FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU men's soccer team (2-1-2, 2-0-1 ASUN) remained in first place in the ASUN South Division standings taking down North Florida (2-2-2, 0-1-2), 3-1, Saturday afternoon at the FGCU Soccer Complex.

"There was a lot of heart and character today from this team," said head coach Jesse Cormier. "We played 21 guys and got various minutes from them and they all contributed. It was a big team win and UNF is certainly a very good team, they have had some very good wins this year. They came in looking for the three points but our guys rose to the occasion and found a way to win."

FGCU produced four shots in the first half but capitalized on the two that were on frame. In the 21st minute, Steven Saunders (Rockledge, Fla./Rockledge HS/Jacksonville) sent a free-kick into the box, which was headed in by Trevin Myers (Lehigh Acres, Fla./Riverdale HS/Chowan University) towards Ethan Dudley (St. John's, Fla./Bartram Trail HS). His first initial shot was blocked but he slotted home the rebound to put FGCU up 1-0. It was the first career collegiate goal for the junior defender.

Less than 10 minutes later, FGCU made it a 2-0 contest. Jahvanie Hammond (Lauderhill, Fla./Coral Glades HS) gathered a pass just beyond midfield and passed it over Saunders who then flicked to his right, outside the 15-yard box. The pass found a sprinting Marcos Da Paz (Recife, Brazil/Fayetteville Academy/Columbia International) as he tucked it past the keeper's near post. The tally was the first of his FGCU career.

Neither team was able to get anything going right out of the gates in the second period but the numbers suddenly favored the Ospreys with Dudley being booked with his second yellow card in the 69th minute. UNF soon turned it into a one-score game with a goal in the 77th minute.

Keeper Gustavo Vasconcelos (Recife, Brazil/Colegio GGE) preserved FGCU's lead minutes later coming up with a save to the bottom right of his post. The match was finally put away in the 80th minute, thanks to a penalty kick from O'Vonte Mullings (Toronto, Ontario/Northview Secondary Heights). Da Paz drew the foul inside the box as Mullings then fired his shot to the keeper's left post, who dove to the right.

UNF outshot FGCU, 10-6 with six shots coming on frame while the Eagles produced three on target. In goal, Vasconcelos walked away with five saves, moving to 2-1-2 on the year. Mullings and Dudley led the Eagles in shots with two.

Up Next  
FGCU will travel to DeLand, Fla., to face Stetson (0-3-1, 0-2-1 ASUN) on Friday, Mar. 19 at 7 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the-minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU men's soccer program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_MSoccer, Instagram @FGCU_MSoccer, Facebook /FGCUMSoccer, and YouTube /FGCUAthletics.

HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier is in his fourth year as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 28-20-9 (.570) record overall, including a 15-3-3 mark (.786) in ASUN play. The Eagles have reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for nine-straight seasons (every year of eligibility), as Cormier has coached 23 all-conference selections since his arrival (program-record 10 in 2017). Cormier was the head coach at his alma mater the University of Vermont for the previous 13 seasons. He won 14 games with the Catamounts in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. During his time with Vermont, Cormier guided the program to the America East Tournament in 12 of 13 seasons, making five title game appearances, winning two tournament crowns, claiming a regular-season championship and advancing to three NCAA tournaments, including a pair of Second Round appearances. Cormier holds an overall 142-108-55 (.556) record as a head coach in his sixteen-plus seasons at the helm.

#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 84 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 (APR) in their sport and have had the highest percentage of teams so honored from these two groups over each of the past three years. 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.