Welcome to the new year and let us begin 2018.
Now that 2017 has come to a close, it doesn't mean basketball at FGCU is finished quite yet. The FGCU men's and women's basketball teams prepare for their opening conference games in a doubleheader against Stetson to start off 2018.
Of course in all conference games, all eight teams in the A-SUN play each other twice, one at home and away each.
Last Time Out for the Women:
The women's team (14-3) concluded 2017 with wins over South Dakota State (87-78) and NAIA Florida Memorial (82-43) to end non-conference play. The Eagles are on a four-game winning streak and are in first place from their overall record and still lead the nation in 3-point field goals made (193) and 3-point field goals attempted (539). As of the end of non-conference play, the Eagles finished 8-0 at home, 4-1 on the road and 2-2 in neutral games (Akron Classic and Play4K Shootout).
In addition with the win over South Dakota State, The Eagles who were ranked #3 in the Mid-Major Top 25 Poll at the time, moved up to #1 in the rankings jumping over Green Bay (ranked #2) and South Dakota State (now ranked #3).
FGCU Impactful Players:
Senior Rose Julien remains the teams leading scorer (12.9 points per game). Julien had a strong game against SD State scoring 18 points before deciding to lite down her most recent game against Florida Memorial scoring only six.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly averages 8.3 rebounds per game. The Jupiter native grabbed nine rebounds against SD State and 12 against Florida Memorial. Adderly currently ranks eighth all-time in offensive rebound for the Eagles (161) and is 23 away from surpassing Courtney Chihil (183) for seventh all-time in career offensive rebounds.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan was given the night off from playing against Florida Memorial due to injury, but during the game against SD State, Grandijan scored 17 points and is averaging 10.8 points per game. Grandijan recently surpassed Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for seventh all-time and is 69 points away from surpassing former player and current video coordinator Stephanie Haas (1138) for 6th all-time. She has also surpassed Katie Meador (422) for seventh all-time in career rebounds with 433 and is 75 rebounds away from surpassing Kaniesha Atwater (508) for sixth all-time.
FGCU Women's Bench Role:
The main players that provided sparks off the bench are redshirt seniors China Dow and Jessica Cattani and redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka.
Dow had 17 points against SD State before liting down with five against Florida Memorial. Dow is averaging 9.9 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.
Cattani, who was limiting between games due to a leg fracture in the beginning of the season, has played a strong role off the bench. The Muskego, Wisconsin native's recent game against Florida Memorial proved to be dominating. Cattani finished with a career-high 23 points (9-for-11 FG, 5-for-7 3FG) off the bench, and her points per game average skyrocketed from 5.9 to 7.1 after her 23 point game.
Zderadicka or Lisa Z, as the ESPN commentators call her, came in clutch making her first start for the Eagles in place of Grandijan against FMU. The Houston Baptist transfer and Vienna, Austria native is averaging 6.8 points per game. Zderadicka had six points against SD State and five points against FMU.
Scouting The Lady Hatters:
Stetsom (9-7) is currently in third place overall standings. The Lady Hatters recently competed in two tournaments: the 30th Annual Hatter Classic and the FAU Invitational. They would beat Richmond 72-67 and Texas State 61-54 and sweep the tournament they hosted, but would fall to the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) by a score of 50-67 before defeating Delaware State 58-43 to conclude 2017 for their season.
Senior Brittany Chambers leads the way in scoring (16.6 points per game). Chambers has bounced back and forth in her games and in the last four games, Chambers did manage to average 12.5 points per game. Chambers only scored nine in the game against Delaware State.
Sophomore Kennedi Colclough is averaging 13.6 points per game and leads the team with 111 total rebounds and 6.9 rebounds per game. In her most recent game, Colclough scored 19 points against Delaware State with eight rebounds. Colclough averaged 17.3 points per game and 6.5 rebounds per game in the last four games.
Defensively, junior Mckenna Beach and freshman Megan Vincent lead the way. Beach averages 12.9 points per game and lead the team in steals (22) and steals per game (1.4). Beach had six steals in the game against Texas State and has scored at least 10 points in four straight games.
Vincent averages 3.3 points per game, but leads the team in blocks (22) and averages 1.6 blocks per game. Vincent had four blocks in the game against Texas State.
Series History:
Since their jump to DI, the Eagles are 21-4 against Stetson. In the last series between the two teams, both teams split in the season. The Eagles won the first game at Stetson on January 7, 2017 by a score of 84-71. Stetson would win at FGCU on February 25, 2017 at FGCU's senior night game as they won 67-64. On March 12, 2017, in the A-SUN Conference Championship finals at Stetson, the Eagles won 77-70 and went on to the national tournament.
Last Time Out for the Men:
The men's team (9-8) concluded their non-conference schedule by beating NAIA Florida Memorial 76-42 and edging NCAA D2 Florida Tech 62-54 to end 2017. Currently, the men's team sit second in the overall standings behind Lipscomb. The men ended 2017 with a record of 7-3 at home and 2-5 on the road.
Impactful Players:
Redshirt senior Brandon Goodwin still leads the fray offensively. Goodwin still leads the team with 17.5 points per game. In the games against FMU and Florida Tech, Goodwin had a combined 24 points (11 vs FMU, 13 points vs FIT). Goodwin has scored at least 10 points in 10 straight games.
Redshirt junior Zach Johnson became the ninth player in program history to score 1,000 points after scoring six against FIT. The last Eagle to do so was fellow teammate senior Christian Terrell who got his 1,000th career point against Webber International. Johnson is averaging 13.2 points per game.
Terrell is averaging 12.8 points per game. The last three games, Terrell has come off the bench. The last game against FIT, Terrell scored 10 points in the game.
Despite getting into foul trouble from time-to-time and bouncing back and forth as a starter and a bench role player, redshirt senior Antravious Simmons has progressed a lot better since last season. The Miami native is currently averaging 6.8 points per game and has become a strong factor in both roles.
FGCU Men's Bench Role:
Along with Terrell, the bench players that have made a strong differential were redshirt junior Dinero Mercurius and sophomores Raysean Scott Jr and Christian Carlyle.
Mercurius, who has been a key 3-point specialist, came in clutch the past few games. The Orlando native and triple transfer scored 15 points against FIT off the bench and is averaging 8.4 points per game.
Like Simmons, Scott bounced back and forth between starter and bench role. Scott did not play in the recent game against FIT due to personal reasons, but off the bench he has become a good spark, averaging 5.9 points per game.
Carlyle recently returned after suffering a concussion for a few games. Carlyle is averaging 6.3 points per game and has been a factor on and off the bench as well as a starter.
Scouting The Male Hatters:
Stetson (8-8) recently competed against Nebraska losing by a score of 62-71 and were on a three-game losing streak with losses to not only Nebraska, but to Fort Wayne and UCF, until they barely beat USCAA Florida National by a score of 94-88 on New Years Day, the last game before conference and ended their losing streak. Currently, the Hatters sit third place in the overall standings after beating FNU before conference play.
Players to watch out for our senior Divine Myles, redshirt senior B.J. Glasford and freshman Abayomi Iloya.
Myles leads the way offensively scoring 17.1 points per game and is leaads the team in steals. In the games against Fort Wayne, UCF, Nebraska and FNU, Myles scored 25 points against Ft. Wayne, 14 against UCF, 17 points against Nebraska and 15 against FNU.
Glasford is averaging 11.1 points per game and is second on the team in steals. In Glasford's last four games, he scored 11 against Ft. Wayne, nine against UCF, three against Nebraska and 16 against FNU.
Mainly playing off the bench, Iloya played strongly the last four games as he scored 17 against Ft. Wayne, 10 against UCF, 15 against Nebraska and 12 against FNU. Iloya is averaging 10.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.
Series History:
The Eagles for the men are 17-7 against Stetson. In the last series, FGCU swept the Male Hatters three times. The Eagles would win 89-88 on January 7, 2017 at Stetson and 80-70 at FGCU in the season and would eliminate the Hatters in the A-SUN Conference Tournament Quarterfinals by a scored of 87-57. Stetson's last win was on February 25, 2016 where the Hatters won 80-73 when they were ineligible for the NCAA postseason tournament due to their Academic Progress Rate sanctions (APR).
The women's game starts at 4 PM and the Men will start at 7 PM. Both games are dubbed as a White Out, so marketing is encouraging fans to wear white to the game and it is also Faculty Appreciation Night for the professors and employees that come to the games.
Both games will air on ESPN livestream at their respected times.
Link: ESPN.com/watch
About Me
FGCU MBB vs Florida Tech Recap
The end of non-conference for 2017 has come to a close for the FGCU men's basketball team as they concluded with their final game against NCAA DII Florida Tech (FIT). The Eagles struggled throughout the whole season after going on a four-game losing streak after losses to Oral Roberts, FIU, #11 Wichita State and Rhode Island (RV) before returning on a winning side after beating NAIA Florida Memorial 76-42 to go to 8-8 on the record. The Eagles managed to defeat the Panthers 62-54. Like the games against Florida Memorial and Webber International, the game counted as a season game for FGCU (9-8) that will not effect their RPI ranking, but it was an exhibition game for FIT (6-6).
Redshirt senior Brandon Goodwin led the way with a double-double. Goodwin had 13 points (5-for-10 FG, 3-for-5 FT), 11 assists and six rebounds.
Redshirt junior Zach Johnson had six points, four rebounds, four assists, one block and two steals. Johnson also made history as he joined senior Christian Terrell as the ninth player in program to join the 1,000 career points club.
Redshirt junior Michael Gilmore finished with four points and five rebounds.
Sophomore Christian Carlyle had two points and one steal.
Redshirt senior Antravious Simmons had four points and three rebounds.
Off the bench, redshirt junior Dinero Mercurius and Terrell led the way. Mercurius had a team-leading 15 points (5-for-12 FG, 3-for-8 3FG, 2-for-2 FT), three rebounds and one steal while Terrell had 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Other players that contributed off the bench were redshirt junior Ricky Doyle, redshirt sophomore Brady Ernst and freshman Darnell Rogers.
Doyle had six points, three rebounds and one block, Ernst had two points, two rebounds and one block and Rogers added one assist to the mix.
For the Panthers, junior Richard Coil led the way offensively. Coil finished with a double-double of 21 points (8-for-11 FG, 4-for-6 3FG, 1-for-3 FT), 12 rebounds, one block and one steal. Coil was the only player for the Panther to reach double figures in scoring.
Senior Michael Milligan had seven points, seven rebounds, one block and three steals.
Senior Sam Daniel had seven points, six rebounds and two steals.
Sophomore Valur Valsson had two points, six rebounds and six assists.
Redshirt senior Jordan Majors contributed with one rebound.
Off the bench, senior Patrick Anderson, freshman Darius Wright, sophomore Antonis Pefanis and freshman Mate Papai contributed to the game.
Anderson finished with nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
Wright had four points, one rebound, one assist and one steal.
Pefanis and Papai had two points, one rebound and one assist each.
With the win, FGCU is now 6-0 against FIT.
The Eagles finished their non-conference schedule for 2017 on a semi-good note. Why do I say semi-good note instead of a good note? My honest reason is this: there were so many mistakes (physically and mentally) and bad ball IQ decisions that were made throughout the games that the Eagles played that it was a mess.
The big men were not boxing out strong enough and are not fully using their height to their advantage. Our bigs height range between 6-9 to 6-11 and they're not using it to their advantage. I'm 6-0 and 260 pounds, basically the height of a guard with the body of a power forward/center and based on what I've seen from our bigs, I can box them all out while drinking a cup of tea on the boiling sun. I will give Doyle and Gilmore a small omit because Doyle has not played for a whole season after transferring from Michigan and Gilmore is just starting to play after missing a duration of the season due to transferring from Miami and VCU.
Also, the whole team is not taking their time during the game. I mean I understand that they have 30 seconds to shoot the ball and try to get it in the basket and eight seconds to get across the other half of the court, which is rare to see and no big deal, but they have time and need to slow down the tempo when they play and they need to stop rushing their shots. The more they rush, the worse their game gets. It's the small mental mistakes made that cause them to struggle and I feel like they're overthinking.
Although I don't know how I put this sentence together, but each time I say it, they would get what I'm saying most of the time. I told a lot of athletes the line I would always say: "Don't think." Why do I say that to them? I tell them to imagine their minds as a rain cloud. The more precipitation drawn, the more the cloud stores to a certain max limit before it releases the rain. Their minds are full of cells and nerves and the more cells and nerves used, the more pressure they're putting on themselves and their minds and the worst their games will be. I'm not trying to be a jerk to them with my honesty, but I'd rather tell them the truth than lie.
