FORT MYERS, FL – The 2nd-seeded FGCU men's soccer team will host 6th-seeded Stetson Sunday afternoon with a spot to the ASUN Championship final on the line.
Matchup: FGCU (9-5-1) vs Stetson (7-9-1)
When: Sun. Nov. 4 | 1:00 PM | FGCU Soccer Complex
Links: Watch |
Live Stats |
Tickets
Coaches: Jesse Cormier (2nd Season @ FGCU; 15th Overall, 131-100-51) |
Cristian Neagu (1st Season @ Stetson; 4th overall, 40-27-3)
OPENING KICK
Sunday afternoon's semifinal contest will mark the 13th all-time meeting between the Eagles and the Hatters as the Green and Blue leads the series 7-4-1. Just under a month ago (Oct. 6) both teams met in Fort Myers as the Eagles used three first-half goals to down Stetson 3-1. In that match,
O'Vonte Mullings scored in the 10th minute with the next two goals coming off the foot of
Shak Adams in the 13th and 40th minute. The last loss to the Hatters came back in 2013 in Deland (2-1), since then, the Eagles have outscored Stetson 13-2 (4-0-1 record).
In its eight years of postseason eligibility, FGCU has never been seeded lower than 2nd in the ASUN tournament, having made at least the semifinals each time out, going 8-3-0 in 11 contests.
INSIDE THE FGCU LINEUP
ASUN First Team member
Adams (Antioch, Tenn./Cane Ridge HS) leads the Eagle offense with eight goals and assists apiece for a team-best 24 points. The ASUN Freshman of the Year
Mullings (Toronto, Ontario/ Northview Heights Secondary) is right on Adams' heels with seven goals and has paired that with four assists for 18 points thus far. Mullings' 41 shots with 26 coming on goal are both team-highs.
Between the posts, newly crowned ASUN Goalkeeper of the Year
Gustavo Vasconcelos (Recife, Brazil/Colegio GGE) is 8-3-1 as he's accumulated 56 saves, for a .778 save percentage while holding a 1.33 goals against average (GAA).
SCOUTING THE HATTERS
The 6th-seeded Hatters came away with the first upset of the ASUN Championship Friday evening as they took down the 3rd-seeded UNF Ospreys 3-1. In that quarterfinal contest, Lewis Scattergood netted two goals for Stetson as he now has five goals this year while Erwan Colas leads the squad with seven goals.
Braeden Luna played all 90 minutes in the quarterfinal affair, moving to 5-7-1 on the year. He's secured 42 saves so far and boasts a .618 save percentage along with a 1.94 GAA.
2018 ASUN ALL-CONFERENCE AWARDS
Preston Kilwien – Defensive Player of the Year (ASUN First Team)
Gustavo Vasconcelos – Goalkeeper of the Year (ASUN First Team)
O'Vonte Mullings – Freshman of the Year (ASUN First Team, All-Freshmen Team)
Shak Adams – ASUN First Team
Kamar Marriott – ASUN Second Team
Ethan Dudley – ASUN All-Freshmen Team
ASUN OVERVIEW
FGCU was picked 2nd in the ASUN preseason coaches' poll, making it the first time since 2012 the Eagles were not selected as the preseason league favorite.
Kilwien (Pleasant Hill, Calif./College Park HS) was installed as league's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year while Adams and senior
Dennis Zapata (Orlando, Fla./University HS) joined Kilwien on the preseason all-conference team as FGCU's three selections were the most of any team in the league.
The Green and Blue finished just behind defending tournament champion Lipscomb in the preseason poll with 41 points while the Bisons had 42 points. Lipscomb received four 1st-place votes, while FGCU had one, 3rd-place Jacksonville (28 points) also had one and 4th-place NJIT (25) additionally picked up a top vote. Stetson (5th, 23 points), league newcomer Liberty (6th, 22 points) and North Florida (7th, 15 points) rounded out the preseason poll.
ASUN DOMINANCE
FGCU owns a dominant record of 48-7-6 (.830) in all ASUN regular-season games since the start of the 2010 season. Out of a possible 186 points that could have been earned in that time, the Green and Blue have claimed an impressive 153 of them (82 percent).
