FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the second straight game, Kierstan Bell and Tishara Morehouse combined for over 40 points as the No. 23 FGCU women's basketball team cruised past Jacksonville, 78-55, on Saturday in Alico Arena. The Eagles improved to 26-2 overall and 15-1 in league play, while the Dolphins fell to 15-12 overall and 8-8 in league play.
 
The Green and Blue close out the regular season with 26 wins marking the 12^th straight season to hit that mark and the 16^th time overall. FGCU is the East Division No. 1 seed heading into the ASUN Championship Tournament and received a bye out of the first round. The Eagles will host the winner of the North Florida/Lipscomb first round game in the quarterfinals to be held at Alico Arena on Sunday, March 6 at 2 PM.
 
"I thought it was a really strong effort by our team and we got off to a quick start," said head coach Karl Smesko. "It was a good game for us overall and a great way to celebrate Senior Night. I really encourage everyone to spread the word and we want to pack Alico Arena next Sunday – this team deserves it after such a wonderful season. March is really a special part of the season. That home court advantage makes a huge difference, probably 8-to-10 points a game, so we're hoping to have as many fans here as possible."
 
In just her second game back after missing nine contests due to injury, Bell had her second-straight 20-point game with 23 to lead all scorers. She added five assists, three blocks, and two steals as well. That paired with a 21-point effort from Morehouse who was 7-of-10 from the field, including 3-of-3 beyond the arc, while adding six assists.
 
Kendall Spray hit three triples to finish with nine points, while Kerstie Phills had eight. Spray moved into a tie for fourth-most made three pointers (447) in NCAA history alongside Maryland's Katie Benzan.
 
The Eagles used a stingy defense to turn 20 JU turnovers into 26 points while giving up just four points on 10 miscues. FGCU also went 12-of-29 (41.4%) from deep while giving up just five triples to the Dolphins.
 
Jacksonville was led by 18 points and seven rebounds from Khalea Hayes and 10 points from both Carmella Walker and Asiah Jackson.
 
The Eagles jumped out to an 11-0 start in the first quarter with eight points coming from Bell including two three pointers. All told, FGCU hit five three pointers in the first to build out a 25-11 lead.
 
After taking a 43-25 lead into the break, used a 22-13 third quarter to go up by as many as 29. Spray and Seneca Hackley each added three pointers in the fourth, while Tanner Bryant closed out the Eagles' scoring with a lay-up in the final minute of play.
 
FGCU honored its 2022 graduating class in a pregame and postgame ceremony: Bell, Bryant, Andrea Cecil, Tyra Cox, Phills, Karli Seay, and Spray.

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 606-127 (.826) 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 232-18 (.929) mark in ASUN regular season play and a 27-2 (.931) record in ASUN tournament play. Over the previous 10 seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 153-5 (.968) record in conference play with six undefeated seasons. The 11-time ASUN Coach of the Year has led the program to 12-straight 25-win seasons and 18-consecutive 20-win campaigns, including 30-plus wins in four of the past seven years. On top of all that, the Eagles are 545-100 (.845) all-time since Smesko started the program in the 2002-03 season, and the Green and Blue's .845 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 87 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 43 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. 20, 2021-22), 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 25 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, 2020 Fall, 2021 Spring, and 2021 Fall semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. 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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