Anyhow, with 2017 coming to a close on New Years Eve, FGCU can now prepare for A-SUN Conference play. The Eagles open with a doubleheader for both the men's and women's teams against Stetson to start off conference. The men's team will play at 7 PM on Saturday, January 6, 2018. Both games are dubbed as a White Out as marketing is encouraging fans to wear white to both games. In addition, it is also Faculty Staff Appreciation Day for the professors and staff that help make FGCU and the athletics thrive to be successful.
Now we await on 2018 to begin and to all my readers: Happy New Year my fellow readers and Go Eagles.
Redshirt senior Brandon Goodwin led the way with a double-double. Goodwin had 13 points (5-for-10 FG, 3-for-5 FT), 11 assists and six rebounds.
Redshirt junior Zach Johnson had six points, four rebounds, four assists, one block and two steals. Johnson also made history as he joined senior Christian Terrell as the ninth player in program to join the 1,000 career points club.
Redshirt junior Michael Gilmore finished with four points and five rebounds.
Sophomore Christian Carlyle had two points and one steal.
Redshirt senior Antravious Simmons had four points and three rebounds.
Off the bench, redshirt junior Dinero Mercurius and Terrell led the way. Mercurius had a team-leading 15 points (5-for-12 FG, 3-for-8 3FG, 2-for-2 FT), three rebounds and one steal while Terrell had 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Other players that contributed off the bench were redshirt junior Ricky Doyle, redshirt sophomore Brady Ernst and freshman Darnell Rogers.
Doyle had six points, three rebounds and one block, Ernst had two points, two rebounds and one block and Rogers added one assist to the mix.
For the Panthers, junior Richard Coil led the way offensively. Coil finished with a double-double of 21 points (8-for-11 FG, 4-for-6 3FG, 1-for-3 FT), 12 rebounds, one block and one steal. Coil was the only player for the Panther to reach double figures in scoring.
Senior Michael Milligan had seven points, seven rebounds, one block and three steals.
Senior Sam Daniel had seven points, six rebounds and two steals.
Sophomore Valur Valsson had two points, six rebounds and six assists.
Redshirt senior Jordan Majors contributed with one rebound.
Off the bench, senior Patrick Anderson, freshman Darius Wright, sophomore Antonis Pefanis and freshman Mate Papai contributed to the game.
Anderson finished with nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
Wright had four points, one rebound, one assist and one steal.
Pefanis and Papai had two points, one rebound and one assist each.
With the win, FGCU is now 6-0 against FIT.
The Eagles finished their non-conference schedule for 2017 on a semi-good note. Why do I say semi-good note instead of a good note? My honest reason is this: there were so many mistakes (physically and mentally) and bad ball IQ decisions that were made throughout the games that the Eagles played that it was a mess.
The big men were not boxing out strong enough and are not fully using their height to their advantage. Our bigs height range between 6-9 to 6-11 and they're not using it to their advantage. I'm 6-0 and 260 pounds, basically the height of a guard with the body of a power forward/center and based on what I've seen from our bigs, I can box them all out while drinking a cup of tea on the boiling sun. I will give Doyle and Gilmore a small omit because Doyle has not played for a whole season after transferring from Michigan and Gilmore is just starting to play after missing a duration of the season due to transferring from Miami and VCU.
Also, the whole team is not taking their time during the game. I mean I understand that they have 30 seconds to shoot the ball and try to get it in the basket and eight seconds to get across the other half of the court, which is rare to see and no big deal, but they have time and need to slow down the tempo when they play and they need to stop rushing their shots. The more they rush, the worse their game gets. It's the small mental mistakes made that cause them to struggle and I feel like they're overthinking.
Although I don't know how I put this sentence together, but each time I say it, they would get what I'm saying most of the time. I told a lot of athletes the line I would always say: "Don't think." Why do I say that to them? I tell them to imagine their minds as a rain cloud. The more precipitation drawn, the more the cloud stores to a certain max limit before it releases the rain. Their minds are full of cells and nerves and the more cells and nerves used, the more pressure they're putting on themselves and their minds and the worst their games will be. I'm not trying to be a jerk to them with my honesty, but I'd rather tell them the truth than lie.
Anyhow, with 2017 coming to a close on New Years Eve, FGCU can now prepare for A-SUN Conference play. The Eagles open with a doubleheader for both the men's and women's teams against Stetson to start off conference. The men's team will play at 7 PM on Saturday, January 6, 2018. Both games are dubbed as a White Out as marketing is encouraging fans to wear white to both games. In addition, it is also Faculty Staff Appreciation Day for the professors and staff that help make FGCU and the athletics thrive to be successful.
Now we await on 2018 to begin and to all my readers: Happy New Year my fellow readers and Go Eagles.
FGCU WBB vs. FMU Recap
After a hard fought game against South Dakota State with a winning score of 87-78, the FGCU women's basketball team (14-3) took the time at taking on their third and final NAIA school for the season: Florida Memorial (8-5). The Eagles took down two other NAIA universities earlier in the season: Southeastern University (77-66) and Ave Maria (99-35). The Eagles had no problem taking down the Lions despite the game counting as an exhibition game for Lions, and like the games against Southeastern and Ave Maria, it did count as a season game for FGCU, but it did not effect their RPI ranking. In the end, the Eagles beat the Lady Lions 82-43 to wrap up all their non-conference games and the year 2017. With the win, the Eagles are now 10-0 against the Lions.
"We got off to a really good start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It allowed us to play more people and get a chance to look at some kids who haven't got a lot of playing time. I saw some really positive things, especially on the defensive end."
The starting lineup for the Eagles did have a slight tweak as redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka got her first start of her career at FGCU taking place for redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan. Grandijan was getting a much needed rest from an injury after scoring 17 points in the last game against South Dakota State. The rare sixth-year senior recently surpassed Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for seventh all-time with 1,067 and is 69 points away from surpassing former player and current video coordinator Stephanie Haas (1138) for 6th all-time and surpassed Katie Meador (422) for seventh all-time in career rebounds with 433 and is 76 rebounds away from surpassing Kaniesha Atwater (508) for sixth all-time.
For the Eagles, senior Rose Julien had six points, three rebounds and two assists.
Zderadicka had five points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Senior Erica Nelson had 16 points (5-for-9 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 5-for-5 FT), two rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Sophomore Nas Ulel had seven points, two rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly was once again shy of a double-double as she finished with eight points, 12 rebounds (seven offensive, five defensive), three assist and one steal.
Adderly's seven offensive boards put her at 161 and remains eighth all-time. She is 23 rebounds away from surpassing Courtney Chihil (183) for seventh all-time.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Jessica Cattani, freshman Alyssa Blair, redshirt senior China Dow, redshirt freshman Chandler Ryan, freshman Sheahen Dowling and freshman Liberty Brown all contributed in the game.
Cattani lead the way offensively with a career-high 23 points (9-for-11 FG, 5-for-7 3FG), three rebounds and one assist.
Blair added two points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Dow had five points and six rebounds.
Ryan had four points, one rebound, six assists and two steals.
Dowling and Brown had three points and two rebounds each.
Pretty much every player that played scored at least two points.
For the Lady Lions, senior Abreona Cabell had 11 points (2-for-7 FG, 1-for-2 3FG, 6-for-12 FT), eight rebounds, one assist and one block before fouling out. Cabell is the leading scorer for the Lady Lions.
Senior Ashley Henry led the way offensively with 13 points (6-for-10 FG, 1-for-6 FT), six rebounds, two blocks and one steal.
Sophomore Danielle Bailey had six points, two assists and two steals.
Freshman Brittney Howard had two points and five rebounds.
Sophomore Mya Jackson contributed with four rebounds and one steal.
Off the bench, freshman Anjelie Tirone and senior Victoria Jones also contributed to the game. Tirone added seven rebounds and one assist, while Jones contributed with 11 points and four rebounds.
As I watched the game, Florida Memorial's team looked really small and I asked myself "Where is the rest of their bench?" They had only two bench players playing, which is surprising yet sad at the same time.
The Eagles shot 11 3-pointers while the Lady Lions only shot three. The Eagles were also 15-for-19 (79%) from the free throw line while the Lady Lions were 14-for-28 (50%).
In terms of turnovers, the Lady Lions had 27 turnovers in contrast with the Eagles' seven.
In the end, FGCU won to conclude 2017 and prepare for their opening conference game against Stetson to start 2018.
"We got off to a really good start," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It allowed us to play more people and get a chance to look at some kids who haven't got a lot of playing time. I saw some really positive things, especially on the defensive end."
The starting lineup for the Eagles did have a slight tweak as redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka got her first start of her career at FGCU taking place for redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan. Grandijan was getting a much needed rest from an injury after scoring 17 points in the last game against South Dakota State. The rare sixth-year senior recently surpassed Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for seventh all-time with 1,067 and is 69 points away from surpassing former player and current video coordinator Stephanie Haas (1138) for 6th all-time and surpassed Katie Meador (422) for seventh all-time in career rebounds with 433 and is 76 rebounds away from surpassing Kaniesha Atwater (508) for sixth all-time.
For the Eagles, senior Rose Julien had six points, three rebounds and two assists.
Zderadicka had five points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Senior Erica Nelson had 16 points (5-for-9 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 5-for-5 FT), two rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Sophomore Nas Ulel had seven points, two rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly was once again shy of a double-double as she finished with eight points, 12 rebounds (seven offensive, five defensive), three assist and one steal.
Adderly's seven offensive boards put her at 161 and remains eighth all-time. She is 23 rebounds away from surpassing Courtney Chihil (183) for seventh all-time.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Jessica Cattani, freshman Alyssa Blair, redshirt senior China Dow, redshirt freshman Chandler Ryan, freshman Sheahen Dowling and freshman Liberty Brown all contributed in the game.
Cattani lead the way offensively with a career-high 23 points (9-for-11 FG, 5-for-7 3FG), three rebounds and one assist.
Blair added two points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Dow had five points and six rebounds.
Ryan had four points, one rebound, six assists and two steals.
Dowling and Brown had three points and two rebounds each.
Pretty much every player that played scored at least two points.
For the Lady Lions, senior Abreona Cabell had 11 points (2-for-7 FG, 1-for-2 3FG, 6-for-12 FT), eight rebounds, one assist and one block before fouling out. Cabell is the leading scorer for the Lady Lions.
Senior Ashley Henry led the way offensively with 13 points (6-for-10 FG, 1-for-6 FT), six rebounds, two blocks and one steal.
Sophomore Danielle Bailey had six points, two assists and two steals.
Freshman Brittney Howard had two points and five rebounds.
Sophomore Mya Jackson contributed with four rebounds and one steal.
Off the bench, freshman Anjelie Tirone and senior Victoria Jones also contributed to the game. Tirone added seven rebounds and one assist, while Jones contributed with 11 points and four rebounds.
As I watched the game, Florida Memorial's team looked really small and I asked myself "Where is the rest of their bench?" They had only two bench players playing, which is surprising yet sad at the same time.
The Eagles shot 11 3-pointers while the Lady Lions only shot three. The Eagles were also 15-for-19 (79%) from the free throw line while the Lady Lions were 14-for-28 (50%).
In terms of turnovers, the Lady Lions had 27 turnovers in contrast with the Eagles' seven.
In the end, FGCU won to conclude 2017 and prepare for their opening conference game against Stetson to start 2018.
FGCU WBB vs South Dakota St. Recap
After the completion of the men's basketball game against Florida Memorial, the FGCU women's basketball team (13-3) took to the floor against South Dakota State (10-4). In a tough neck and neck battle of the game where the Jackrabbits took a four-point lead, the Eagles finished to the end and won 87-78.
This was a battle between two top 10 CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major teams. SD St is #2 while FGCU is #3.
"I thought it was a great basketball game, really exciting," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It had big runs by both teams. South Dakota State was really impressive. They made us pay for every mistake we made. If we had a miscommunication, the ball got to that miscommunication, and they knocked down shots at a high percentage.
Five players from FGCU scored at least 10 points in the game.
Senior Rose Julien led the way offensively with 18 points (5-for-11 FG, 3-for-8 3FG, 5-for-6 FT), five rebounds, one assist, one block and two steals.
Sophomore Nas Ulel was held to only scoring three points with two rebounds and two steals.
