FORT MYERS, Fla. – As the FGCU women's soccer team prepares for the 2019 season, head coach Jim Blankenship announced that four-time ASUN champion and former First Team All-ASUN selection Ali Rogers has been promoted to assistant coach.

"We are beyond excited for Ali and proud of her for earning this opportunity," Blankenship said. "She was able to battle back from her injuries that afflicted her early in her career and eventually excelled as a player. We are thrilled to add someone who understands our culture and what it takes to win to our coaching staff."

Rogers spent the 2018 season on staff as the Director of Operations. A local product, she hails from Naples, Fla. and was a member of five ASUN regular season championships, four ASUN Tournament titles and four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the Eagles' historic 2-1 victory over USF in 2015. The win over the Bulls was the program's first NCAA Tournament victory.

"It is hard to describe how big of an honor this is for me," Rogers said. "First, I want to thank Jim Blankenship for giving me this opportunity. FGCU has held a special place in my heart for a very long time now and I am looking forward to help contribute to the success of this program."

Following her career as an Eagle, Rogers signed with the KKPK Medyk Konin women's football club in Poland. Medyk Konin was founded in 1985 and since its promotion top the top league, the club has always finished near the top of the standings. Rogers was on the roster for the 2018 season.

A three-year starter at FGCU, Rogers helped the Eagles to five regular season titles and four ASUN Tournament titles. During her senior year with the Green and Blue, Rogers was named NSCAA Third Team All-Region and was selected as the ASUN Tournament MVP after earning ASUN First Team accolades. She finished her final campaign with 13 points on five goals and three assists and her 12 career goals ranked eighth in FGCU history.

Rogers netted two goals in her first game with the Eagles before suffering a season-ending injury. Despite being sidelined, Rogers still found ways to contribute and supported her team as they captured the 2012 ASUN Regular Season and Tournament Championship. After another difficult season her sophomore year, she became one of the Eagles' best midfielders.

Blankenship, assistant coach Brock Duckworth and Rogers have their sights set on capturing the program's ninth ASUN Championship in the past 10 years. Despite falling short last season, the Eagles finished the 2018 season ranked top-10 nationally in four different statistical categories: assists per game (2nd, 2.74), points per game (4th, 7.58), total assists (5th, 52) and scoring offense (9th, 2.42). Blankenship and his staff also helped produce the first-ever Academic All-American in FGCU history in graduate Holly Fritz.

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 12 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 156-55-23 (71.6 W%) overall record through the first 12 seasons of the program's existence, including a 76-14-14 (79.8 W%) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 396-126-34 (74.3 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.

ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 78 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 11+ seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just seven+ 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 soccer, women's soccer, and women's basketball again in 2018-19. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.35 GPA in the classroom in spring 2018 and have outpaced their institution's undergraduate student body GPA each of the past twenty semesters. 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. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl in 2017.
 
-- FGCUATHLETICS.COM –