TUSCALOOSA, ALA.- FGCU will get its first true test of the young season Friday night as they roll into Tuscaloosa, Alabama to take on the Crimson Tide in a 7 pm (CST) start.

LAST TIME OUT- The Eagles got off on the right foot in their season opener last Friday, downing Georgia Southern 3-0 at the FGCU Soccer Complex. The green and blue dominated play, outshooting GSU 22-1 while earning all 11 corner kicks on the night. 

Scoring goals for the Eagles were Marjorie Boilesen (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Porto Seguro/West Florida), Hope Van Wagner (Avon, Ind./Avon HS), and Evdokia Popadinova (Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria/ Nikola Vaptsarov/Northwestern Ohio).  Assists went to Megan Young (White Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Northern HS) and Opal Curless (Mount Desert, Maine/Mount Desert Island HS/Syracuse), both coming on Van Wagner's goal early in the second half.
 
MOTHER NATURE- The Eagles season opener against GSU was delayed 45 minutes due to lightning in the area.  Sunday, FGCU was set to take on #16 UCF in Orlando when weather not only forced an initial delay to the game, but eventually the cancellation of it for the second straight year for the Eagles and Knights. 
 
POLLS- FGCU found themselves ranked in the first United Soccer Coaches regional rankings this week.  The Eagles check in at #8 in the South Region while USF and Cincinnati are at 1-2 in the poll after each went 1-1 in the opening week. 
 
THE ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
Alabama opened their 2018 season in the Lone Star State where they found themselves at 0-1-1 at weekends end. The Tide locked up with TCU on Friday, dropping a 1-0 decision after falling behind early in the second half and playing the rest of the game a man down.  On Sunday they battled North Texas to a 1-1 tie as each team was able to score midway through the second before a late stalemate to end in a draw. 

The Tide were picked 8^th in the preseason SEC Coaches Poll.  They had five players named to the preseason SEC watch list including Abbie Boswell, Christina Maartensson , Taylor Morgan, Emma Welch, and Casey Wertz. 
Friday will mark just the second meeting all-time between the Eagles and the Tide after Alabama took a 1-0 decision in the two teams initial meeting in Fort Myers in 2016. 
 
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 143-51-21 (71.1 W%) overall record through the first 11 seasons of the program's existence, including a 71-11-14 (81.1 W%) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 383-122-32 (74.2 W%) over 25 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.