Senior Erica Nelson was three assists shy of a double-double as she finished with 10 points (4-for-7 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 1-for-2 FT), one rebound and seven assists.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly was also shy of a double-double as she finished with 11 points (4-for-7 FG, 3-for-4 FT), nine rebounds (five offensive, four defensive) and three steals.
Adderly's five offensive rebounds put her at 158 career offensive rebounds and is now 26 away from surpassing Courtney Chihil (183) for seventh all-time.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan moved up in the ranks for program history. Grandijan had 17 points (6-for-15 FG, 3-for-11 3FG, 2-for-2 FT), six rebounds and three assists.
Grandijan was two points away from passing her season high.
With her 17 points, the rare sixth-year senior and Cudahy, Wisconsin native has scored 1,067 career points in which she has surpassed Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for seventh all-time and is 69 points away from surpassing former player and current video coordinator Stephanie Haas (1138, 2011-16) for 6th all-time.
In addition, Grandijan recently surpassed Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for seventh all-time in career rebounds. Grandijan's six rebounds move her to 433 in her career and she is 75 rebounds away from surpassing Kaniesha Atwater (508, 2013-16) for sixth all-time.
Off the bench, redshirt seniors, China Dow and Jessica Cattani, and redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka contributed to the game.
Dow had 17 points (5-for-10 FG, 3-for-5 3FG, 4-for-4 FT), four rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Zderadicka had six points (3-for-3 FG), two rebounds and three assists.
Cattani contributed with five points (2-for-3 FG, 1-for-2 3FG) and one assist.
The Eagles made 11 3-pointers in the game and were 16-20 (80%) from the free throw line.
For the Jackrabbits, redshirt junior Macy Miller had 24 points (9-for-13 FG, 3-for-4 3FG, 3-for-3 FT), three rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Junior Madison Guebert had 22 points (8-for-14 FG, 6-for-10 3FG), three rebounds and five assists.
Freshman Myah Selland had 15 points (5-for-11 FG, 2-for-5 3FG, 3-for-3 FT), five rebounds and two assists.
Senior Alexis Alexander had five points and four assists.
Senior Ellie Thompson had three points, two rebounds, and one assist.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Chynna Stevens, sophomore Rylie Cascio Jensen, freshman Tylee Irwin, redshirt sophomore Taygn Larson and sophomore Sydney Tracy also contributed to the game for the Jackrabbits. Stevens had four points, two rebounds, and one assist, Cascio Jensen added two rebounds and three assists, Irwin had five points, three rebounds, and one assist, Larson and Tracy added one rebound each. Tracy also added the teams only block.
The Jackrabbits made 14 3-pointers in the game and were 6-6 from the free throw line.
Up next, the Eagles play NAIA Florida Memorial on Saturday, December 30 at 7 PM to close off the end of 2017. This will be the last non-conference game for the Eagles before they begin conference against Stetson on January 6, 2018.
This was a battle between two top 10 CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major teams. SD St is #2 while FGCU is #3.
"I thought it was a great basketball game, really exciting," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "It had big runs by both teams. South Dakota State was really impressive. They made us pay for every mistake we made. If we had a miscommunication, the ball got to that miscommunication, and they knocked down shots at a high percentage.
Five players from FGCU scored at least 10 points in the game.
Senior Rose Julien led the way offensively with 18 points (5-for-11 FG, 3-for-8 3FG, 5-for-6 FT), five rebounds, one assist, one block and two steals.
Sophomore Nas Ulel was held to only scoring three points with two rebounds and two steals.
Senior Erica Nelson was three assists shy of a double-double as she finished with 10 points (4-for-7 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 1-for-2 FT), one rebound and seven assists.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly was also shy of a double-double as she finished with 11 points (4-for-7 FG, 3-for-4 FT), nine rebounds (five offensive, four defensive) and three steals.
Adderly's five offensive rebounds put her at 158 career offensive rebounds and is now 26 away from surpassing Courtney Chihil (183) for seventh all-time.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan moved up in the ranks for program history. Grandijan had 17 points (6-for-15 FG, 3-for-11 3FG, 2-for-2 FT), six rebounds and three assists.
Grandijan was two points away from passing her season high.
With her 17 points, the rare sixth-year senior and Cudahy, Wisconsin native has scored 1,067 career points in which she has surpassed Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for seventh all-time and is 69 points away from surpassing former player and current video coordinator Stephanie Haas (1138, 2011-16) for 6th all-time.
In addition, Grandijan recently surpassed Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for seventh all-time in career rebounds. Grandijan's six rebounds move her to 433 in her career and she is 75 rebounds away from surpassing Kaniesha Atwater (508, 2013-16) for sixth all-time.
Off the bench, redshirt seniors, China Dow and Jessica Cattani, and redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka contributed to the game.
Dow had 17 points (5-for-10 FG, 3-for-5 3FG, 4-for-4 FT), four rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Zderadicka had six points (3-for-3 FG), two rebounds and three assists.
Cattani contributed with five points (2-for-3 FG, 1-for-2 3FG) and one assist.
The Eagles made 11 3-pointers in the game and were 16-20 (80%) from the free throw line.
For the Jackrabbits, redshirt junior Macy Miller had 24 points (9-for-13 FG, 3-for-4 3FG, 3-for-3 FT), three rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Junior Madison Guebert had 22 points (8-for-14 FG, 6-for-10 3FG), three rebounds and five assists.
Freshman Myah Selland had 15 points (5-for-11 FG, 2-for-5 3FG, 3-for-3 FT), five rebounds and two assists.
Senior Alexis Alexander had five points and four assists.
Senior Ellie Thompson had three points, two rebounds, and one assist.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Chynna Stevens, sophomore Rylie Cascio Jensen, freshman Tylee Irwin, redshirt sophomore Taygn Larson and sophomore Sydney Tracy also contributed to the game for the Jackrabbits. Stevens had four points, two rebounds, and one assist, Cascio Jensen added two rebounds and three assists, Irwin had five points, three rebounds, and one assist, Larson and Tracy added one rebound each. Tracy also added the teams only block.
The Jackrabbits made 14 3-pointers in the game and were 6-6 from the free throw line.
Up next, the Eagles play NAIA Florida Memorial on Saturday, December 30 at 7 PM to close off the end of 2017. This will be the last non-conference game for the Eagles before they begin conference against Stetson on January 6, 2018.
FGCU MBB vs. Florida Memorial Recap
After struggling throughout the whole season, the FGCU managed to get back on the winning side after beating NAIA Florida Memorial by a score of 76-42. The Eagles (8-8) ended their four-game losing streak with the win despite the game being an exhibition for the Lions (7-3). The game counted as a season game, but it did not affect their RPI ranking.
Junior Zach Johnson led the way with 19 points, three rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Redshirt senior Brandon Goodwin had 11 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Sophomore Christian Carlyle had nine points, one rebound, four assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Antravious Simmons and sophomore Raysean Scott Jr had two points and five rebounds each. Simmons added one assist and two steals while Scott added one block.
Off the bench, senior Christian Terrell and redshirt junior Michael Gilmore lead the way. Terrell had nine points, five rebounds, and two assists while Gilmore added 10 points, three rebounds, two assists, three blocks and one steal.
Other players that contributed to the game included redshirt sophomore Brady Ernst, redshirt junior Dinero Mercurius, redshirt junior Ricky Doyle, freshman Darnell Rogers and junior Dolan Mahoney.
Ernst had two points and three rebounds.
Mercurius had eight points, including two crucial three pointers, and two rebounds.
Doyle had four points, three rebounds, one assist and one block.
Rogers contributed with two rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Mahoney contributed with one rebound.
Freshman Ryan McAdoo and Redshirt senior Josh Ko also played in the game.
For the Lions, senior Travis Mitchell led the way with 17 points and one rebound. Mitchell scored the teams only three 3-pointers and was the only player on the team to score in double digits. No other player other than Mitchell scored more than six points.
Senior Davion Williams scored six points with nine rebounds and one steal.
Senior Roody Romain had five points, eight rebounds, and one assist.
Freshman Tyrese Mapp had four points, five rebounds, one assist and four steals.
Honestly, the game to me, was a little disappointing because we should have won by a minimum of at least 50 points. I mean it's an NAIA team we're playing. How is it that we played an NAIA team that probably no know one has ever heard about and yet we win by 34? Also we should have scored at least 85 points minimum before the game ended. At least on a positive note, the Eagles won and 1. are back on a winning streak and 2. are at least at .500 for the season.
In addition, I got to see Travis in action for the first time in ages since his transfer from NJCAA Region 8/FCSAA State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota (SCF).
Up next, the men will play Florida Tech at 1 PM on New Year's Eve to conclude all the non-conference games and 2017.
Junior Zach Johnson led the way with 19 points, three rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Redshirt senior Brandon Goodwin had 11 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Sophomore Christian Carlyle had nine points, one rebound, four assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Antravious Simmons and sophomore Raysean Scott Jr had two points and five rebounds each. Simmons added one assist and two steals while Scott added one block.
Off the bench, senior Christian Terrell and redshirt junior Michael Gilmore lead the way. Terrell had nine points, five rebounds, and two assists while Gilmore added 10 points, three rebounds, two assists, three blocks and one steal.
Other players that contributed to the game included redshirt sophomore Brady Ernst, redshirt junior Dinero Mercurius, redshirt junior Ricky Doyle, freshman Darnell Rogers and junior Dolan Mahoney.
Ernst had two points and three rebounds.
Mercurius had eight points, including two crucial three pointers, and two rebounds.
Doyle had four points, three rebounds, one assist and one block.
Rogers contributed with two rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Mahoney contributed with one rebound.
Freshman Ryan McAdoo and Redshirt senior Josh Ko also played in the game.
For the Lions, senior Travis Mitchell led the way with 17 points and one rebound. Mitchell scored the teams only three 3-pointers and was the only player on the team to score in double digits. No other player other than Mitchell scored more than six points.
Senior Davion Williams scored six points with nine rebounds and one steal.
Senior Roody Romain had five points, eight rebounds, and one assist.
Freshman Tyrese Mapp had four points, five rebounds, one assist and four steals.
Honestly, the game to me, was a little disappointing because we should have won by a minimum of at least 50 points. I mean it's an NAIA team we're playing. How is it that we played an NAIA team that probably no know one has ever heard about and yet we win by 34? Also we should have scored at least 85 points minimum before the game ended. At least on a positive note, the Eagles won and 1. are back on a winning streak and 2. are at least at .500 for the season.
In addition, I got to see Travis in action for the first time in ages since his transfer from NJCAA Region 8/FCSAA State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota (SCF).
Up next, the men will play Florida Tech at 1 PM on New Year's Eve to conclude all the non-conference games and 2017.
FGCU WTEN: Spring Invite Preview
Before the season begins, the FGCU women's tennis teams opens up with the FGCU Spring Invite. The Eagles welcome the University of South Carolina, Rice University, University of Denver, Ole Miss and the University of Kansas.
Of course, the spring invite does not count for season, however it will count, individually, for ranking points in the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The Eagles are led by Head coach Courtney Vernon. Vernon, who enters her fifth season as head coach. Recently, Vernon was named A-SUN Coach of the Year last season and the second time in her coaching career as well as her second straight year.
Last season, the Eagles finished 15-5 with a 6-0 record in the A-SUN and were the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. During the season, the Eagles had a few moments for the program where they beat USF for the first time in seven meets and conference rival UNF for the first time in 13 meets. At the end of the tournament, the Eagles fell to UNF in the championship.
In addition, the Eagles lost Breana Stampfli and Sara Kelly. Stampfli graduated in the fall semester while Kelly is still enrolled at FGCU, but will be playing professionally.
On the other hand, the Eagles managed to sign two newcomers this past fall semester: Madison "Maddy" Gallegos and Patrica "Patri" Villar. Gallegos, a native of Denver, Colorado, joins FGCU as a freshman after spending her high school career at the Colorado Connection Academy. Villar, a native of Logrono, Spain, joins as a junior after transferring from the University of Louisiana-Monroe. Villar will have two years of remaining eligibility.
FGCU Key Players:
Key returning players that made difference to the team include senior Julianna "Juje" Curtis, junior Juli Ascua, sophomore Maja Ornberg and junior Laura "Lau" Falceto Font.
