FORT MYERS, FL- After a nearly month long hiatus from The Nest, the #23 FGCU Eagles return home this weekend for a pair of big ASUN Conference matchups with North Alabama (Fri.) and Lipscomb (Sun.).
Matchup: North Alabama (7-4-0) @ (23) FGCU (8-0-2)
When: Sept. 28| 7 PM | FGCU Soccer Complex
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Coaches: Jim Blankenship (12th Season @ FGCU, 145-51-23; 28th Overall, 391-122-34) |
Chris Walker (6th Season @ North Alabama, 65-31-7; Same Overall)
Matchup: Lipscomb (6-3-2)* @ (23) FGCU (8-0-2)*
When: Sept. 30 | 1 PM | FGCU Soccer Complex
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Coach: Kevin O'Brien (6th Season @ Lipscomb, 48-38-19; Same Overall)
*Records do not include FGCU vs. North Alabama & Lipscomb @ Stetson Friday)
LAST TIME OUT- Opening weekend of ASUN action couldn't have gone much better for FGCU as the Eagles dominated both Jacksonville (6-0) and North Florida (4-0) on the road to take an early lead in the league standings at 2-0-0.
Friday against Jacksonville the Eagles got on the board early and often as
Marjorie Boilesen (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Porto Seguro/West Florida) beat the keeper less than 10 minutes in to begin the route.
Evdokia Popadinova (Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria/Nikola Vaptsarov/Northwestern Ohio) would score for the seventh time on the year before half while a pair of
Hope Van Wagner (Avon, IN/Avon HS) goals early in the second put the icing on the cake for the Green and Blue.
Saturday, the Eagles had to take what North Florida would give them early on, which was a lone first half goal from Popadinova against a packed in defense. But as the game opened up in the second half, so did the scoring for FGCU who got another tally from Boilesen as well as late goals from
Lindsey Patton (Jacksonville, FL/Oakleaf HS) and
Alyssa Abbondandolo (Cape Coral FL/Oasis HS) to come away with a 4-0 win.
Goalkeeper
Melissa Weck (Yorba Linda, CA/Esperanza HS) was solid in net as usual, leading the FGCU defense to a pair of clean sheets on the weekend.
UNBEATENS- The Eagles remain one of just nine teams nationally that are unbeaten heading into the weekend. That group includes Boston College (10-0-0), Washington State (8-0-0), Colorado (9-0-1), Texas (9-0-1), UC Riverside (9-0-1), USC (8-0-1), Stanford (8-0-1), and Georgetown (8-0-2).
POLLS- FGCU moved up two spots to #23 in this week's
Hero Sports poll following the two wins. They gained some traction in the United Soccer Coaches/NCAA Top 25 poll by receiving three votes for the second straight week, 11th most of any team outside the top 25. In the
TopDrawerSoccer.com top 25 poll, FGCU is sitting just on the outside looking in, being named as one of five teams considered this week for the top 25 that didn't get in. In the United Soccer Coaches South Region Poll, the Eagles remained #5 despite being the only unbeaten team in the group. In the NCAA RPI, the Eagles surprisingly dropped six spots to #47, again, despite two wins by a combined 10-0 score.
UNITED SOCCER COACHES/NCAA TOP 25 POLL
UNITED SOCCER COACHES SOUTH REGION POLL
HERO SPORTS POLL
NCAA RPI
TOPDRAWERSOCCER.COM POLL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK- For the fourth time this season, the Eagles had a player honored by the ASUN in their weekly awards. This week it was
Lindsey Patton as Defensive Player of the Week after the junior scored two goals in two games in her return to her hometown of Jacksonville. Along with her efforts on the offensive end, Patton anchored a defense that allowed just five shots on goal in two shutout wins. It is Patton's third career Defensive Player of the Week honor.
