JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An early penalty kick proved to be the difference-maker in the FGCU women's soccer team's (3-2-2, 1-2-0 ASUN) loss to UNF (6-0-0, 3-0-0 ASUN) on Saturday afternoon in Jacksonville, as the Eagles fell 1-0.

With the result, the Ospreys maintained their spot at the top of the ASUN South Divisional standings. FGCU's position will depend on the result of the Jacksonville vs. Stetson game, which will be played on Saturday evening in DeLand.

"This was a tough result on the road," head coach Jim Blankenship said. "I thought the players battled, but we just weren't able to capitalize on our chances today. We are looking forward to the rest of our conference slate and getting back to our home field."

The teams were well-matched and shared possession of the ball relatively evenly in the first half. Only a handful of shots were notched by either side in the opening minutes, with sophomore Louise Lillback (Stockholm, Sweden/Tibble Gymnasium) firing off the Eagles' first of the afternoon around the 20-minute mark.

The penalty kick was taken shortly after Lillback's attempt on the other end of the field, and Preseason Player of the Year Thais Reiss buried her seventh goal of the season. The shot handed the Ospreys their early 1-0 advantage and marked the fourth time this year that the team found the back of the net in the first half.

Though Lillback tested the Ospreys' Mercedes Sapp with another shot just minutes after Reiss' goal, the keeper was there to make the stop. UNF took its 1-0 advantage into halftime, as well as a 5-2 edge in shots.

Following the break, UNF recorded the first shot of the second half when Reiss fired one off seven minutes after the whistle. Her shot did not require a save from freshman keeper Mia Krusinski (Lewisville, Texas/Ursuline Academy of Dallas), as it sailed high over the crossbar.

After Reiss' attempt, the momentum began to shift towards the Eagles, who had three-consecutive looks at the net. Sophomore Leah Scarpelli (Brick, N.J./Brick Memorial/Penn State) kicked off the spurt in the 69th minute with a ball that went just over the crossbar. Less than 10 minutes later, she got her foot on another ball but was unable to sneak it past UNF's diving keeper.

With less than eight minutes to go, senior Kavina Ganeshan (Pickering, Ontario/Pickering HS) had a solid look at scoring the equalizer, but her attempt was also stopped by Sapp.

Krusinski faced just two shots in the second half, finishing her day with three total stops. Offensively, the Eagles were led by Lillback and Scarpelli, who tallied a pair of shots apiece.

FGCU will be back in action next weekend to host Stetson on Saturday, March 20. The game is set for a 2 p.m. start at the FGCU Soccer Complex.

For complete coverage of FGCU women's soccer, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_WSoccer and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU women's soccer or other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.

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, 2015 and 2019, has built FGCU women's soccer into a yearly contender in the ASUN Conference and a rising program in the South Region in just 13 seasons. Blankenship started the program in 2007 and has since guided the Eagles to 13 double-digit win seasons, culminating with ASUN Regular Season Championships in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019. 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 169-61-27 (.716) overall record through the first 13 seasons of the program's existence, including an 83-17-15 (.801) mark in the ASUN. Blankenship's impressive career record of 410-132-38 (.743) over 26 seasons has come while leading FGCU, the University of Miami, Lynn University and St. Thomas University.

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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!
 
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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.
 
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