Curtis, the lone senior on the team, was 13-14 in singles and 23-9 in doubles last year. Curtis primarily played doubles with Ascua and two of her doubles wins came from teaming with former USF player Brooke Lashway. In singles, Curtis played primarily between No. 4 and No. 5 singles. The West Des Moines native was named A-SUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year as well as a member of the A-SUN All-Academic Team and an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Ascua, a native of Santa Fe, Argentina, was 16-9 in singles and 21-8 in doubles teaming majorly with Curtis. Ascua earned A-SUN First Team All-Conference honors for the second straight season as well as All-Academic Team recognition in her first year of eligibility while becoming an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Ornberg, a native of Kil, Sweden, spent the entire season in #1 singles and at #2 doubles with Stampfli. Ornberg was 14-9 in singles and 12-10 in doubles, primarily with Stampfli. Ornberg was A-SUN Freshman of the Year, a unanimous First Team All-Conference selection, All-Conference Doubles Team at #2 doubles and a unanimous selection to the All-Freshman Team.
Font was 17-8 in singles and 7-7 in doubles last season. A native of Zaragoza, Spain, Font is a two-time All-Conference Second Team member as well as a member of the A-SUN All-Academic Team where she joins Curtis and Ascua as an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Scouting The Lady Pioneers:
Denver went 19-7 last season with an 8-0 record in the Summit League conference. The Lady Pioneers won their conference tournament and advanced to the second round of the national tournament beating USC 4-2 in the first round before falling to Texas Tech 4-1 in the second.
The Lady Pioneers had three players depart from graduating: Morgan Barnhill, Sonja Radosevic and Maureen Slattery. They did manage to ink three upcoming freshman: Hada Chang, Anna Riedmiller and Camille Verden-Anderson.
Returning players to watch out for are redshirt junior Arisha Ladhani, junior Bianca Mok and senior Julia O'Loughlin.
Ladhani, a native of West Vancouver, B.C., Canada and a transfer from UC Irvine, went 17-4 overall in singles and 1-2 in doubles. Ladhani was named to All-Summit League Team last season.
Mok was 16-7 overall in singles and 16-6 in doubles playing all with former player Morgan Barnhill. Mok was also named to All-Summit League Team last season as well last season.
O'Loughlin went 14-9 in singles and 18-3 in doubles playing majorly with former player Maureen Slatterly. O'Loughlin was also named to the All-Summit League Team with Ladhani and Mok.
Scouting The Owls:
Last season, FAU went 18-6 overall with a 6-0 record in C-USA. They won the tournament beating FIU 4-1 before falling to TCU in the first round of the national tournament.
The Owls will lose Alison Ho and Katherine Ip as they graduated, but signed three freshman to join: Anna Bowtell, Michaela Haet and Sofie Moenster.
Returning players to watch for include seniors Savannah Durkin, Lindsey Hodge and Wendy Zhang.
Durkin was 21-7 in singles and 25-9 in doubles. She also was a member of the All C-USA Singles Second Team and All C-USA Doubles Third Team.
Hodge was 23-13 in singles and 23-11 in doubles. The Roswell, Georgia native was a member of the All C-USA First team in singles and doubles, a member of the C-USA All-Academic Team, the Rice Scholar Athlete, C-USA Academic Medalist and C-USA Honor Roll.
Zhang was 27-9 in singles and 24-11 in doubles. The Richmond, B.C., Canada native was a C-USA Commissioner's Medalist, a member of the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll, C-USA Newcomer of the Year and a member of the All C-USA First team in singles and doubles.
Scouting The Rebels:
Ole Miss were 15-14 overall last year with a 3-10 record in the SEC. They did not win the SEC Conference Tournament, but managed to make it to the national tournament. They would defeat William and Mary 4-1 in the first round before falling 1-4 to host UNC in the second round.
The Rebels lost Zalina Khairudinova as she graduated, but they also parted ways with junior Brooke Stevens. The Rebels signed freshman Sabina Machalova to join.
Key returners for the Rebels include senior Arianne Hartono, sophomore Anna Vrbenska and sophomore Alexa Bortles.
Hartono was 20-15 in singles and 15-14 in doubles. A native of Meppel, Netherlands, Hartono was an All-SEC First Team member and ITA Scholar-Athlete. This was the third straight time Hartono was named ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Vrbenska, a native of Podebrady, Czech Republic, was 18-9 in singles and 18-13 in doubles last season.
Bortles was 10-7 in singles and 14-12 in doubles.
Scouting The Jayhawks:
Kansas was 14-15 overall with a 4-5 record in the Big 12. They would lose in the conference championship to Oklahoma State. The doubles teams went to the national tournament defeating Mississippi State 3-6, 6-4, 10-8 in the first round before falling 6-4, 6-2 to Denver in the second round.
The Jayhawks lost lone senior Tess Bernard-Feigenbaum, but have signed freshman Carla Pons Martorell.
Returning players junior Janet Koch, junior Anastasia Rychagova, and sophomore Maria Toran-Ribes.
Koch, a native of Durbanville, South Africa, was 10-6 in singles and 9-7 in doubles.
Rychagova was 15-4 in singles and 12-4 in doubles. The Moscow native and former Big 12 Freshman of the Year and ITA Central Region Rookie of the Year, was named a member of the All-Big 12 Singles First Team for the second straight season as well as a Big 12 All-Academic First Team member. Rychagova is currently ranked as the #1 player in the nation.
Toran-Ribes, a native of AlgemesÃ, Spain, was 14-4 in singles and 14-5 in doubles.
The FGCU Spring Invite will start from January 13-15, 2018. Times are yet to be determined, but chances are that they are in the early morning (probably between 8 and 9 A.M.).
Of course, the spring invite does not count for season, however it will count, individually, for ranking points in the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
The Eagles are led by Head coach Courtney Vernon. Vernon, who enters her fifth season as head coach. Recently, Vernon was named A-SUN Coach of the Year last season and the second time in her coaching career as well as her second straight year.
Last season, the Eagles finished 15-5 with a 6-0 record in the A-SUN and were the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. During the season, the Eagles had a few moments for the program where they beat USF for the first time in seven meets and conference rival UNF for the first time in 13 meets. At the end of the tournament, the Eagles fell to UNF in the championship.
In addition, the Eagles lost Breana Stampfli and Sara Kelly. Stampfli graduated in the fall semester while Kelly is still enrolled at FGCU, but will be playing professionally.
On the other hand, the Eagles managed to sign two newcomers this past fall semester: Madison "Maddy" Gallegos and Patrica "Patri" Villar. Gallegos, a native of Denver, Colorado, joins FGCU as a freshman after spending her high school career at the Colorado Connection Academy. Villar, a native of Logrono, Spain, joins as a junior after transferring from the University of Louisiana-Monroe. Villar will have two years of remaining eligibility.
FGCU Key Players:
Key returning players that made difference to the team include senior Julianna "Juje" Curtis, junior Juli Ascua, sophomore Maja Ornberg and junior Laura "Lau" Falceto Font.
Curtis, the lone senior on the team, was 13-14 in singles and 23-9 in doubles last year. Curtis primarily played doubles with Ascua and two of her doubles wins came from teaming with former USF player Brooke Lashway. In singles, Curtis played primarily between No. 4 and No. 5 singles. The West Des Moines native was named A-SUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year as well as a member of the A-SUN All-Academic Team and an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Ascua, a native of Santa Fe, Argentina, was 16-9 in singles and 21-8 in doubles teaming majorly with Curtis. Ascua earned A-SUN First Team All-Conference honors for the second straight season as well as All-Academic Team recognition in her first year of eligibility while becoming an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Ornberg, a native of Kil, Sweden, spent the entire season in #1 singles and at #2 doubles with Stampfli. Ornberg was 14-9 in singles and 12-10 in doubles, primarily with Stampfli. Ornberg was A-SUN Freshman of the Year, a unanimous First Team All-Conference selection, All-Conference Doubles Team at #2 doubles and a unanimous selection to the All-Freshman Team.
Font was 17-8 in singles and 7-7 in doubles last season. A native of Zaragoza, Spain, Font is a two-time All-Conference Second Team member as well as a member of the A-SUN All-Academic Team where she joins Curtis and Ascua as an ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Scouting The Lady Pioneers:
Denver went 19-7 last season with an 8-0 record in the Summit League conference. The Lady Pioneers won their conference tournament and advanced to the second round of the national tournament beating USC 4-2 in the first round before falling to Texas Tech 4-1 in the second.
The Lady Pioneers had three players depart from graduating: Morgan Barnhill, Sonja Radosevic and Maureen Slattery. They did manage to ink three upcoming freshman: Hada Chang, Anna Riedmiller and Camille Verden-Anderson.
Returning players to watch out for are redshirt junior Arisha Ladhani, junior Bianca Mok and senior Julia O'Loughlin.
Ladhani, a native of West Vancouver, B.C., Canada and a transfer from UC Irvine, went 17-4 overall in singles and 1-2 in doubles. Ladhani was named to All-Summit League Team last season.
Mok was 16-7 overall in singles and 16-6 in doubles playing all with former player Morgan Barnhill. Mok was also named to All-Summit League Team last season as well last season.
O'Loughlin went 14-9 in singles and 18-3 in doubles playing majorly with former player Maureen Slatterly. O'Loughlin was also named to the All-Summit League Team with Ladhani and Mok.
Scouting The Owls:
Last season, FAU went 18-6 overall with a 6-0 record in C-USA. They won the tournament beating FIU 4-1 before falling to TCU in the first round of the national tournament.
The Owls will lose Alison Ho and Katherine Ip as they graduated, but signed three freshman to join: Anna Bowtell, Michaela Haet and Sofie Moenster.
Returning players to watch for include seniors Savannah Durkin, Lindsey Hodge and Wendy Zhang.
Durkin was 21-7 in singles and 25-9 in doubles. She also was a member of the All C-USA Singles Second Team and All C-USA Doubles Third Team.
Hodge was 23-13 in singles and 23-11 in doubles. The Roswell, Georgia native was a member of the All C-USA First team in singles and doubles, a member of the C-USA All-Academic Team, the Rice Scholar Athlete, C-USA Academic Medalist and C-USA Honor Roll.
Zhang was 27-9 in singles and 24-11 in doubles. The Richmond, B.C., Canada native was a C-USA Commissioner's Medalist, a member of the C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll, C-USA Newcomer of the Year and a member of the All C-USA First team in singles and doubles.
Scouting The Rebels:
Ole Miss were 15-14 overall last year with a 3-10 record in the SEC. They did not win the SEC Conference Tournament, but managed to make it to the national tournament. They would defeat William and Mary 4-1 in the first round before falling 1-4 to host UNC in the second round.
The Rebels lost Zalina Khairudinova as she graduated, but they also parted ways with junior Brooke Stevens. The Rebels signed freshman Sabina Machalova to join.
Key returners for the Rebels include senior Arianne Hartono, sophomore Anna Vrbenska and sophomore Alexa Bortles.
Hartono was 20-15 in singles and 15-14 in doubles. A native of Meppel, Netherlands, Hartono was an All-SEC First Team member and ITA Scholar-Athlete. This was the third straight time Hartono was named ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Vrbenska, a native of Podebrady, Czech Republic, was 18-9 in singles and 18-13 in doubles last season.
Bortles was 10-7 in singles and 14-12 in doubles.
Scouting The Jayhawks:
Kansas was 14-15 overall with a 4-5 record in the Big 12. They would lose in the conference championship to Oklahoma State. The doubles teams went to the national tournament defeating Mississippi State 3-6, 6-4, 10-8 in the first round before falling 6-4, 6-2 to Denver in the second round.
The Jayhawks lost lone senior Tess Bernard-Feigenbaum, but have signed freshman Carla Pons Martorell.
Returning players junior Janet Koch, junior Anastasia Rychagova, and sophomore Maria Toran-Ribes.
Koch, a native of Durbanville, South Africa, was 10-6 in singles and 9-7 in doubles.
Rychagova was 15-4 in singles and 12-4 in doubles. The Moscow native and former Big 12 Freshman of the Year and ITA Central Region Rookie of the Year, was named a member of the All-Big 12 Singles First Team for the second straight season as well as a Big 12 All-Academic First Team member. Rychagova is currently ranked as the #1 player in the nation.
Toran-Ribes, a native of AlgemesÃ, Spain, was 14-4 in singles and 14-5 in doubles.
The FGCU Spring Invite will start from January 13-15, 2018. Times are yet to be determined, but chances are that they are in the early morning (probably between 8 and 9 A.M.).
