FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gulf Coast University women's soccer forced a scoreless draw Tuesday in an exhibition match against the University of Miami at Pickering Field.
"Our expectations are quite high," head coach Jim Blankenship said. "I thought today was phenomenal, getting the group together and finally playing – obviously with the weather. We lost quite a few sessions. The unknown of where you're at with lost sessions and we're playing an ACC team, so I thought overall was phenomenal. Defensively, I thought our team was really good and that was a point of emphasis in the offseason for us. I think our team got better as the day went on."
FGCU's first official training session of the 2024 season was July 30, only seven days ago. The defending ASUN Tournament Champion Eagles have had to also maneuver around the weather impacts of Hurricane Debby over the weekend.
The Eagles outshot the Hurricanes 10-8 Tuesday. FGCU found its stride against a backed-in Miami defensive look in the second 45 minutes of play, recording seven of its 10 shots.
Five different Eagles fired a shot as 2023 ASUN Tournament MVP Erika Zschuppe paced the Green and Blue in total shot attempts with four. Zschuppe nearly scored the exhibition's game-winner in the 83rd minute with a beautiful header courtesy of Ashley Labbe's corner strike, but Zschuppe's flick had a date with the crossbar and the match remained tied.
Miami edged FGCU in corners 6-5. The Eagles rolled out two goalkeepers Tuesday, Olivia Molina and Clara Karlsson. Molina and Karlsson combined for the clean sheet, snagging one save apiece.
FGCU opens the 2024 season Thursday, Aug. 15 at home against FIU. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. For tickets, purchase online HERE or at the gate. Single-game tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for military and youth (ages 4-12). For groups of 10 or more, tickets start at $6. FGCU students, faculty and staff are free with a valid Eagle I.D.