ASUN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS BY SEED
| School |
Pts |
ASUN |
Overall |
|
| #1 Lipscomb |
15 |
5-1-0 |
7-9-0 |
| #2 FGCU |
15 |
5-1-0 |
9-5-1 |
| #3North Florida (Eliminated by Stetson) |
9 |
3-3-0 |
4-11-0 |
| #4 Jacksonville |
9 |
3-3-0 |
5-12-0 |
| #5 Liberty (Eliminated by Jacksonville, 2-0) |
7 |
2-3-1 |
7-7-1 |
| #6 Stetson |
4 |
1-4-1 |
7-9-1 |
FGCU RECORD BOOK
POINTS
| 1 |
76 |
Albert Ruiz (34g 8a) - 2014-17 |
| 2 |
48 |
Shak Adams (19g 10a) 2016-Present |
| 3 |
43 |
Cristian Raudales (19g 5a) - 2008-11 |
| 4 |
38 |
Felipe DeSousa(18g 2a) - 2012-14 |
|
38 |
Arion Sobers-Assue(12g 14a) - 2014-17 |
| 6 |
32 |
Dylan Sacramento (12g 8a) - 2015-17 |
| 7 |
31 |
Joey Portillo (8g 15a) - 2008-11 |
| 8 |
31 |
Dennis Zapata (10g 11a) - 2015 Present |
| 9 |
30 |
Francesco DiStefano (9g 12a) - 2008-11 |
| 10 |
30 |
Scott Harrison (12g 6a) - 2008-11 |
GOALS
ASSISTS
| 1 |
15 |
Josey Portillo - 2008-11 |
| 2 |
14 |
Arion Sobers-Assue -2014-17 |
| 3 |
12 |
Francesco DiStefano - 2008-11 |
| 4 |
11 |
Dennis Zapata - 2015-Present |
|
11 |
Andres Navas- 2009-12 |
|
11 |
Shak Adams - 2016-Present |
|
10 |
Deion Jones - 2009-12 |
| 7 |
9 |
William Morse - 2009-12 |
|
9 |
Skylar Wilks - 2013-15 |
|
9 |
Miguel Jaime - 2014-17 |
GAME-WINNING GOALS
| 1 |
8 |
Felipe DeSousa - 2012-14 |
| 2 |
6 |
Cristian Raudales - 2008-11 |
|
6 |
Shak Adams - 2016-Present |
| 4 |
5 |
Xavier Silva -2011-14 |
|
5 |
Albert Ruiz - 2014-2017 |
|
5 |
Henry Penagos - 2010-14 |
| 7 |
4 |
Robert Ferrer - 2015-17 |
|
4 |
Arion Sobers-Assue - 2014-17 |
|
4 |
Francesco DiStefano - 2008-11 |
|
4 |
Santiago Echeverri - 2011-14 |
BUILDING A CHAMPIONSHIP PROGRAM
Since the program's first two seasons in 2007 and 2008, FGCU has posted a winning record each of the past nine years. All-time, the Eagles are 111-72-28 (.592) in 12 seasons, including a dominant 61-20-8 (.730) record in ASUN contests. In just eight years of D-I postseason eligibility, FGCU has won four ASUN Tournament championships and made four NCAA Tournament appearances – in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2016 – and won an unprecedented six-straight ASUN regular-season championships from 2010-15.
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU men's soccer program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_MSoccer, Instagram @FGCU_MSoccer, Facebook /FGCUMSoccer and YouTube /FGCUAthletics.
HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier is in his second season as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 17-11-4 (.594) record overall, including a 9-2-1 mark (.773) in ASUN play. The Eagles reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for the 8th-straight season (every year of eligibility), as Cormier has coached 16 all-conference selections since his arrival (program-record 10 in 2017). Cormier was the head coach at his alma mater the University of Vermont for the previous 13 seasons. He won 14 games with the Catamounts in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. During his time with Vermont, Cormier guided the program to the America East Tournament in 12 of 13 seasons, making five title game appearances, winning two tournament crowns, claiming a regular-season championship and advancing to three NCAA tournaments, including a pair of Second Round appearances. Cormier holds an overall 131-100-51 (.553) record as a head coach in his fourteen plus seasons at the helm.
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 raise.
