FORT MYERS, Fla. – The No. 4 seed FGCU (8-4-4, 3-2-3 ASUN) delivered a barrage of goals in the second half on Saturday evening to defeat No.5 seed North Florida (4-8-4, 3-3-2 ASUN) with a 4-0 decision to advance to ASUN semifinals.

The Eagles will take on No. 12 (No.1 seed) Lipscomb on Monday at 8 p.m. EST at the Lipscomb Soccer Complex. FGCU last made it to second round on Apr. 10, 2021 after defeating the Ospreys 5-3 on penalty kicks.

Senior Markus Maurer (Friedrichshafen, Germany) scored the first goal of the match in the 28^th minute on a top box strike after a free kick and the Eagles bench erupted. Aedon Kyra (Sydney, Australia/UNLV) pushed the Eagles lead to two in the 69^th minute before Davi Alves (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) delivered a third goal from in the 73^rd minute.

Junior forward Luke Peperak (Pittsburg, Pa./Pittsburg) sealed the victory with a fourth goal with less than three minutes left in the match.
" I thought we played very well tonight.  The win was comprehensive and our team identity was clear," said head coach Jesse Cormier. " The goals were fantastic starting with Markus's thumping volley, Aedon's commanding header, Davi's magical free kick, and Pep's classy finish.   The defense were collectively fantastic, starting with Wyatt, Row, Lucas, and Nadav.  Our midfield played intelligently and made it very difficult for UNF to cover key areas."

Overall, FGCU outshot the Ospreys, 13-4, while leading 5-3 with shots on goal and had a 5-4 advantage on corner kicks. This Eagles and UNF previously played to a scoreless first draw on October 7. This victory was also the most goals the Eagles have scored in a match this year.

Wyatt Kistner (Midlothian, Va./Cosby HS) earned seventh clean sheet for the season with three saves, including stopping a breakaway in the 63rd minute with the match still at 1-0

In the first half, Aedon Kyra (Sydney, Australia/UNLV) wasted no time as he fired back-to-back shots in the 7^th and 8^th minute but it did not connect. FGCU's goals leader and ASUN All-Conference First Team honoree, Alves (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) sent two shots that were off target in the 24^th and 26^th minute.

The Eagles effort would bear fruit as Maurer corralled a loose ball off a FGCU free kick into the box and launched a rocket into the upper right corner for his first goal of the season in the 28^th minute to give the Green and Blue a lead they would never relinquish.
Defense would rule for the remaining of the half and the Eagles went to the locker room 1-0

Maurer took the first shot in the second half but it landed out left. The Ospreys responded with two shots but Kistner was able to corral both to keep FGCU's lead.
Kyra then took control of the game receiving a cross from ASUN All-Freshman Alon Drey ( Or'Aqiva) and proceeded to bury his commanding header into the right side of the net for a 2-0 advantage in the 69^th minute. This was Kyra's sixth goal of the season.

Alves didn't let Kyra's goal set in before releasing a powerful free kick bent around the UNF's wall to push the Eagles lead to 3-0 at the 73^rd minute for the ASUN First Teamer'seventh goal of the season

Braden Masker attempted to get the Ospreys on the scoreboard with a shot on goal but Wyatt made the huge save in the 78^th minute.

The Eagles sealed the victory and did not look back as buries a direct shot in the 88^th minute that  completed the  4-0 decision.
On Monday, the Green and Blue will look to advance to their first ASUN championship game since 2021. FGCU and (12-2-2, 7-1 ASUN) Lipscomb played on 10/29 where the Eagles delivered a 1-0 victory while the Bisons were ranked No. 10.

HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier is in his sixth year as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program in the fall of 2022 after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 41-34-16 (.539) record overall, including a 22-11-6 mark (.659) in ASUN play. The Eagles have reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for 10 of 11 seasons (every year of eligibility but one), as Cormier has coached 31 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 155-123-62 (.547) record as a head coach in his 16-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 93 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11 seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 46 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn at at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four 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 26 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Spring 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative 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--