FORT MYERS, Fla. – The 2018-19 non-conference schedule continues to fill up as the FGCU women's basketball team has officially signed on to compete in the Rainbow Wahine Showdown in Honolulu, Hawai'i Nov. 23-25.
In the opener, the Eagles will get a rematch against Stanford, who knocked FGCU out of the NCAA Tournament in the second round last year. It will be the third all-time meeting against the Cardinal, who also picked up an 83-59 win in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico on Nov. 27, 2013 in head coach Tara Vanderveer's 900th career win.
The Rainbow Wahine Showdown will witness the first-ever meeting between FGCU and American University, who went 26-7 last year and advanced to the NCAA Tournament before falling to UCLA in the opening round. The Eagles are 1-0 all-time against Hawai'i, with the win coming Dec. 29, 2011 when Nicoya Jackson poured in 19 points to lead the Green and Blue to a 72-52 win. The games will also represent the program's third all-time trip to Hawai'i – joining the 2011-12 and 2003-04 teams.
"We're really excited about this event," FGCU head coach
Karl Smesko said. "It should be a great experience for our student-athletes as we get some great competition which includes another matchup against Stanford."
The addition, which comes on the heels of announcing a home-and-home series with Duke last week, now gives the Green and Blue seven official non-conference dates so far.
Nov. 9 - @ South Dakota State, 5 PM
Nov. 16 – vs Florida International, TBA
Nov. 23 – Stanford, TBA
Nov. 24 – Hawaii, TBA
Nov. 25 – American, TBA
Dec. 17 – vs Abilene Christian, 7 PM
Dec. 30 - @ Duke, TBA
FGCU begins a new era in 2018-19 with the graduation of five key players, including four of their top five scorers from last year. The team, however, also returns three of its top seven scorers in
Tytionia Adderly,
Lisa Zderadicka (Vienna, Austria/HAK Korneuburg) and
Nasrin Ulel (Murrietta, Calif./Murrietta HS), and the program has added
Destiny Washington-Mabon (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) from Ball State as a graduate transfer to form a strong duo with Adderly (Jupiter, Fla./Cardinal Newman HS) in the post.
Four key additions will come in the form of players who practiced with the team last year, but weren't eligible due to Division-I transfer rules. The group includes a trio who averaged a combined 35 points per game in 2016-17:
Keri Jewett-Giles (Fort Myers, Fla./Dunbar HS), who averaged 7.8 points and 3.1 assists in her two years at Southern Miss;
Kerstie Phills (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Christian), who averaged 13.1 points for Wagner en route to Northeast Conference Rookie of the Year recognition; and
Davion Wingate (Atlanta, Ga./Stephenson), who led Stony Brook in scoring at 11.8 per game in 2016-17.
Tyra Cox (Orlando, Fla./Lake Highland Prep), who signed with William & Mary but didn't compete in any games before transferring mid-year, also joins the fray with four full years of eligibility.
True freshmen
Tanner Bryant (Washington Court House, Ohio/Miami Trace HS),
Shekinah Guthrie (Roswell, Ga./Centennial HS) and
Ashley Panem (Broomfield, Colo./Fairview HS) will also compete for playing time, while
Erna Normil (Lake Worth, Fla./Lake Worth HS) will transfer in from Florida Southwestern (FSW).
SEASON TICKET RENEWAL DEADLINE
The deadline to renew your women's and men's basketball season tickets at FGCU is next Friday, July 6. For more information, visit FGCUAthletics.com/renew or contact our ticket office at 239-590-7145.
YOUNG ALUMNI
FGCU recently announced a program in which young alumni – those who have graduated from FGCU within the past five years – can save between 30-70 percent off Priority Level 4 and 5 section season tickets, in addition to receiving discounted Eagles Club membership, which is needed for select premier seats inside Alico Arena. Those interested in taking advantage of this offer are asked to click here or visit FGCUAthletics.com/YoungAlumni to complete a form. Following that, an FGCU Ticket Office representative will be in contact to set up an account. For more information, call 239-590-7145, email tickets@fgcu.edu or visit the Alico Arena Ticket Office Monday-Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
COACH SMESKO
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko led the 2017-18 Eagles to another historic season. The Green and Blue finished 31-5 overall and 13-1 in ASUN play, capturing the program's eighth ASUN regular season championship and fifth ASUN tournament championship. The team finished the season ranked 25th in the final USA Today Coaches Poll, produced winning streaks of 12 and 10 games, recaptured the NCAA record for most 3-point field goals made in a season with 431 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in seven seasons, where the Eagles knocked off 5th-seeded and No. 15 ranked Missouri in the opening round. It was the team's second tournament win over the past three appearances. Over the course of the season, FGCU knocked off three ranked teams - No. 15 Missouri, No. 20 Kentucky and No. 21 DePaul.
Over the past four seasons, Smesko has guided FGCU to three 30 plus win seasons while recording a 121-23 (.840) record overall. The now eight-time ASUN Coach of the Year rallied the 2016-17 team to its seventh straight 25-win campaign, culminating in an ASUN tournament title and NCAA Tournament appearance. In 2015-16, he was named the espnW mid-major coach of the year following a run that witnessed the Eagles claim a WNIT runner-up finish and a Division-I program best ever 33-6 record. In 2014-15, the team achieved its first-ever top-25 ranking and made another trip to the NCAA Tournament, where the Eagles earned a No. 7 seed and won the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament game, toppling No. 10 seed Oklahoma State.
Including the 2017-18 campaign, Smesko has guided the Eagles to 14-straight 20-win seasons and eight-straight 25-win seasons. He maintains a record of 496-114 (.813) overall in his career, including a 170-16 (.914) mark in ASUN play. Over the past seven seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 106-4 (.964) record in conference play with four undefeated seasons. Smesko earned his 400th career coaching win in 2014-15 in just 493 career games, two games faster than UConn's Geno Auriemma. Entering 2016-17, he ranked 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. Over the past year, first-year NCAA Division-I head coaches Nancy Fahey (Illinois) and Bart Brooks (Belmont) pushed the list to six.
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.
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.
