JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An 18-0 run spanning both sides of the half helped the No. 26 FGCU women's basketball team turn a close game against Jacksonville into a rout as the Eagles defeated the Dolphins, 83-64, at Swisher Gymnasium.

FGCU improves to 13-1 on the season and 2-0 in the ASUN while Jacksonville falls to 7-5 and 0-1 in conference play. It is also the 19th-straight ASUN regular-season win for the Eagles dating back to the 2019-20 season.

Additionally, the Green and Blue extended its nation's best road winning streak to 23 straight games, more than double second-place Indiana which has 11, as well as its winning streak over conference foes to 24 games (third best behind UConn, 45, and Princeton, 28).

"We played a great third quarter today," said head coach Karl Smesko. "Kerstie and Karli had outstanding games. We have a big week in front of us and this was a good way to start it off."

Graduate student Kerstie Phills (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Christian/Wagner) led the Eagles with 19 points, tying her FGCU-career high. Junior Kierstan Bell (Alliance, Ohio/Canton McKinley/Ohio State) scored 17 points while graduate student senior Tishara Morehouse (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King/Western Nebraska CC) chipped in with 14 points and team-high six assists and five rebounds. Graduate student Karli Seay (Flossmoor, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor/LSU/Western Nebraska CC) also scored 10 points to give the Eagles four double-digit scorers.

The Eagles shot 50.8% (30-for-59) from the field and made 12 three-pointers while holding the Dolphins to 47.3% (26-for-55) and just 5-for-12 from behind the arc.

FGCU jumped out to an early lead and back-to-back threes by Phills extended the Eagles lead to 20-13 with just under two minutes left in the first quarter, but JU kept it close as the Eagles led 22-18 after the first quarter.

The Dolphins kept it a four-point game until FGCU scored the final 10 points of the half in the last four minutes, seven of which came from Bell, to give the Eagles a 43-29 halftime lead.

Out of the break, a layup by Morehouse and two threes by Bell and redshirt senior Tyra Cox (Orlando, Fla./Lake Highland Prep/William & Mary) pushed the Eagle lead to 51-29. The Green and Blue shot 61.1% from the field in the third quarter, scoring 31 points to take a 74-43 lead after 30 minutes which proved to be more than enough as the Eagles held on for the win.

After pulling its starters late in the third quarter, FGCU still built out its largest lead of the game at 34 points, 82-48, after a three pointer by Aaliyah Stanley at the 6:12 mark of the fourth. 

FGCU stays on the road for its next game as the Eagles will travel to Georgia to take on Kennesaw State on Wednesday evening. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

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.

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 592-126 (.824) overall in his career, which is the third-highest winning percentage among active Division I coaches behind only UConn's Geno Auriemma and LSU's Kim Mulkey. He has also led the Eagles to a 219-17 (.927) mark in ASUN regular season play and a 27-2 (.931) record in ASUN tournament play. Over the past 11 seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 155-5 (.968) record in conference play with six undefeated seasons. The 11-time ASUN Coach of the Year has led the program to 11-straight 25-win seasons and 17-consecutive 20-win campaigns, including 30-plus wins in four of the past seven years. On top of all that, the Eagles are 531-99 (.843) all-time since Smesko started the program in the 2002-03 season, and the Green and Blue's .842 all-time winning percentage is the best in NCAA Division I women's basketball history.
 
#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/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 85 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 42 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 21, 2020-21), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) 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 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 23 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, and 2020 Fall 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.