ATLANTA – The ASUN Conference has selected the 2014-15 FGCU women's basketball team as the best in the program's history as part of its "top seasons" series, while the 2017-18, 2015-16 and 2013-14 seasons earned the distinction of honorable mention.
 
The 2014-15 squad achieved several significant milestones. The Eagles finished 31-3 overall, went 14-0 in ASUN regular season play, captured both the conference's regular season and tournament championships and then earned the program's very first Division I NCAA Tournament win as the Green and Blue knocked off No. 10 Oklahoma State 75-67 in Tallahassee. Along the way, they won a program-record 26-consecutive games and produced a 9-2 record against RPI top-75 teams.
 
"The 2014-15 team was really talented and competitive," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "We were one of the most efficient teams in the nation offensively, and they may have been the best defensive team we have ever had in the Division I era. DT, Kaneisha and Jenna were relentless perimeter defenders, and Whit was an exceptional rim protector."
 
While dashing through conference play, the Eagles routed opponents by an average margin of 21.4 points per contest for the program's third undefeated regular season over a four-year span. One of those wins, which came on Feb. 21 at USC Upstate, provided Smesko his 400th career win – in just his 493rd career game, which was two games faster than Geno Auriemma. Following the season, Smesko won his fifth-straight ASUN Coach of the Year award.
 
Individually, Whitney Knight was named the ASUN Player of the Year, while Kaneisha Atwater was also named First Team All-ASUN. Taylor Gradinjan earned a spot on the all-freshmen team, and Stephanie Haas was named the conference's scholar-athlete of the year.
 
"The team was really deep," Smesko said. "Haas, Gradinjan, Knight and Atwater all scored more than 1,000 points in their FGCU careers, and all of our players were exceptional in their roles. Those who played limited minutes always came in and made positive contributions to the team."
 
In the ASUN Tournament, FGCU swept UNF, Jacksonville and Northern Kentucky with each victory coming by at least 17 points, while Knight captured tournament MVP recognition. Doing so set the Eagles up with a rematch against 10th-seeded Oklahoma State in the NCAA Tournament, where Atwater poured in 26 points on 10-for-17 shooting while pulling down eight rebounds to help lead the seventh-seeded Green and Blue to its historic first NCAA Tournament win. Knight chipped in 19 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks, while Jenna Cobb (10 points, three steals), Haas (nine points), DyTiesha Dunson (five points, five rebounds, four assists) and Gradinjan (six points) also contributed.
 
Atwater's 26-point outburst remains to this day as the most points scored by an Eagle in an NCAA Tournament game, while Cobb's three steals is tied for the most in such a game.
 
Following the NCAA Tournament, the 2014-15 squad finished 20th in the final AP Poll and 21st in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Both not only remain as the highest finish for the women's basketball program in each poll, but it's the highest they've been ranked in each one at any point.

Honorable Mention Seasons
As part of the "top seasons" release, the conference also named the 2017-18, 2015-16 and 2013-14 seasons as honorable mention selections for FGCU.

• The 2017-18 team finished 31-5 overall and 13-1 in ASUN play en route to capturing an outright ASUN regular season championship. In the postseason, the Eagles produced an historic 105-55 win over Lipscomb in the semifinals before grinding out a 68-58 win over rival Jacksonville in the title game. Back in the NCAA Tournament, the Green and Blue stunned fifth-seeded Missouri 80-70 in the opening round. The Green and Blue produced the program's first three wins over ranked teams as a Division I program that season, including the first-ever in an 89-84 overtime thriller over No. 21 DePaul in Las Vegas on Nov. 23. Missouri entered the tourney game at No. 17/15, and the win over them remains the highest-ranked team FGCU has beaten in either poll. The team featured a dynamic rotation that included First Team All-ASUN selections Rosemarie Julien and China Dow, as well as Second Team All-ASUN performer Tytionia Adderly.
• The 2015-16 team fell one win short of returning to the NCAA Tournament, but wreaked havoc on the nation in the WNIT by advancing all the way to the championship game. En route, FGCU knocked off five teams, including a pair of Power 5 schools - Wake Forest in the second round and Michigan in the semifinals. Overall, the Eagles finished 33-6 overall and 14-0 in ASUN play. Their win total remains the most in a single-season in the program's Division I era. Following the season, Knight was drafted by the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, and assistant coach Nicki Collen accepted a job with the Connecticut Sun, and she has since risen to become the head coach of the Atlanta Dream. Smesko was named the espnW Mid-Major Coach of the Year, while Knight (Player of the Year) and Dunson (Defensive Player of the Year) took home major awards from the conference. Atwater was named First Team All-ASUN.
• The 2013-14 team featured the program's all-time leading scorer Sarah Hansen in her senior campaign, as she won her second-consecutive ASUN Player of the Year award and helped FGCU finish 26-8 overall and 17-1 in ASUN play. The Eagles captured regular season and tournament titles within the conference, which included a thrilling 72-70 overtime win over Stetson in the championship game. In that game, Amanda Moore played a total of six seconds, but calmly sank two free throws with nine seconds left in overtime that put FGCU up four. Cobb was named the tournament MVP after producing a game-high 19 points in the title tilt. The Eagles advanced to the NCAA Tournament before falling in a 61-60 overtime heartbreaker to Oklahoma State, but they'd get revenge the following season. 

