FORT MYERS, Fla. – FGCU women's soccer head coach Jim Blankenship reached 400 career wins on Friday night at the FGCU Soccer Complex as the Eagles (4-3-0) defeated Creighton (6-2-0) by a score of 2-1. Blankenship is in his 26th season of coaching collegiate soccer and his 13th with the Green and Blue.

With the triumph, Blankenship is now 10th in career wins among active Division I coaches. He is tied for 17th among all current coaches (DI-III) and his all-time win percentage (.625) ranks 14th in NCAA Soccer history. 

"I'm incredibly proud for our players, I know this win meant a lot to them and this was our best win of the season by far," said Blankenship. "Creighton played exactly as hard as we thought they would. For our players to step up and meet that challenge was great and will hopefully give us some confidence."

FGCU put the pressure on its visitors immediately after kick-off and senior Evdokia Popadinova found the back of the net just 12 minutes into the game, putting the home team on top 1-0. Both senior Marjorie Boilesen and junior Syniah Clark (Cape Coral, FL/Ida Baker HS) were credited with assists on Popadinova's (Hadzhidimovo, Bulgaria/Northwestern Ohio) second goal of the season.

Just over a minute after the Eagles' goal, Creighton tested senior Melissa Weck with a shot that was fired from 15 yards out, but the keeper came up with the save to keep the Bluejays at bay.

Through the opening 45 minutes of play, the Eagles outshot Creighton 10-2 and posted a 4-3 edge in corner kicks. Both Boilesen (Sao Paulo, Brazil/West Florida) and junior Cassidy Morgan (Weston, FL/Cypress Bay HS) launched shots on-frame in the final minutes of the first stanza, but were denied, sending FGCU into the break with the 1-0 advantage.

Freshman Louise Lillback added to the Green and Blue lead with a goal of her own in the 65th minute that put FGCU up 2-0. Popadinova and redshirt-junior Megan Young (White Lake, MI/Walled Lake Northern HS) collected assists on Lillback's (Stockholm, Sweden/Tibble Gymnasium) second career goal as an Eagle.

With less than seven minutes to go in the match, Creighton scored after capitalizing on a set-piece opportunity, cutting FGCU's lead in half. The Bluejays tried to get another shot off against Weck (Yorba Linda, CA/Esperanza HS), but the Eagles' back line stifled the Creighton offense as the home team held on for Blankenship's historic win.

"You can't achieve something like this in your career without having great people around you," said Blankenship. "I am so thankful for all of the coaches who helped me along my journey and made me the coach I am today. I'm also grateful for the players who I played alongside with and who I still learn from today. I also could not do this without the support of my family and my wife. I'm on the road a lot and they are fully supportive of me and this team and that just means the world."

Creighton entered Fort Myers on a four-match winning streak and had previously only lost to No. 10 Clemson by a score of 1-0. The Bluejays also started the week with the No. 8 RPI in the nation. Over the course of the night, FGCU outshot Creighton 13-9.



Up Next
FGCU will remain at the Nest to host Marshall (2-6-0) for a 1 p.m. match on Sunday, Sept. 22. It will be "We Are FGCU Day" at the FGCU Soccer Complex and fans are encouraged to participate in the blue out. The meeting will be the first between the two programs; so far this season, the Eagles are 2-0 against first-time opponents on Sundays.
 
Career records of note:
Goals 
1. 66 - Tabby TINDELL - 2013-16
2. 28 - Shannen WACKER - 2011-14
3. 24 - Amber McCALL - 2007-09
4. 23 - Lindsey HAW - 2007-10
5. 22 - Paulina SPECKMAIER - 2013-16
6. 20 - Marjorie Boilesen- 2017-19 
7. 17 - Ally KASUN - 2012-15
8. 16 - Gina PETRACCO - 2008-11
16 - Evdokia Popadinova- 2018-19 
10. 12 - Olivia ELIAS - 2008-11
12 - Ali ROGERS - 2012-16

Assists 
1. 30 - Tabby TINDELL - 2013-16
2. 28 - Ashley CIESIELCZYK - 2008-12
3. 27 - Shannen WACKER - 2011-14
4. 22 - Lindsay HAW - 2007-10
22 - Paulina SPECKMAIER - 2013-16
6. 20 - Marjorie Boilesen- 2017-19 
19 - Ally KASUN - 2012-15
7. 18 - Melissa ARNOLD - 2011-14
9. 15 - Holly FRITZ - 2017-18
15 - Caytlan MACKENZIE - 2007-10
15 - Meaghan MULLIGAN - 2015-17
15 - Camille KNUDSTRUP - 2015-18

Points 
1. 162 - Tabby TINDELL (66g 30a) - 2013-16
2. 83 - Shannen WACKER (28g 27a) - 2011-14
3. 68 - Lindsay HAW (23g 22a) - 2007-10
4. 66 - Paulina SPECKMAIER (22g 22a) - 2013-16
5. 60 - Marjorie Boilesen (20g 20a) - 2017-19 
6. 57 - AMBER McCALL (24g 9a) - 2007-09
7. 53 - Ally KASUN (17g 19a) - 2012-15
8. 44 - Gina PETRACCO (16g 12a) - 2008-11
9. 40 - Ashley CIESIELCZYK (6g 28a) - 2008-12
40 - Evdokia Popadinova (16g 8a)- 2018-19 

Saves 
1. 274 - Brittany BROWN (56 GA, 274 saves) - 2012-15
2. 261 - Stephanie POWERS (52 GA, 261 saves) - 2008-11
3. 222 - Melissa Weck (50 GA, 222 saves) - 2016-19 
4. 55 - Kirsi KEENAN (16 GA, 55 saves) - 2007-10

Most shutouts 
1. 37.1 - Brittany BROWN - 2012-15
2. 31 - Stephanie POWERS - 2008-11
3. 30.4 - Melissa Weck - 2016-19 
4. 8 - Kirsi KEENAN - 2007-10

Goals against avg.
1. 0.67 - Brittany BROWN (56 GA, 7511 min) - 2012-15
2. 0.73 - Stephanie POWERS (52 GA, 6401 min) - 2008-11
3. 0.78 - Melissa Weck (50 GA, 5759 min) - 2016-19 
4. 0.84 - EMILY BARRETT (5 GA, 538 min) - 2007-09

FALL SPORTS SINGLE-GAME, SEASON AND GROUP TICKETS ON SALE
Single game tickets for volleyball, men's soccer and women's soccer are on sale now. Prices are $7 for adults and $5 for military/veterans (with ID) and youth (age 15 and under).

Season tickets (entry to each home game) are $55 for volleyball and women's soccer and $40 for men's soccer. Group tickets are $7 for groups of 15 or more and will include reserved seats, group recognition, a group activity and choice of FGCU gear or food. Fall Frequent Flyer passes, which includes a total of 30 entries to all three sports, are just $99.

For all inquiries, you can visit FGCUtickets.com, call 239-590-7145 or stop by the ticket office, which is open daily Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and one hour prior to all home events.

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 as they 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 160-58-23 (.713) overall record through the first 12 seasons of the program's existence, including a 76-14-14 (.798) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 400-128-34 (.711) 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 20 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 –