FGCU MBB vs Florida Memorial/Florida Tech Preview
After wrapping up their last three non-conference road games, the FGCU men's basketball team (7-8) returns to action at home to face NAIA Florida Memorial (7-3) and NCAA DII Florida Tech (6-6).
Last Time Out:
The Eagles struggled on the road and lost three straight games to FIU (88-91), #11 Wichita State (65-75) and RV Rhode Island (60-80). With the losses to FIU, Wichita State and Rhode Island, the Eagles are currently 2-5 on the road, and on a four-game losing streak.
Hoping to bounce back from their struggling road trip, the Eagles look to close out 2017 with two wins at home before conference begins. These two games will not count for FMU and FIT as they are exhibition games. They will count as season games for the Eagles, but they will not effective their RPI ranking since both teams are not NCAA DI.
Scouting The Lions:
The Lions are currently on a four-game winning streak after defeating College of Coastal Georgia (70-68), Johnson and Wales (Fla.) (75-73), Keiser (84-81) in conference play and West Virginia Tech (66-61) for non-conference play. The Lions are 3-2 in the NAIA Sun Conference.
Impact Players:
Seniors Davion Williams and Travis Mitchell lead the way offensively.
Williams averages 16.4 points per game. In the four games coming off the winning streak. Williams scored 30 against College of Coastal Georgia, 20 against Johnson and Wales, 19 against Keiser and 26 against WVU. Williams also averages eight rebounds per game.
Mitchell is averaging 14.6 points per game where he scored 16 against CCG, 14 against J&W, seven against Keiser and 19 against WVU. Mitchell also averages 2.9 assist per game and leads the team in steals (19).
Of course I knew Mitchell from my junior college, State College of Florida (SCF).
Scouting The Panthers:
Playing in 10 straight home games, the Panthers are currently on a three-game winning streak after beating Nova Southeastern (103-99) in a game for Autism Awareness.
The Panthers also won against Miles College (107-87) and Shawnee State (93-87) in the Florida Tech Winter Classic. The Panthers will have one more game prior to the trip to FGCU as they play Palm Beach Atlantic at home for conference. The Panthers are currently 1-3 in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC).
Impact Players:
Offensively, the Panthers are led by senior Sam Daniel and redshirt senior Jordan Majors.
Daniel leads the team in points per game (27.8). The reigning FIT Athlete of the Year had a double-double against Miles, scoring 37 points with 11 rebounds and 24 points against Shawnee State.
Majors is second behind Daniel in points per game (20.3) and leads the team in steals (22). The former SSC Freshman of the Year had 30 points against Shawnee State.
Another player to keep eyes on offensively is sophomore Valur Valsson. The native of Keflavik, Iceland is averaging eight assists per game including a game-high 12 assists with 13 for a double-double against Miles.
Defensively, Majors leads the team in steals (22) while junior Richard Coil leads the team in blocks (16) and averages 9.8 rebounds. The center from Toledo, Ohio has six double-doubles for a team including in a game against Puerto Rico-Bayamon where he had a double-double of 22 points and 21 rebounds.
Series History:
The Eagles are 5-0 against the Panthers. Last time both teams played was last season where FGCU was victorious blowing out FIT 101-49.
The Eagles are 2-0 against FMU. Last time both teams met, the Eagles won 87-82 on November 23, 2005 when FGCU was a DII independent school
FGCU plays Florida Memorial on Friday December 29 at 5 PM and FIT Sunday New Years Eve at 1 PM. Both games will be aired on ESPN 3.
Link below:
ESPN.go.com
Last Time Out:
The Eagles struggled on the road and lost three straight games to FIU (88-91), #11 Wichita State (65-75) and RV Rhode Island (60-80). With the losses to FIU, Wichita State and Rhode Island, the Eagles are currently 2-5 on the road, and on a four-game losing streak.
Hoping to bounce back from their struggling road trip, the Eagles look to close out 2017 with two wins at home before conference begins. These two games will not count for FMU and FIT as they are exhibition games. They will count as season games for the Eagles, but they will not effective their RPI ranking since both teams are not NCAA DI.
Scouting The Lions:
The Lions are currently on a four-game winning streak after defeating College of Coastal Georgia (70-68), Johnson and Wales (Fla.) (75-73), Keiser (84-81) in conference play and West Virginia Tech (66-61) for non-conference play. The Lions are 3-2 in the NAIA Sun Conference.
Impact Players:
Seniors Davion Williams and Travis Mitchell lead the way offensively.
Williams averages 16.4 points per game. In the four games coming off the winning streak. Williams scored 30 against College of Coastal Georgia, 20 against Johnson and Wales, 19 against Keiser and 26 against WVU. Williams also averages eight rebounds per game.
Mitchell is averaging 14.6 points per game where he scored 16 against CCG, 14 against J&W, seven against Keiser and 19 against WVU. Mitchell also averages 2.9 assist per game and leads the team in steals (19).
Of course I knew Mitchell from my junior college, State College of Florida (SCF).
Scouting The Panthers:
Playing in 10 straight home games, the Panthers are currently on a three-game winning streak after beating Nova Southeastern (103-99) in a game for Autism Awareness.
The Panthers also won against Miles College (107-87) and Shawnee State (93-87) in the Florida Tech Winter Classic. The Panthers will have one more game prior to the trip to FGCU as they play Palm Beach Atlantic at home for conference. The Panthers are currently 1-3 in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC).
Impact Players:
Offensively, the Panthers are led by senior Sam Daniel and redshirt senior Jordan Majors.
Daniel leads the team in points per game (27.8). The reigning FIT Athlete of the Year had a double-double against Miles, scoring 37 points with 11 rebounds and 24 points against Shawnee State.
Majors is second behind Daniel in points per game (20.3) and leads the team in steals (22). The former SSC Freshman of the Year had 30 points against Shawnee State.
Another player to keep eyes on offensively is sophomore Valur Valsson. The native of Keflavik, Iceland is averaging eight assists per game including a game-high 12 assists with 13 for a double-double against Miles.
Defensively, Majors leads the team in steals (22) while junior Richard Coil leads the team in blocks (16) and averages 9.8 rebounds. The center from Toledo, Ohio has six double-doubles for a team including in a game against Puerto Rico-Bayamon where he had a double-double of 22 points and 21 rebounds.
Series History:
The Eagles are 5-0 against the Panthers. Last time both teams played was last season where FGCU was victorious blowing out FIT 101-49.
The Eagles are 2-0 against FMU. Last time both teams met, the Eagles won 87-82 on November 23, 2005 when FGCU was a DII independent school
FGCU plays Florida Memorial on Friday December 29 at 5 PM and FIT Sunday New Years Eve at 1 PM. Both games will be aired on ESPN 3.
Link below:
ESPN.go.com
FGCU MBB vs Rhode Island Preview
While still trying to get the kinks out, the FGCU men's basketball hopes to redeem themselves as they prepare to face Rhode Island.
Last Time Out:
The FGCU (7-7) are slumping and are currently on a three-game losing streak with their most recent losses to Oral Roberts (64-83), FIU (88-91) and #11 Wichita State (65-75). They're hoping to bounce back before coming home to face NAIA Florida Memorial and NCAA DII Florida Tech
Scouting the Rams:
The Rams (7-3) are on a two-game winning streak after defeating College of Charleston (68-62) and Iona (80-74)
Offensively, senior Jared Terrell leads the way. The Weymouth, Massachusetts native is leading the team with 17.8 points per game. In Terrell's last two games, he scored 21 points against CoC and 23 against Iona.
Redshirt senior Stanford Robinson is scoring 10.2 points per game. He scored 10 points against CoC and 12 against Iona.
Defensively, sophomore Cyril Langevine and redshirt senior Stanford Robinson lead the way. Langevine averages 1.3 blocks per game while Robinson is averaging 2.9 steals per game. Langevine had a double-double along with three blocks against CoC and one block against Iona off the bench while Robinson had three steals against CoC and one steal against Iona.
This is the first time FGCU and Rhode Island will be facing each other.
The game will air on ESPNU at 7 PM.
Last Time Out:
The FGCU (7-7) are slumping and are currently on a three-game losing streak with their most recent losses to Oral Roberts (64-83), FIU (88-91) and #11 Wichita State (65-75). They're hoping to bounce back before coming home to face NAIA Florida Memorial and NCAA DII Florida Tech
Scouting the Rams:
The Rams (7-3) are on a two-game winning streak after defeating College of Charleston (68-62) and Iona (80-74)
Offensively, senior Jared Terrell leads the way. The Weymouth, Massachusetts native is leading the team with 17.8 points per game. In Terrell's last two games, he scored 21 points against CoC and 23 against Iona.
Redshirt senior Stanford Robinson is scoring 10.2 points per game. He scored 10 points against CoC and 12 against Iona.
Defensively, sophomore Cyril Langevine and redshirt senior Stanford Robinson lead the way. Langevine averages 1.3 blocks per game while Robinson is averaging 2.9 steals per game. Langevine had a double-double along with three blocks against CoC and one block against Iona off the bench while Robinson had three steals against CoC and one steal against Iona.
This is the first time FGCU and Rhode Island will be facing each other.
The game will air on ESPNU at 7 PM.
FGCU Swimming and Diving: TDC Preview
To start the new year, the FGCU swimming and diving team host the inaugural FGCU Triple Distance Classic. The Eagles welcome CCSA conference rival Liberty, St. Louis University, Rutgers University and NCAA DIII Gustavus Adolphus College.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles (4-2, 2-0 CCSA) recently competed at home against Toledo University where they were victorious with a score of 182-60. In all 13 events, FGCU took first place in every one of them, including the diving portions.
FGCU Impactful Swimmers and Divers:
Six of the swimmers competed in four of the events. From the swimming side, junior Linda Shaw leads the way in freestyle. The Leeds, England native finished first in both the 1,000 yard (10:34.28) and 500 yard Free (5:03.44).
Sophomore Liz Zeiger, who was named CCSA Swimmer of the Week, swam a season-best time of 4:23.74 in the 400 yard individual medley.
Freshman Petra Halmai competed and finished first in three of her four events (1st: 200 yard medley relay, 100 yard backstroke, 100 yard breaststroke, 2nd: 400 yard individual medley).
On the diving, freshman Melissa Novak finished first in the one-meter and three-meter dive against Toledo. The Frederick, Maryland native scored a 245.25 in the one-meter dive and a 274.124 in the three-meter dive.
Scouting the Flames:
The Flames (6-2) recently competed in the Central Virginia Duals where they defeated conference member Campbell as well as NCAA Division III schools Ferrum, Hampden-Sydney, Roanoke and Sweet Briar.
From the swimming portion, Junior Alicia Finnigan finished 2nd in the 400 yard team relay (3:53.37), 1st in the 200 fly, 500 free and 1000 free and 3rd in the 100 fly (56.43).
Senior Chelsea Pond finished 2nd (1:55.46) in the 200 yard free and in the 400 free relay, but took 1st in the 100 free (51.41).
On the diving portion, junior Amy Schools won the one-meter dive with a score of 216.15.
Series History:
Overall, FGCU is 6-0 against Liberty. Last meet was on Janaury 7, 2017 where the Eagles won with a close score of 137-125.
Scouting the Billikens:
This is the first time both teams will meet, although it is unclear if the men's team will compete.
The Billikens (10-3) recently competed in the Indiana State University Relay Meet where they defeated host Indiana State, Eastern Illinois and Maryville.
On the swimming portion, the Billikens won three events in the meet: 300 fly relay, 800 free relay and the 500 free relay.
On the diving portion, the duo of senior Kalley Schwab and freshman Kolbe Schendl won the one-meter and three-meter diving relay (one-meter: 409.65, three-meter: 405.08).
Scouting the Scarlet Knights:
Rutgers (5-4) recently competed in the Big Al Open hosted by Princeton University and the Texas Invitational hosted by Texas.
Sophomore Alexandra Fabugais-Inaba swam to a 12th place finish in the 800-yard freestyle relay at the Texas Invitational.
Sophomore Francesca Bertotto won the 1,650-yard freestyle in the Big Al Open and took fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle at the Texas Invitational.
Junior Vera Koprivova swam in the A Final of the 200-yard backstroke and placed sixth overall in the pool of 48 with an NCAA B standard of 1:55.48.
On the diving portion, senior Addison Walkowiak set a new school and DeNunzio Pool standard on the 1-meter springboard, followed up with a victory in 3-meter diving at Princeton with a score of 286.45 in the finals at the Big Al Open.