ASUN LEADERS- Following a red hot start to conference play, the Eagles as expected, find their names spread all over the ASUN leaderboards this week.
| Goals Against Average |
|
| 1. Melissa Weck (FGCU) |
0.58 |
| 2. Kate Mason (Lipscomb) |
1.03 |
| 3. Tiffany Sornpao (Kennesaw St.) |
1.08 |
| 4. Shelby Thornton (North Alabama) |
1.12 |
| 5. Amelia Sapirman (NJIT) |
1.16 |
| Save Percentage |
|
| 1. Melissa Weck FGCU) |
.857 |
| 2. Tiffany Sornpao (Kennesaw St.) |
.827 |
| 3. Emily Plotz (Stetson) |
.812 |
| 4. Kate Mason (Lipscomb) |
.800 |
| 5. Amelia Sapirman (NJIT) |
.797 |
| Shutouts |
|
| 1. Melissa Weck (FGCU) |
6 |
| Tiffany Sornpao (Kennesaw St.) |
6 |
| 3. Amelia Sapirman (NJIT) |
5 |
| 4. Rhiannon Conelly (North Florida) |
4 |
| 5. Shelby Thornton (North Alabama) |
3 |
CHART CLIMBERS- With the most goals scored and the least goals allowed in the ASUN this season, a number of Eagles find themselves high up in the all-time record books heading into the weekend.
| POINTS PER GAME |
ASSISTS PER GAME |
| 1. Evdokia Popadinova- 2.20 (18) |
1. Evdokia Popadinova- 0.60 (18) |
| 2. Tabby Tindell- 2.03 (13-16) |
2. Marjorie Boilesen- 0.48 (17-18) |
| 3. Marjorie Boilesen- 1.59 (17-18) |
3. Holly Fritz- 0.45 (17-18) |
| 4. Holly Fritz- 1.14 (17-18) |
4. Tabby Tindell- 0.38 (13-16) |
| 5. Amber McCall- 1.06 (07-09) |
5. Ashley Ciesielczyk- 0.37 (08-12) |
|
|
| GOALS PER GAME |
SHOTS PER GAME |
| 1. Tabby Tindell- 0.82 (13-16) |
1. Tabby Tindell- 3.76 (13-16) |
| 2. Evdokia Popadinova- 0.80 (18) |
2. Paulina Speckmaier- 3.33 (13-16) |
| 3. Marjorie Boilesen- 0.55 (17-18) |
3. Evdokia Popadinova- 2.40 (18) |
| 4. Amber McCall- 0.44 (07-09) |
4. Amber McCall- 2.37 (07-09) |
| 5. Varin Ness- 0.42 (17) |
5. Holly Fritz- 2.31 (17-18) |
|
|
| SAVES |
SAVE PERCENTAGE |
| 1. Brittany Brown- 274 (12-15) |
1. Stephanie Powers- .834 (08-11) |
| 2. Stephanie Powers- 261 (08-11) |
2. Brittany Brown- .830 (12-15) |
| 3. Melissa Weck- 169 (16-18) |
3. Melissa Weck- .820 (16-18) |
| 4. Kirsi Kennan- 55 (07-10) |
4. Kirsi Keenan- .775 (07-10) |
| 5. Emily Barrett- 14 (07-09) |
5. Emily Barrett- .737 (07-09) |
|
|
| GOALS AGAINST AVERAGE |
WINS |
| 1. Brittany Brown- 0.67 (12-15) |
1. Brittany Brown- 57 (12-15) |
| 2. Stephanie Powers- 0.73 (08-11) |
2. Stephanie Powers- 42 (08-11) |
| 3. Melissa Weck- 0.75 (16-18) |
3. Melissa Weck- 36 (16-18) |
| 4. Emily Barrett- 0.84 (07-09) |
4. Kirsi Keenan- 10 (07-10) |
| 5. Kirsi Keenan- 0.90 (07-10) |
5. Emily Barrett- 5 (07-09) |
|
|
| SHUTOUTS |
|
| 1. Brittany Brown- 37.1 (12-15) |
|
| 2. Stephanie Powers- 31 (08-11) |
|
| 3. Melissa Weck- 24.3 (16-18) |
|
| 4. Kirsi Keenan- 8 (07-10) |
|
| 5. Emily Barrett- 3 (07-09) |
|
ASUN STANDINGS
| School |
Pts |
ASUN |
Overall |
Last Week |
| 1. FGCU |
6 |
2-0-0 |
8-0-2 |
W- Jacksonville (6-0), W- North Florida (4-0) |
| 2. North Alabama |
3 |
1-0-0 |
7-4-0 |
W- Kennesaw St. (2-1) |
| Lipscomb |
3 |
1-0-0 |
6-3-2 |
W- NJIT (5-1) |
| Kennesaw St. |
3 |
1-1-0 |
8-3-0 |
W- Liberty (2-0), L- North Alabama (2-1) |
| NJIT |
3 |
1-1-0 |
7-3-1 |
L- Lipscomb (5-1), W- Liberty (3-1) |
| Jacksonville |
3 |
1-1-0 |
1-8-1 |
L- FGCU (6-0), W- Stetson (1-0) |
| 7. Stetson |
1 |
0-1-1 |
3-5-3 |
T- North Florida (1-1), L- Jacksonville (1-0) |
| North Florida |
1 |
0-1-1 |
5-4-1 |
T- Stetson (1-1), L- FGCU (4-0) |
| 9. Liberty |
0 |
0-2-0 |
1-9-0 |
L- Kennesaw St. (2-0), L- NJIT (3-1) |
THIS WEEK'S ASUN SCHEDULE
Friday, Sept. 28
Jacksonville @ Kennesaw St.- 6:30 PM
North Alabama @ FGCU- 7 PM
NJIT @ North Florida- 7 PM
Lipscomb @ Stetson- 7 PM
Sunday, Sept. 30
Lipscomb @ FGCU- 1 PM
Kennesaw St. @ North Florida- 1 PM
NJIT @ Jacksonville- 1 PM
North Alabama @ Stetson- 1 PM
