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FORT MYERS, Fla. – The No. 28 FGCU women's basketball team (14-2 overall, 2-0 ASUN) earned its 14^th win of the season in the finale of a four-game homestand, delivering a 77-51 victory Thursday over Jacksonville (7-5, 1-1) at Alico Arena.

The victory was FGCU's sixth straight, improved the Green & Blue to 33-3 all-time against the Dolphins. Fifth-year guard Tishara Morehouse (Milwaukee, Wis. Rufus King Western Nebraska CC) scored 25 points -- her 12^th double-digit game of the season.
 
Morehouse was tabbed ASUN Player of the Week for the second time this season Monday, and did not disappoint the faithful in The Nest -- making 11-of-16 shots from the floor while pulling down four rebounds.

Redshirt junior guard Alyza Winston (Muskegon, Mich./Muskegon HS/Michigan State/Mississippi State) showed why she earned her third Newcomer of the Week honor Monday, delivering 17 points. It was Winston's third best scoring output of the season, and she was a perfect 6-for-6 at the free-throw line.

Graduate guard Sha Carter (Southfield. Mich./Wylie E. Groves HS/Walsh) dropped 13 points, her ninth double-digit scoring performance this season.

Graduate guard Sophia Stiles (Malta, Mont./Malta HS/Montana) grabbed a team-high seven rebounds for her sixth straight game as either the Eagles' top rebounder or sharing high honors in that category. Collectively, FGCU posted 15 assists on 31 baskets and took care of the ball, while making 30 defensive rebounds.

"I think the difference in the game was the way we started the second half, we got off to a great start and really the third quarter in its entirety was just really good basketball for us and allowed us to win the game," said FGCU head women's basketball coach Karl Smesko. "We got pretty good shots, especially considering how good their defense is. So many players in the third quarter hit really big shots for us."

The Dolphins immediately attacked the basket, grabbing a 6-4 lead within the first three minutes. The Eagles responded, though, breaking off a 13-6 run that included six points from Winston and five from Carter to take a 17-12 first-quarter lead.

Both teams started the second quarter firing, but Morehouse would be the difference maker for the Eagles -- scoring nine of the team's 19 points. Jacksonville kept applying pressure, though, and trailed 36-29 going into hafltime.
 
The Green & Blue was not comfortable with the seven-point lead, and had its best offensive output of the game with a 26-point third quarter. The 10-minute stretch was the most productive the Eagles have been since piling up 28 points against Palm Beach Atlantic on Dec. 8, 2022. Morehouse delivered three field goals in less than two minutes and stretched the FGCU lead to 42-31. She would add six more in the quarter, with Winston dropping five points and Carter adding four. Junior guard Maddie Antenucci (Cincinnati, Ohio/Indian Hill HS) would seal the third quarter with a trey and a layup with 12 seconds to play for a 62-37 advantage.
 
The Dolphins regained their traction in the fourth quarter, as the Eagles outscored them just 15-14 -- but the setbacks from the third quarter were too much too overcome.

Jacksonville was led by graduate guard Seraphine Bastin, who scored 16 points and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. Twelve Eagles saw action, with nine playing at least 10 minutes. 
 
The Eagles have won 10 of their last 11 games. Jacksonville's two-game winning streak came to a close, and the Dolphins are now 1-18 all-time at Alico Arena.
 
The Green & Blue heads to Florence, Ala., to take on ASUN rival North Alabama (6-7, 1-1) at 7 p.m. Saturday.
 
FGCU has made the most 3-pointers in the country, hitting 169 triples so far in 2022-23, and among the nation's leaders with 10.6 per game. FGCU defends the arc as well, allowing opponents only 2.9 3-pointers per game. FGCU's run to its 2021-22 national ranking was due to the Eagles' continued dominance behind the 3-point arc. The Eagles have led the nation in made threes per game the past three years and in four of the last five seasons -- with an NCAA single-season record total 431 in 2017-18.
 
Entering this season, the Eagles were selected by both the coaches and the media to repeat as ASUN champions. FGCU is currently ranked No. 3 in the Collegeinsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll. The Eagles finished with a program-best-ever No. 20 ranking in 2021-22 and have four Top 25 finishes in the past five seasons. Further, only the Green & Blue and defending national champion South Carolina have won at least 30 games in five of the last eight campaigns.     
 
For complete coverage of FGCU women's basketball, follow the Eagles on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FGCU_WBB and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign up to have news on FGCU women's basketball and other programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email
 
INDIVIDUAL TICKETS, MINI PLANS AVAILABLE  
Tickets for the 2022-23 FGCU Basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased by going online to www.FGCUTickets.com or calling 866-FGCU-TIX. Group tickets can also be purchased for 10 or more people – making a memorable evening for families, businesses, or other organizations.  
 
COACH SMESKO   
FGCU head coach Karl Smesko maintains a record of 624-130 (.828) overall in his career, 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 234-18 (.929) mark in ASUN regular-season play and a 30-2 (.938) record in ASUN tournament play. Over the previous 10-plus seasons, he has guided FGCU to a 154-5 (.969) record in conference play with six undefeated seasons. The 12-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 five of the last eight years. On top of all that, the Eagles are 563-103 (.845) all-time since Smesko started the program in the 2002-03 season, and the Green & Blue's .845 all-time winning percentage is the best in NCAA Division I women's basketball history.
 
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!  
 
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/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 https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.  
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 94 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 47 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an 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 and No. 25 in 2022-23) 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 & 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 3.66 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019 – Fall 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---