Series History:
This will be the second time FGCU and Rutgers meet this season. FGCU defeated Rutgers earlier on October 7, 2017 in a two-day series by a final score of 199-16 at FGCU. The Eagles got first place in six out of nine events on day one and six out of eight on day two.
Scouting the Golden Gusties:
Like St. Louis, this will be the first time FGCU faces Gustavas Adolphus College (GAC). GAC is a NCAA DIII school, representing the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC). It is unsure if they are bringing their men's team as well. This will not count for their record as it is a scrimmage since they are an NCAA DIII school.
The Golden Gusties (7-1) recently competed in the Grinnell Invite hosted by Grinnell College. The Gusties would take first place out of 11 teams.
Senior Kate Reilly competed in the 200 yard medley relay where her team took first place. Reilly also won in the 100 yard butterfly, 100 breaststroke, 100 yard IM, 100 freestyle and the 400 yard freestyle relay.
Freshman diver Sophia Steinberg took second place at the Grinnell Invite in the one-meter dive with a score of 389.
GAC will be departing for a training trip in Puerto Rico before the classic.
The following events are as listed for the meet:
200 Medley Relay
1000 Freestyle
200 Butterfly
200 Backstroke
200 Breaststroke
200 Free
400 IM
3M Diving
500 Free
100 Fly
100 Back
100 Breast
100 Free
200 IM
1M Diving
200 Free
50 Fly
50 Back
50 Breast
50 Free
100 IM
200 Free Relay
There will be 22 events taking place in the tournament with breaks in between.
The FGCU Triple Distance Classic will start at 5 PM on Friday January 5, 2018.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles (4-2, 2-0 CCSA) recently competed at home against Toledo University where they were victorious with a score of 182-60. In all 13 events, FGCU took first place in every one of them, including the diving portions.
FGCU Impactful Swimmers and Divers:
Six of the swimmers competed in four of the events. From the swimming side, junior Linda Shaw leads the way in freestyle. The Leeds, England native finished first in both the 1,000 yard (10:34.28) and 500 yard Free (5:03.44).
Sophomore Liz Zeiger, who was named CCSA Swimmer of the Week, swam a season-best time of 4:23.74 in the 400 yard individual medley.
Freshman Petra Halmai competed and finished first in three of her four events (1st: 200 yard medley relay, 100 yard backstroke, 100 yard breaststroke, 2nd: 400 yard individual medley).
On the diving, freshman Melissa Novak finished first in the one-meter and three-meter dive against Toledo. The Frederick, Maryland native scored a 245.25 in the one-meter dive and a 274.124 in the three-meter dive.
Scouting the Flames:
The Flames (6-2) recently competed in the Central Virginia Duals where they defeated conference member Campbell as well as NCAA Division III schools Ferrum, Hampden-Sydney, Roanoke and Sweet Briar.
From the swimming portion, Junior Alicia Finnigan finished 2nd in the 400 yard team relay (3:53.37), 1st in the 200 fly, 500 free and 1000 free and 3rd in the 100 fly (56.43).
Senior Chelsea Pond finished 2nd (1:55.46) in the 200 yard free and in the 400 free relay, but took 1st in the 100 free (51.41).
On the diving portion, junior Amy Schools won the one-meter dive with a score of 216.15.
Series History:
Overall, FGCU is 6-0 against Liberty. Last meet was on Janaury 7, 2017 where the Eagles won with a close score of 137-125.
Scouting the Billikens:
This is the first time both teams will meet, although it is unclear if the men's team will compete.
The Billikens (10-3) recently competed in the Indiana State University Relay Meet where they defeated host Indiana State, Eastern Illinois and Maryville.
On the swimming portion, the Billikens won three events in the meet: 300 fly relay, 800 free relay and the 500 free relay.
On the diving portion, the duo of senior Kalley Schwab and freshman Kolbe Schendl won the one-meter and three-meter diving relay (one-meter: 409.65, three-meter: 405.08).
Scouting the Scarlet Knights:
Rutgers (5-4) recently competed in the Big Al Open hosted by Princeton University and the Texas Invitational hosted by Texas.
Sophomore Alexandra Fabugais-Inaba swam to a 12th place finish in the 800-yard freestyle relay at the Texas Invitational.
Sophomore Francesca Bertotto won the 1,650-yard freestyle in the Big Al Open and took fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle at the Texas Invitational.
Junior Vera Koprivova swam in the A Final of the 200-yard backstroke and placed sixth overall in the pool of 48 with an NCAA B standard of 1:55.48.
On the diving portion, senior Addison Walkowiak set a new school and DeNunzio Pool standard on the 1-meter springboard, followed up with a victory in 3-meter diving at Princeton with a score of 286.45 in the finals at the Big Al Open.
Series History:
This will be the second time FGCU and Rutgers meet this season. FGCU defeated Rutgers earlier on October 7, 2017 in a two-day series by a final score of 199-16 at FGCU. The Eagles got first place in six out of nine events on day one and six out of eight on day two.
Scouting the Golden Gusties:
Like St. Louis, this will be the first time FGCU faces Gustavas Adolphus College (GAC). GAC is a NCAA DIII school, representing the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC). It is unsure if they are bringing their men's team as well. This will not count for their record as it is a scrimmage since they are an NCAA DIII school.
The Golden Gusties (7-1) recently competed in the Grinnell Invite hosted by Grinnell College. The Gusties would take first place out of 11 teams.
Senior Kate Reilly competed in the 200 yard medley relay where her team took first place. Reilly also won in the 100 yard butterfly, 100 breaststroke, 100 yard IM, 100 freestyle and the 400 yard freestyle relay.
Freshman diver Sophia Steinberg took second place at the Grinnell Invite in the one-meter dive with a score of 389.
GAC will be departing for a training trip in Puerto Rico before the classic.
The following events are as listed for the meet:
200 Medley Relay
1000 Freestyle
200 Butterfly
200 Backstroke
200 Breaststroke
200 Free
400 IM
3M Diving
500 Free
100 Fly
100 Back
100 Breast
100 Free
200 IM
1M Diving
200 Free
50 Fly
50 Back
50 Breast
50 Free
100 IM
200 Free Relay
There will be 22 events taking place in the tournament with breaks in between.
The FGCU Triple Distance Classic will start at 5 PM on Friday January 5, 2018.
FGCU Beach Volleyball Bios
After indoor volleyball season ends, volleyball is not quite over yet as there is beach volleyball left.
The FGCU beach volleyball team is sometimes, for the indoor volleyball players, spring training.
Last season. the beach volleyball team went 15-9 overall with a 6-4 record inn conference. They would enter the A-SUN Tournament as the No. 3 seed where they would earn wins over Mercer and UNF before falling to Stetson twice in the tournament including the championship finals.
The team is led by head coach Matt Botsford from the indoor volleyball. Botsford enters his fifth season as head coach for the beach team since
In his first season, Botsford's sqaud struggled badly going 2-18 with a 0-8 record in conference and lost both matches in the tournament.
In his second season at the helm, Botsford's squad went 4-11 with an 0-8 record in confernece. They would make it to the conference tournament, but would end up 1-2 in the tournament.
Botsford's Eagles eclipsed the 10-win mark for the first time in program history during his third season, compiling a 11-8 record with an 3-5 record in conference in 2016. FGCU defeated Coastal Carolina and North Florida in the A-SUN Tournament before falling in back-to-back matches to Stetson and North Florida.
Botsford's squad produced one of its most successful seasons ever at 15-9, with the win total representing the most in program history. The Eagles earned a trip to the A-SUN finals after downing North Florida and Mercer in the conference championship, but fell to nationally ranked Stetson 1-3 in the championship match. The second-place A-SUN finish tied a program-best.
For Botsford leaving behind indoor volleyball until next season, his squad will keep getting stronger with him behind the helm.
Helping Botsford is Chris Sweat. Sweat enters his fourth season as assistant coach.
A 2007 graduate from FGCU, Sweat brings a wallop of experience to the table (17 years to be exact).
As an athlete, Sweat placed first at the AAU National Championship tournament in Imperial Beach, Calif. in 2000 and compiled a five-year streak with a top-3 finish or better in that tournament.
As a coach, Sweat boasts five years of high school experience as the coach of the girls’ volleyball team at local Barron Collier High School. He has also coached the prestigious USA South Volleyball club for six years.
Most notably, Sweat has helped coach former FGCU volleyball player and current AVP Beach Volleyball pro Brooke Youngquist-Sweat. With guidance from Sweat and his brother Nick, the former Brooke Youngquist-Sweat is part of the current number 2 team in the nation and was named the AVP’s Best Defender in 2013.
As a former volunteer assistant with the program, Sweat officially joins the staff with over a decade of beach volleyball experience and unparalleled passion for the sport.
With the help to back up Botsford, Sweat will give it all he's got to make the team successful.
The beach team did lose lose three seniors as they graduated: Leigh Pudwill, Caroline Jordan and Madi Wilcox.
Halie Werkmeister has also departed from the team.
The indoor volleyball players that help the team are as noted with their overall records: Karissa Rhoades (26-19), Kaiti Krivdo (5-7), Giovanna Borgiotti (10-14) and Amanda Carroll (20-14).
Freshmen Alayna Ryan, Snowy Burnam and Cortney VanLiew will also be joining the beach team.
There are five players playing beach only (two seniors, two juniors and one freshman).
The two seniors have been around for a long while: Ashley Glickert and Mackenzie Allen.
The first is Ashley Glickert.
At 5-10 and hailing from Chesterfield, Missouri, Glickert can show you what shes got.
Joining the team her sophomore year, Glickert played alongside Katherine Puisis, Rhoades and Caroll mainly at the No. 3 spot. Glickert went 1-3 alongside Puisis, 1-3 with Caroll and 7-4 with Rhoades.
In her junior year, Glickert played alongside Borgiotti primarily at the No. 2 position where they went 10-14 overall.
For Glickert and her senior year, she will make impact.
If anyone has a lot of experience as a beach volleyball player, it's Mackenzie Allen.
At 5-10 and hailing from Naples, Florida is an ultimate force.
Allen originally played indoor volleyball her freshman and sophomore years.
She did not play beach for her freshman year, but in her sophomore year, pairing mainly with Carroll and Rhoades, Allen established a 2-6 record with Rhoades and a 7-4 record with Carroll finishing with a 9-10 overall record.
In her junior year, Allen paired with all season with Carroll going 12-11 as the No. 1 position.
For Allen she's gonna blow her competition in the sand.
Two returning juniors come into play with ease: Katie Puisis and Kellie Pernula.
The first of the two juniors is Katie Puisis.
At 5-11 and hailing from Mason, Ohio, Puisis is a great part of the team.
In her freshman year, Puisis played at the No. 3 and No. 5 position teaming with Leigh Pudwill and Glickert. She went 5-7 overall with 1-3 with Glickert and 4-4 with Pudwill.
In her sophomore year, it was Puisis' moment to shine. Playing at the No. 3 position, Puisis paired with Rhoades where they went 15-9 overall. Because of her hard work, Puisis was named a member of the A-SUN All-Conference First Team.
For Puisis, her moment will shine again.
The last member of the team is Kellie Pernula.
At 5-7 and hailing from Plant City, Florida, Pernula brings a great depth to the team.
In her freshman year, Pernula played mainly extra matches. Teaming with Amanda Carroll, Pernula went 1-2 in the season.
Pernula redshirted as a sophomore due to an injury, but her road to recovery will be out of this world.
The lone freshman on the whole team is Kayla Whetstone.
At 5-8 and hailing from Arlington, Texas, Whetstone is here to put her foot in the door.
Prior to FGCU, Whetstone played for Arlington Lamar High School as an outside hitter under head coach Heather Woodman. Whetstone totaled 828 kills, 30 assists, 1212 digs, 75 aces and 133 blocks in her career. She was All-District First Team as a senior and All-District Second Team as a junior.
After indoor, Whetstone played beach volleyball where she was a member of the 692 Beach National Team and the High Performance A2 Team.Whetstone won and placed in various beach tournaments across the nation including NVL, AAU, ROX and USAV.
With her prior experience with beach volleyball, Whetstone will make the magic happen.
I only have been to one beach volleyball, and I'm hoping to go to more this school year. The reason I didn't go to almost all of them was either A: there were not many at home or B: It was conflicting with my schedule for academics or with other sports. This year, I'm hoping to go to more than one match before I graduate and see what the team this year can do.