ASUN Women's Basketball Top Seasons
Bellarmine - 2015-16 | HM: 1990-91, 1998-99, 2018-19
FGCU - 2014-15 | HM: 2013-14, 2015-16, 2017-18
JAX - 2015-16 | HM: 2006-07, 2016-17, 2017-18
KSU - 1996-97 | HM: 1988-89, 1998-99, 2017-18
Liberty - 2004-05 | HM: 1997-98, 2002-03, 2007-08
Lipscomb - 2003-04 | HM: 2001-02, 2002-03, 2004-05
UNA - 2010-11 | HM: 1984-85, 1993-94, 2012-13
UNF - 2002-03 | HM: 2001-02, 2003-04, 2009-10
Stetson - 2012-13 | HM: 2004-05, 2010-11, 2016-17
 
For complete coverage of the women's basketball program, follow the Eagles on Twitter and Instagram at @FGCU_WBB, on Facebook at /fgcuwbb and online at www.FGCUathletics.com. You can also sign-up to have news on FGCU women's basketball or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
 

ASUN Top Season: 2014-15 Eagles
Overall Record	31-3
ASUN Record (Finish)	14-0 (1st)
ASUN Tournament Record (Finish)	3-0 (1st)
NCAA Tournament	First Round: W 75-67 vs No. 10 Oklahoma State (Box Score) Second Round: L 65-47 vs No. 2 Florida State (Box Score)
ASUN Awards	Player of the Year: Whitney Knight First Team: Kaneisha Atwater, Whitney Knight Tournament MVP: Whitney Knight All-Tournament Team: Whitney Knight, Kaneisha Atwater, Jenna Cobb All-Academic Team: Stephanie Haas Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Stephanie Haas Coach of the Year: Karl Smesko

 

Honorable Mention: 2017-18 Eagles
Overall Record	31-5
ASUN Record (Finish)	13-1 (1st)
ASUN Tournament Record (Finish)	3-0 (1st)
NCAA Tournament	First Round: W 80-70 vs No. 5 Missouri (Box Score) Second Round: L 90-70 vs No. 4 Stanford (Box Score)
ASUN Awards	First Team: China Dow, Rosemarie Julien Second Team: Tytionia Adderly Tournament MVP: China Dow All-Tournament Team: China Dow, Lisa Zderadicka, Rosemarie Julien All-Academic Team: Taylor Gradinjan Coach of the Year: Karl Smesko

 

Honorable Mention: 2015-16 Eagles
Overall Record	33-6
ASUN Record (Finish)	14-0 (1st)
ASUN Tournament Record (Finish)	2-1 (2nd)
WNIT Results	First Round: W 78-51 vs Bethune-Cookman (Box Score) Second Round: W 67-48 vs Wake Forest (Box Score) Round of 16: W 73-61 vs Tulane (Box Score) Quarterfinals: W 61-46 vs Hofstra (Box Score) Semifinals: W 71-62 vs Michigan (Box Score) Finals: L 71-65 @ South Dakota (Box Score)
ASUN Awards	Player of the Year: Whitney Knight Defensive Player of the Year: DyTiesha Dunson First Team: Kaneisha Atwater, Whitney Knight All-Academic Team: Stephanie Haas, DyTiesha Dunson, Taylor Gradinjan Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Taylor Gradinjan All-Tournament Team: Kaneisha Atwater, Whitney Knight

 

Honorable Mention: 2013-14 Eagles
Overall Record	26-8
ASUN Record (Finish)	17-1 (1st)
ASUN Tournament Record (Finish)	3-0 (1st)
NCAA Tournament	First Round: L 61-60 (OT) vs No. 5 Oklahoma State (Box Score)
ASUN Awards	Player of the Year: Sarah Hansen First Team: Sarah Hansen, Whitney Knight Tournament MVP: Jenna Cobb All-Tournament Team: Jenna Cobb, Kaneisha Atwater, Sarah Hansen All-Academic Team: Sarah Hansen Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Sarah Hansen Coach of the Year: Karl Smesko

E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
 
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 maintains a record of 554-122 (.820) overall in his career (third highest winning percentage among active Division I coaches behind only UConn's Geno Auriemma and Baylor's Kim Mulkey), including a 201-17 (.922) mark in ASUN regular season play and a 24-2 (.923) record in ASUN tournament play. Over the past nine seasons, including this year, he has guided FGCU to a 137-5 (.975) record in conference play with five undefeated seasons. The 10-time ASUN Coach of the Year has guided the Green and Blue to four 30-plus win seasons over the past six years while compiling a 179-31 (.852) record. He has also guided the program to 16 consecutive 20-win seasons and 10-straight 25-win seasons.
 
#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 82 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 13 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 38 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (No. 24, 2019-20) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. 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 3.46 GPA in the classroom in the spring 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 22 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall and 2020 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA. 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--