FORT MYERS, Fla.- It all comes down to this. With an ASUN Regular Season Championship in their back pocket, the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles face an old rival on Friday at Pickering Field in Fort Myers, this time with a ticket to the NCAA Tournament on the line as they battle the Lipscomb Bisons in the 2026 ASUN Championship Game.

The Eagles and Bisons took very different routes to Friday's title game as FGCU rolled to a 7-1-2 ASUN record to win the league going away, earning the No. 1 seed and home field for the tournament, which they took advantage of after their first round bye, with a 1-0 shutout of Jacksonville in the semifinals. Lipscomb on the other hand, was the sixth and final team to qualify for the tournament, upsetting Bellarmine 2-1 in the first round before pulling another 2-1 upset in the semis against North Florida on the Ospreys home field.

ASUN Championships have been almost exclusive to the Eagles and Bisons over the past decade as FGCU and Lipscomb have combined for 11 of the past 12 tourney titles. Lipscomb enters Friday looking for their third straight title, after taking the trophy home to Nashville in both 2024 and 2025. FGCU looks to repeat history where they are 3-0-0 against the Bisons all-time in the final, winning the ASUN Championship against Lipscomb in 2015, 2016, and 2017.

FGCU enters the matchup looking for their ninth ASUN Tournament Championship all-time. When the Eagles have gotten to this point, they have made it count, going 8-1-0 in program history in the ASUN Championship Game with their last title coming during the 2023 season.

The Eagles have been the top offensive team in the ASUN all season, entering Friday with 33 goals on the year which is a league best. But of late, it has been their defense that has shined through. FGCU has posted four shutouts in their past five games including each of the last two. The Eagles back four stack up with any other back line in the country as ASUN Defender of the Year Sarah Greiner and First Team All-ASUN selection Lily Borders pair with Hanna Phillips and Ryanne Robinson as the backbone of the FGCU success this season.

The defending ASUN Champion Bisons flew under the radar a bit this season if that is possible. Lipscomb was just 3-3-4 in ASUN regular season action and enters Friday at 8-4-7 overall on the year. The Bisons are undefeated in their past five contests including back-to-back regulation wins in the first two rounds of the ASUN Tournament.  Tatum Ahlemeyer is Lipscomb's top threat, scoring three of her team high eight goals in the postseason. She also leads the club in shots with 43 and shots on goal with 27 on the year. The Bisons offense ranks towards the bottom of the league this season, but they have been solid in net as keeper Sundell Woodard ranks second in the ASUN in both saves with 85 and save percentage at .817 this season.

FGCU leads the all-time series with the Bisons 11-3-7 and is 3-1-0 against Lipscomb all-time in the ASUN Tournament. The two teams tied 2-2 earlier this season in Nashville, the third straight meeting no winner was determined between the two.

The Eagles and Bisons will kick off at 4 p.m. Friday at Pickering Field. The game will stream on ESPN+.

Tickets are available now at FGCUTickets.com or at the Alico Arena Box Office. Fans purchasing a ticket to the Championship Game will also receive free entry into the FGCU vs. FIU Men's Basketball game Friday night at 7 p.m. while ticket holders for the Basketball game will also receive free entry into the Championship contest.

For more information on FGCU women's soccer, follow @FGCU_WSoccer on Instagram, X (Twitter) and Facebook, and visit fgcuathletics.com.