Photo Credit: FGCUathletics.com
The FGCU beach volleyball team is sometimes, for the indoor volleyball players, spring training.
Last season. the beach volleyball team went 15-9 overall with a 6-4 record inn conference. They would enter the A-SUN Tournament as the No. 3 seed where they would earn wins over Mercer and UNF before falling to Stetson twice in the tournament including the championship finals.
The team is led by head coach Matt Botsford from the indoor volleyball. Botsford enters his fifth season as head coach for the beach team since
In his first season, Botsford's sqaud struggled badly going 2-18 with a 0-8 record in conference and lost both matches in the tournament.
In his second season at the helm, Botsford's squad went 4-11 with an 0-8 record in confernece. They would make it to the conference tournament, but would end up 1-2 in the tournament.
Botsford's Eagles eclipsed the 10-win mark for the first time in program history during his third season, compiling a 11-8 record with an 3-5 record in conference in 2016. FGCU defeated Coastal Carolina and North Florida in the A-SUN Tournament before falling in back-to-back matches to Stetson and North Florida.
Botsford's squad produced one of its most successful seasons ever at 15-9, with the win total representing the most in program history. The Eagles earned a trip to the A-SUN finals after downing North Florida and Mercer in the conference championship, but fell to nationally ranked Stetson 1-3 in the championship match. The second-place A-SUN finish tied a program-best.
For Botsford leaving behind indoor volleyball until next season, his squad will keep getting stronger with him behind the helm.
Helping Botsford is Chris Sweat. Sweat enters his fourth season as assistant coach.
A 2007 graduate from FGCU, Sweat brings a wallop of experience to the table (17 years to be exact).
As an athlete, Sweat placed first at the AAU National Championship tournament in Imperial Beach, Calif. in 2000 and compiled a five-year streak with a top-3 finish or better in that tournament.
As a coach, Sweat boasts five years of high school experience as the coach of the girls’ volleyball team at local Barron Collier High School. He has also coached the prestigious USA South Volleyball club for six years.
Most notably, Sweat has helped coach former FGCU volleyball player and current AVP Beach Volleyball pro Brooke Youngquist-Sweat. With guidance from Sweat and his brother Nick, the former Brooke Youngquist-Sweat is part of the current number 2 team in the nation and was named the AVP’s Best Defender in 2013.
As a former volunteer assistant with the program, Sweat officially joins the staff with over a decade of beach volleyball experience and unparalleled passion for the sport.
With the help to back up Botsford, Sweat will give it all he's got to make the team successful.
The beach team did lose lose three seniors as they graduated: Leigh Pudwill, Caroline Jordan and Madi Wilcox.
Halie Werkmeister has also departed from the team.
The indoor volleyball players that help the team are as noted with their overall records: Karissa Rhoades (26-19), Kaiti Krivdo (5-7), Giovanna Borgiotti (10-14) and Amanda Carroll (20-14).
Freshmen Alayna Ryan, Snowy Burnam and Cortney VanLiew will also be joining the beach team.
There are five players playing beach only (two seniors, two juniors and one freshman).
The two seniors have been around for a long while: Ashley Glickert and Mackenzie Allen.
The first is Ashley Glickert.
At 5-10 and hailing from Chesterfield, Missouri, Glickert can show you what shes got.
Joining the team her sophomore year, Glickert played alongside Katherine Puisis, Rhoades and Caroll mainly at the No. 3 spot. Glickert went 1-3 alongside Puisis, 1-3 with Caroll and 7-4 with Rhoades.
In her junior year, Glickert played alongside Borgiotti primarily at the No. 2 position where they went 10-14 overall.
For Glickert and her senior year, she will make impact.
If anyone has a lot of experience as a beach volleyball player, it's Mackenzie Allen.
At 5-10 and hailing from Naples, Florida is an ultimate force.
Allen originally played indoor volleyball her freshman and sophomore years.
She did not play beach for her freshman year, but in her sophomore year, pairing mainly with Carroll and Rhoades, Allen established a 2-6 record with Rhoades and a 7-4 record with Carroll finishing with a 9-10 overall record.
In her junior year, Allen paired with all season with Carroll going 12-11 as the No. 1 position.
For Allen she's gonna blow her competition in the sand.
Two returning juniors come into play with ease: Katie Puisis and Kellie Pernula.
The first of the two juniors is Katie Puisis.
At 5-11 and hailing from Mason, Ohio, Puisis is a great part of the team.
In her freshman year, Puisis played at the No. 3 and No. 5 position teaming with Leigh Pudwill and Glickert. She went 5-7 overall with 1-3 with Glickert and 4-4 with Pudwill.
In her sophomore year, it was Puisis' moment to shine. Playing at the No. 3 position, Puisis paired with Rhoades where they went 15-9 overall. Because of her hard work, Puisis was named a member of the A-SUN All-Conference First Team.
For Puisis, her moment will shine again.
The last member of the team is Kellie Pernula.
At 5-7 and hailing from Plant City, Florida, Pernula brings a great depth to the team.
In her freshman year, Pernula played mainly extra matches. Teaming with Amanda Carroll, Pernula went 1-2 in the season.
Pernula redshirted as a sophomore due to an injury, but her road to recovery will be out of this world.
The lone freshman on the whole team is Kayla Whetstone.
At 5-8 and hailing from Arlington, Texas, Whetstone is here to put her foot in the door.
Prior to FGCU, Whetstone played for Arlington Lamar High School as an outside hitter under head coach Heather Woodman. Whetstone totaled 828 kills, 30 assists, 1212 digs, 75 aces and 133 blocks in her career. She was All-District First Team as a senior and All-District Second Team as a junior.
After indoor, Whetstone played beach volleyball where she was a member of the 692 Beach National Team and the High Performance A2 Team.Whetstone won and placed in various beach tournaments across the nation including NVL, AAU, ROX and USAV.
With her prior experience with beach volleyball, Whetstone will make the magic happen.
I only have been to one beach volleyball, and I'm hoping to go to more this school year. The reason I didn't go to almost all of them was either A: there were not many at home or B: It was conflicting with my schedule for academics or with other sports. This year, I'm hoping to go to more than one match before I graduate and see what the team this year can do.
Photo Credit: FGCUathletics.com
FGCU WBB vs SIU-Edwardsville Recap
The FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic has come to a close with the last game as the FGCU women's basketball team faced their last opponent of the tournament: Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville (SIUE). This was the second time in program history that both teams met.
Prior to the final tournament games, Harvard faced Akron in an earlier where the Crimson (6-5) beat the Zips (6-5) 76-63.
Senior Taylor Rooks led the way with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Sophomore Jeannie Boehm had 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists and four blocks.
Junior Madeline Raster had eight points and two assists.
Senior Kirby Porter had six points and four rebounds.
Sophomore Katie Benzan had seven points, six rebounds, seven assists and two steals.
Off the bench, junior Nani Redford had five points, two rebounds, and one assist.
Freshman Jadyn Bush had nine points, 14 rebounds, one assist and one block.
Junior Sydney Skinner had nine points, five rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals.
For the Zaps, sophomore Shaunay Edmonds and Redshirt junior Megan Sefick had 14 points each. Edmonds added one rebound, three assists, and six steals while Sefick added two rebounds and one assist.
Sophomore Haliegh Reinoehl had eight points, nine rebounds, and two steals.
Sophomore Shayna Harmon had four points, one rebound, three assists and one steal.
Senior Greta Burry had four points and five rebounds.
Off the bench, Sarah Leyendecker had two points and two rebounds.
Senior Lauren Hung had three points and one assist.
Kynnedy Azubike had six points and three rebounds.
Sophomore Caitlin Vari had four points, seven rebounds, and one steal.
Freshman Destiny Perkins had four points, one rebound, three assists and one steal.
Let's fast forward to the FGCU/SIUE game. After struggling throughout the whole first half, the Eagles (12-3) managed to use the second half to their advantage to clip the Cougars (3-8) by a score of 66-49. The Eagles were outscored by the Cougars 20-27 in the first half, but in the second half, the Eagles flipped the score around and went ahead 46-22 in the second half.
"I thought right out of halftime the ball started moving quicker and we became a lot harder to guard," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I wish we would already understand this and not take until halftime to figure it out. But it was a good comeback win. I'm really pleased with how we played the second half. I feel better going into break after watching the second half."
"I think this team has gone through the grinder in the nonconference play," said SIUE Head Coach Paula Buscher. "Now we get to hit the reset button and start over for conference play."
After coming of scoring two points and shooting 1-for-12 against Harvard, sophomore Nasrin "Nas" Ulel redeemed herself and led the way with 14 points (6-for-9 FG), seven rebounds, one block and one steal that came in crucial at the right time.
Senior Erica Nelson had three points, three rebounds, one assist and two blocks.
After recovering from lightheadedness last game against Harvard, sophomore Tytionia Adderly also redeemed herself. The Jupiter native had three points, five rebounds, and one steal. Two of Adderly's rebounds were offensive rebounds and now has 149 career offensive rebounds, but remains 8th all-time.
Senior Rose Julien had four points, one rebound, and four assists before fouling out in the second half.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan had 12 points all from behind the arch. Grandijan also added three rebounds, one assist, and one steal. With her 12 points, the Cudahy, Wisconsin native has 1,050 career points and is 14 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time. Grandijan's four threes put her at 255 career three-pointers. She still remains third all-time and is now 41 away from surpassing Whitney Knight (294 career threes).
Off the bench, redshirt senior China Dow had 14 points (5-for-12 FG, 4-for-7 3FG), three rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka had 13 points (6-for-8 FG, 1-for-2 3FG), one rebound, five assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Jessica Cattani contributed with three points, three rebounds and one steal before Smesko emptied the rest of the bench.
"We did a great job of grinding in the first half. We thought we were right there," said Buscher. "I don't know if the score is really indicative of the whole entire game. Florida Gulf Coast can just knock down threes."
Senior Donshel Beck led the way offensively for the Cougars. Beck had 10 points, two rebounds, and one steal.
Junior Sydney Bauman had nine points, five rebounds, one assist and one block.
Redshirt senior Lauren White, the Cougars leading scorer (14.6 PPG), was held to less than 10 points for the fourth time this season. White ended up with seven points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Freshman Zaria Whitlock added two points and one assist.
Junior Jay'Nee Alston contributed with five rebounds, one assist, and one block.
Off the bench, senior Elina Berzina had eight points and three rebounds.
Sophomore Cloe Churchill had nine points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Freshman Allie Troeckler contributed with one rebound while senior Gwen Adams added four points and two rebounds.
With the win, FGCU is now 2-0 against SIU-Edwardsville. With the loss, SIUE has lost seven straight games.
After the games, the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic All-Tournament Team was announced:
Representing SIU-Edwardsville was Lauren White.
For Akron was Megan Sefcik.
For Harvard, it was Taylor Rooks and Jeannie Boehm
For FGCU, it was Rose Julien and Lisa Zderadicka. Julien was also named All-Tournament Team MVP.
Up Next:
FGCU remains in action at home as they play visiting South Dakota State on December 29 and end 2017 with one final non-conference game against NAIA Florida Memorial before the opening A-SUN Conference play at home against Stetson January 6, 2018.
Prior to the final tournament games, Harvard faced Akron in an earlier where the Crimson (6-5) beat the Zips (6-5) 76-63.
Senior Taylor Rooks led the way with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Sophomore Jeannie Boehm had 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists and four blocks.
Junior Madeline Raster had eight points and two assists.
Senior Kirby Porter had six points and four rebounds.
Sophomore Katie Benzan had seven points, six rebounds, seven assists and two steals.
Off the bench, junior Nani Redford had five points, two rebounds, and one assist.
Freshman Jadyn Bush had nine points, 14 rebounds, one assist and one block.
Junior Sydney Skinner had nine points, five rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals.
For the Zaps, sophomore Shaunay Edmonds and Redshirt junior Megan Sefick had 14 points each. Edmonds added one rebound, three assists, and six steals while Sefick added two rebounds and one assist.
Sophomore Haliegh Reinoehl had eight points, nine rebounds, and two steals.
Sophomore Shayna Harmon had four points, one rebound, three assists and one steal.
Senior Greta Burry had four points and five rebounds.
Off the bench, Sarah Leyendecker had two points and two rebounds.
Senior Lauren Hung had three points and one assist.
Kynnedy Azubike had six points and three rebounds.
Sophomore Caitlin Vari had four points, seven rebounds, and one steal.
