiene kits, water, blankets, diapers, and personal care items, along with non-perishable food and water to help in the relief efforts for Hurricane Michael in the Florida Panhandle.
UPDATED ASUN STANDINGS
| School |
Pts |
ASUN |
Overall |
ASUN Games Remaining |
| 1. Kennesaw St. |
15 |
5-1-0 |
12-3-1 |
2 |
| 2. FGCU |
12 |
4-3-0 |
10-3-2 |
1 |
| NJIT |
12 |
4-2-0 |
10-4-1 |
2 |
| 4. Lipscomb |
9 |
3-1-0 |
8-4-2 |
4 |
| 5. North Alabama |
6 |
2-2-0 |
8-6-0 |
4 |
| Liberty |
6 |
2-3-0 |
3-10-0 |
3 |
| 7. North Florida |
4 |
1-3-1 |
6-6-1 |
3 |
| Stetson |
4 |
1-4-1 |
4-8-3 |
2 |
| 9. Jacksonville |
3 |
1-4-0 |
1-11-1 |
3 |
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.
COACH JIM BLANKENSHIP
A veteran of over two decades in collegiate coaching, head coach Jim Blankenship, who was named the ASUN Coach of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, has built FGCU women's soccer into a yearly contender in the ASUN Conference and a rising program in the South Region in just 11 seasons. Blankenship started the program in 2007 and has since guided the Eagles to 11 double-digit win seasons, culminating with ASUN Regular Season Championships in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. In 2011 and 2012 he also led the Eagles to back-to-back ASUN Tournament titles and became the first team in the history of the university to make it to the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles went on to win the 2014 ASUN Tournament and hosted the first NCAA Championship event on campus. The Eagles earned their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance with the 2015 ASUN Tournament Championship and won their first NCAA game at USF in 2015 while finishing 24th in the nation. In 2016, the Eagles made it three-consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament with a third-straight ASUN Tournament title. A year later, the Eagles became the first ASUN women's soccer program to make four-straight NCAA Tournaments with another tournament title in 2017. Blankenship has guided FGCU to a 153-54-23 (71.5 W%) overall record through the first 12 seasons of the program's existence, including a 75-14-14 (79.6 W%) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 393-125-34 (74.3 W%) over 26 seasons has come while leading FGCU, the University of Miami, Lynn University and St. Thomas University.
#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.