THE NORTH ALABAMA LIONS- The Lions have had a solid start to their inaugural year at the Division I level, opening 7-4-0 through 11 contests.
North Alabama put themselves on the ASUN map last Sunday when they stunned Kennesaw State 2-1 in their first game as a conference member. Tay Cavett scored just 10 minutes in and Shelby Wall added a goal 17 minutes into the second half to clinch three big points for the Lions.
The UNA offense was on fire to start the season, scoring a league high 18 goals through their first four games, but have come back to Earth some since then. They still rank second in the league to FGCU scoring 2.18 goals per game and boast two of the top five scorers in the league in Wall and Kylie Huey who have put the ball in the back of the net a combined 11 times this season.
In net, Shelby Thornton has allowed just 10 goals on the year and ranks fourth in the league in goals against average at 1.12.
The Lions have played four road contests this season, winning their first two, but dropping their past two at Vanderbilt and Chattanooga by a combined score of 7-0.
Friday will mark the first all-time matchup between the Eagles and the Lions.
THE LIPSCOMB BISONS- The Bisons are off to a good start to 2018 as well as they enter the second weekend of conference play at 6-3-2 including a win over SEC foe Kentucky two weeks ago.
Lipscomb opened up ASUN play with a bang last Friday, throttling NJIT 5-1 in Newark. Brooke Brenner and Olivia Doak scored within 48 seconds of each other in the first half and Riley Henry scored twice later on to put the game away.
Henry ranks second in the league, behind FGCU's
Evdokia Popadinova, in goals with six while Doak has scored five times and notched five assists to sit third in the league in points with 15. Kate Mason has guarded the Bisons net valiantly thus far as well, allowing just 1.03 goals per game and stopping shots at a .800 clip.
The intensity between the Eagles and Bisons heated up last season after Lipscomb stunned FGCU here in Fort Myers to end a 49 game ASUN unbeaten streak for the Green and Blue, the fourth longest in NCAA history. However, FGCU returned the favor just two weeks later, going into Nashville and erasing a 2-0 halftime deficit to defeat the Bisons 3-2 in double overtime of the ASUN Championship game to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in seven seasons.
FGCU leads the all-time series between the two 10-1-3.
PROMOTIONS- There is lots planned at the FGCU Sports Complex this weekend including a Greenout and a Housing Challenge on Friday and Faculty/Staff Appreciation, free sunglasses, and shirts for shots on Sunday.
TICKETS- Single game tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for youth (age 3-15) and Military w/ID. Season tickets are $55 each (one ticket to all 11 home games) which saves 28% off of the adult single game rate. Fall Frequent Flyer Cards are $99 each and include 26 entries to regular season home women's soccer, men's soccer, and volleyball matches. Those 26 admissions can be used for multiple people in any combination and save 45% off the adult single game rate. All Sports Passes are $172 and include a Fall Frequent Flier Card as well as Frequent Flier Cards for Baseball and Softball and save over 70% off of the adult single game rate. Contact the FGCU ticket office at 239-590-7145 for more information.
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 151-51-23 (72.2 W%) overall record through the first 12 seasons of the program's existence, including a 73-11-14 (81.6 W%) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 391-122-34 (74.6 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.
