FORT MYERS, Fla. - Sheahen Dowling matched her career-high with 10 points as the FGCU women's basketball team (10-1) routed Florida Memorial (6-6) 91-47 to win their seventh-straight game. The Eagles had 11 players reach the scoring column, including five in double figures, led by Ashli O'Neal's 15 off the bench.­
 
"I thought we got off to a good start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We pushed the ball in transition and were looking to share it. When we created space for one another, we were pretty good. Ashli gave us a spark off the bench, and Emma (List) and Sheahen did really well coming in with some quality minutes."
 
O'Neal (Wyoming, Ohio/Wyoming HS) finished 6-for-10 from the field, including 3-for-5 from 3-point range, for her game-high 15 points in just 12 minutes of action. She is now averaging just under nine points per contest after tallying her second-straight 15-point performance.
 
Dowling (Chicago, Ill./Trinity HS), meanwhile, matched her career-high that was set Dec. 14 of last year against Johnson and Wales. The junior guard shot 4-for-6 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers, four rebounds and three assists in 16 minutes.
 
Also reaching double-figures was Kerstie Phills (13), Keri Jewett-Giles (12) and Anja Marinkovic (11). Phills added eight rebounds, including five on the offensive end. Jewett-Giles (Fort Myers, Fla./Dunbar HS) had a game-high five assists along with a pair of rebounds and steals, while Marinkovic (Sombor, Serbia/Northern Secondary HS) matched O'Neal with a game-high three 3-pointers.
 
Tytionia Adderly (Jupiter, Fla./Cardinal Newman HS) needed just 14 minutes to tally a team-high nine rebounds to go along with three points and three assists. She is averaging a career-high 10 rebounds per game this year.
 
Erna Normil (Lake Worth, Fla./Lake Worth HS) added a season-high six rebounds off the bench, while Alyssa Blair (Sun Prairie, Wis./Sun Prairie HS) had the team's lone block along with five points, three rebounds and two assists. Chandler Ryan (Groveland, Ill./Morton HS) had two steals in eight minutes off the bench, which matched Jewett-Giles for the team-high.
 
The Eagles scored the game's first seven points, which included four from Phills (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Christian HS). Shortly thereafter, a 9-0 run that was capped by back-to-back 3-pointers from Davion Wingate (Atlanta, Ga./Stephenson HS) and Phills gave FGCU a 16-6 lead. O'Neal then scored five of the team's final seven points in the quarter, including a 3-pointer just before the buzzer, to push the margin to 18.
 
The Green and Blue used a 17-6 run to open the second quarter. The spurt featured five points from Jewett-Giles and gave FGCU a 43-14 lead with 5:14 left as the Eagles eventually led by 26 at the break.
 
After Florida Memorial opened the scoring in the third quarter, the Green and Blue went on an 18-6 run, capped by a Marinkovic 3-pointer, to push the lead to 38 with 3:38 left. A 9-2 spurt to open the fourth pushed the advantage to a game-high 45 points with 5:14 left, and the FGCU defense allowed just seven points in the entire quarter.
 
Next Up
FGCU will host Central Connecticut State at 7 p.m. on Dec. 17. It will be the first time the two teams have met since the Eagles produced a 71-52 win on Nov. 23, 2007.
 
Notes
FGCU finished 15-for-40 (.375) from 3-point range to increase its nation-best made total to 143 this year. The Eagles entered the night 36 ahead of the next closest team (South Dakota, 94).
 
The Eagles debuted at No. 15 in the first official NCAA RPI of the season earlier on Monday. They also sat in the receiving votes section of the AP Poll for the second-consecutive week, but increased its vote total from 28 to 39 despite continuing to have the 27th-most votes. The Coaches Poll, where the Eagles had the 28th-most votes last week, comes out on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The 10-1 start is FGCU's best in nine years and the second-best in the program's Division I era behind a 14-0 spurt to open the 2010-11 season.
 
FGCU is now 12-0 all-time against Florida Memorial.

Wingate finished with eight points, failing to tally double-figures for the first time this year.

O'Neal now has 955 points in her NCAA career as she continues her push for 1,000. Adderly, meanwhile, has 956 career rebounds. She tied Kat Sungy (Jacksonville, 1999-2003, 956) for 13th-most in ASUN history on Monday and is looking to become only the 12th player in conference history to reach 1,000 - including the first in FGCU history.


 
TICKET INFORMATION
Season and mini-plan packages for the 2019-20 FGCU women's basketball team are now on sale. More information can be accessed by visiting FGCUTickets.com. To purchase tickets, or for additional inquiries, call the FGCU Ticket Office at 239-590-7145 Monday-Friday from 9 AM-5 PM.

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 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PROGRAM
Do you enjoy watching or following the FGCU women's basketball program? Would you like to play a role in the growth of the program and help take it to heights never before experienced? If so, you can reach out to Director of Advancement, Matt Ring, about opportunities to make an impact on the experiences of our student-athletes. He can be reached by email at mring@fgcu.edu or by office phone at 239-745-4434.

COACH SMESKO
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko led the 2018-19 Eagles to the program's fifth undefeated conference regular season since 2011-12, as well as the ninth consecutive season with at least 25 victories. The Green and Blue finished 28-5 overall and 16-0 in ASUN play, capturing the team's ninth ASUN regular season championship and sixth ASUN tournament championship. The team finished the season receiving votes in the final AP Poll and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in eight seasons before falling to host No. 19 Miami in the first round. It was the team's 12th-straight postseason appearance in 12 years of Division-I existence - the only program to ever do such.

Over the past five seasons, Smesko has guided FGCU to three 30-plus win seasons while recording a 149-28 (.841) record overall. That win total ranks eighth-best in the nation over that stretch - the most among all mid-majors and ahead of programs such as Oregon State and Stanford.

Including 2018-19, Smesko has also guided the Eagles to 15-straight 20-win seasons. He maintains a record of 534-120 (.816) overall in his career (third highest winning percentage among active D1 coaches behind only UConn's Geno Auriemma and Baylor's Kim Mulkey), including a 186-16 (.921) mark in ASUN play. Over the past eight seasons (including 2018-19), he has guided FGCU to a 124-4 (.969) record in conference play with five undefeated seasons. The now nine-time ASUN Coach of the Year earned his 400th career coaching win in 2014-15 in just 493 career games, two games faster than Auriemma.

#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 80 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 12 seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just eight seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 36 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including both men's and women's soccer again in 2018. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2018 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for twenty consecutive semesters. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
 
--FGCUATHLETICS.COM--