Freshman Destiny Perkins had four points, one rebound, three assists and one steal.
Let's fast forward to the FGCU/SIUE game. After struggling throughout the whole first half, the Eagles (12-3) managed to use the second half to their advantage to clip the Cougars (3-8) by a score of 66-49. The Eagles were outscored by the Cougars 20-27 in the first half, but in the second half, the Eagles flipped the score around and went ahead 46-22 in the second half.
"I thought right out of halftime the ball started moving quicker and we became a lot harder to guard," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I wish we would already understand this and not take until halftime to figure it out. But it was a good comeback win. I'm really pleased with how we played the second half. I feel better going into break after watching the second half."
"I think this team has gone through the grinder in the nonconference play," said SIUE Head Coach Paula Buscher. "Now we get to hit the reset button and start over for conference play."
After coming of scoring two points and shooting 1-for-12 against Harvard, sophomore Nasrin "Nas" Ulel redeemed herself and led the way with 14 points (6-for-9 FG), seven rebounds, one block and one steal that came in crucial at the right time.
Senior Erica Nelson had three points, three rebounds, one assist and two blocks.
After recovering from lightheadedness last game against Harvard, sophomore Tytionia Adderly also redeemed herself. The Jupiter native had three points, five rebounds, and one steal. Two of Adderly's rebounds were offensive rebounds and now has 149 career offensive rebounds, but remains 8th all-time.
Senior Rose Julien had four points, one rebound, and four assists before fouling out in the second half.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan had 12 points all from behind the arch. Grandijan also added three rebounds, one assist, and one steal. With her 12 points, the Cudahy, Wisconsin native has 1,050 career points and is 14 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time. Grandijan's four threes put her at 255 career three-pointers. She still remains third all-time and is now 41 away from surpassing Whitney Knight (294 career threes).
Off the bench, redshirt senior China Dow had 14 points (5-for-12 FG, 4-for-7 3FG), three rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka had 13 points (6-for-8 FG, 1-for-2 3FG), one rebound, five assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Jessica Cattani contributed with three points, three rebounds and one steal before Smesko emptied the rest of the bench.
"We did a great job of grinding in the first half. We thought we were right there," said Buscher. "I don't know if the score is really indicative of the whole entire game. Florida Gulf Coast can just knock down threes."
Senior Donshel Beck led the way offensively for the Cougars. Beck had 10 points, two rebounds, and one steal.
Junior Sydney Bauman had nine points, five rebounds, one assist and one block.
Redshirt senior Lauren White, the Cougars leading scorer (14.6 PPG), was held to less than 10 points for the fourth time this season. White ended up with seven points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Freshman Zaria Whitlock added two points and one assist.
Junior Jay'Nee Alston contributed with five rebounds, one assist, and one block.
Off the bench, senior Elina Berzina had eight points and three rebounds.
Sophomore Cloe Churchill had nine points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Freshman Allie Troeckler contributed with one rebound while senior Gwen Adams added four points and two rebounds.
With the win, FGCU is now 2-0 against SIU-Edwardsville. With the loss, SIUE has lost seven straight games.
After the games, the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic All-Tournament Team was announced:
Representing SIU-Edwardsville was Lauren White.
For Akron was Megan Sefcik.
For Harvard, it was Taylor Rooks and Jeannie Boehm
For FGCU, it was Rose Julien and Lisa Zderadicka. Julien was also named All-Tournament Team MVP.
Up Next:
FGCU remains in action at home as they play visiting South Dakota State on December 29 and end 2017 with one final non-conference game against NAIA Florida Memorial before the opening A-SUN Conference play at home against Stetson January 6, 2018.
FGCUWBB vs South Dakota St./Florida Memorial Preview
After going unbeaten in the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic, the FGCU women's basketball remains at home against South Dakota State and NAIA Florida Memorial to conclude the end of 2017 before going into conference.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles (12-3) recently compete against Harvard and SIU-Edwardsville in the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic. They would beat the Crimson 65-56 and the Cougars 66-49 to warp up the tournament. Akron was also a participant in the tournament, but only played Harvard and SIUE. The Eagles lead the nation in 3-point field goals attempted (508) and made (182) while being second in 3-point field goals made per game (12.1) and 64th in 3-point field goal percentage (35.8%).
FGCU Impactful Players:
Senior Rose Julien has been the lead scorer for the Eagles. The Port St. Lucie native averages 13.6 points per game. In the tournament, Julien scored 26 total points in the tournament (22 vs Harvard, 4 vs SIUE) and in four of her season games, she scored at least 20 points or more. During the tournament, Julien was named to the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic Team and tournament MVP as well.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan is averaging 10.4 points per game. The Cudahy, Wisconsin native remains ranked 9th all-time in career points (1,050), and is 13 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time, but did surpass Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for 7th all-time in career rebounds (427). Grandijan also ranks eighth in the nation in 3-point field goals attempted (109), 10th in 3-point field goals made (44) and 12th in minutes played (473).
After recovering from lightheadedness, sophomore Tyitionia Adderly had three points in a return game against SIUE. The Jupiter native is averaging 8.3 rebounds per game.
Bench Role:
The main players that have provided sparks off the bench are redshirt senior China Dow, redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka and redshirt senior Jessica Cattani. Redshirt freshman Chandler Ryan also provides minutes for the team.
Redshirt senior China Dow, who has been one of the main sparks off the bench is scoring 9.7 points per game. The Louisville native had 19 points in the tournament (5 vs Harvard, 14 vs SIUE).
Zderadicka is averaging seven points per game including tying a game high 13 points against SIUE. The Vienna, Austria native, who transferred as a grad student from Houston Baptist, has scored 13 points on three different occasions. Zderadicka also was named to the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic All-Tournament Team with Julien.
Cattani, another key factor off the bench, is averaging six points a game. The Muskego, Wisconsin native had three straight games scoring at least 10 points. In the game against SIUE, her streak was snapped as she scored only 3 points in the game. In the game against Ave Maria, Cattani scored a tying career high 21 points off the bench.
Ryan averages 4.4 points per game. She played one minute in the game against SIUE. The last game Ryan played in, prior to that, was against Ave Maria as the Groveland, Illinois native scored 12 points with four rebounds, one assist and four steals.
Scouting the Jackrabbits:
South Dakota State (10-3) is coming off their last home game against Wichita State. The Jackrabbits defeated the Shockers 96-64.
Offensively, redshirt junior Macy Miller leads the way. Miller is averaging 17.3 points per game. In Miller's last game against Wichita State, the Mitchell, S.D. native scored 22 points (9-9 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2-3 FT) in the game, and, in six straight games, has scored at least 10 points.
Junior Madison Guebert is another player to watch for. Guebert is averaging 13.5 points per game. In her last game against Wichita, Guebert scored 19 points (7-9 FG, 5-7 3FG) and, like Miller, has scored at least 10 points in five straight games.
Defensively, senior Ellie Thompson and redshirt sophomore Taygn Larson combine for 29 blocks (15 for Thompson, 14 for Larson). Thompson is averaging 6.6 points per game while Larson is averaging 7.4 points per game. Senior Alexis Alexander also comes in to play defensively as she leads the team with 19 steals.
Series History:
This is the second time both teams have met. The last time both teams met was actually on December 29, 2013 where FGCU won 84-59.
Scouting the Lady Lions:
Of course, like the games against Ave Maria and Southeastern, this game is an exhibition for the Lady Lions, but a season game for FGCU. The game will not have any effect on the Eagles' RPI ranking.
Florida Memorial (8-3) is coming off a two-game winning streak after defeating Keiser University 78-71 in conference play and Concordia University (Michigan) 76-62 in non-conference play. The Lady Lions have already played two exhibition games against NCAA D2 Barry University and Florida Tech.
Senior Abreona Cabell leads the team in points per game (17.8). Cabell scored 13 points against Concordia and 32 points against Keiser.
Senior Ashley Henry is averaging 13.5 points per game. In Henry's games against Concordia and Keiser, she had two double-doubles of 12 points and 10 rebounds against Concordia and 17 points and 12 rebounds against Keiser.
Series History:
FGCU is 9-0 against FMU. The last time both teams played was on February 6, 2006, where the Eagles won 70-27 when FGCU was an NCAA DII team.
The Eagles will play SD St on December 29 at 7:30 PM and then Florida Memorial on December 30 at 7 PM. Both games are punch pass games and both will air on ESPN 3.
Last Time Out:
The Eagles (12-3) recently compete against Harvard and SIU-Edwardsville in the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic. They would beat the Crimson 65-56 and the Cougars 66-49 to warp up the tournament. Akron was also a participant in the tournament, but only played Harvard and SIUE. The Eagles lead the nation in 3-point field goals attempted (508) and made (182) while being second in 3-point field goals made per game (12.1) and 64th in 3-point field goal percentage (35.8%).
FGCU Impactful Players:
Senior Rose Julien has been the lead scorer for the Eagles. The Port St. Lucie native averages 13.6 points per game. In the tournament, Julien scored 26 total points in the tournament (22 vs Harvard, 4 vs SIUE) and in four of her season games, she scored at least 20 points or more. During the tournament, Julien was named to the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic Team and tournament MVP as well.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan is averaging 10.4 points per game. The Cudahy, Wisconsin native remains ranked 9th all-time in career points (1,050), and is 13 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time, but did surpass Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for 7th all-time in career rebounds (427). Grandijan also ranks eighth in the nation in 3-point field goals attempted (109), 10th in 3-point field goals made (44) and 12th in minutes played (473).
After recovering from lightheadedness, sophomore Tyitionia Adderly had three points in a return game against SIUE. The Jupiter native is averaging 8.3 rebounds per game.
Bench Role:
The main players that have provided sparks off the bench are redshirt senior China Dow, redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka and redshirt senior Jessica Cattani. Redshirt freshman Chandler Ryan also provides minutes for the team.
Redshirt senior China Dow, who has been one of the main sparks off the bench is scoring 9.7 points per game. The Louisville native had 19 points in the tournament (5 vs Harvard, 14 vs SIUE).
Zderadicka is averaging seven points per game including tying a game high 13 points against SIUE. The Vienna, Austria native, who transferred as a grad student from Houston Baptist, has scored 13 points on three different occasions. Zderadicka also was named to the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic All-Tournament Team with Julien.
Cattani, another key factor off the bench, is averaging six points a game. The Muskego, Wisconsin native had three straight games scoring at least 10 points. In the game against SIUE, her streak was snapped as she scored only 3 points in the game. In the game against Ave Maria, Cattani scored a tying career high 21 points off the bench.
Ryan averages 4.4 points per game. She played one minute in the game against SIUE. The last game Ryan played in, prior to that, was against Ave Maria as the Groveland, Illinois native scored 12 points with four rebounds, one assist and four steals.
Scouting the Jackrabbits:
South Dakota State (10-3) is coming off their last home game against Wichita State. The Jackrabbits defeated the Shockers 96-64.
Offensively, redshirt junior Macy Miller leads the way. Miller is averaging 17.3 points per game. In Miller's last game against Wichita State, the Mitchell, S.D. native scored 22 points (9-9 FG, 2-2 3FG, 2-3 FT) in the game, and, in six straight games, has scored at least 10 points.
Junior Madison Guebert is another player to watch for. Guebert is averaging 13.5 points per game. In her last game against Wichita, Guebert scored 19 points (7-9 FG, 5-7 3FG) and, like Miller, has scored at least 10 points in five straight games.
Defensively, senior Ellie Thompson and redshirt sophomore Taygn Larson combine for 29 blocks (15 for Thompson, 14 for Larson). Thompson is averaging 6.6 points per game while Larson is averaging 7.4 points per game. Senior Alexis Alexander also comes in to play defensively as she leads the team with 19 steals.
Series History:
This is the second time both teams have met. The last time both teams met was actually on December 29, 2013 where FGCU won 84-59.
Scouting the Lady Lions:
Of course, like the games against Ave Maria and Southeastern, this game is an exhibition for the Lady Lions, but a season game for FGCU. The game will not have any effect on the Eagles' RPI ranking.
Florida Memorial (8-3) is coming off a two-game winning streak after defeating Keiser University 78-71 in conference play and Concordia University (Michigan) 76-62 in non-conference play. The Lady Lions have already played two exhibition games against NCAA D2 Barry University and Florida Tech.
Senior Abreona Cabell leads the team in points per game (17.8). Cabell scored 13 points against Concordia and 32 points against Keiser.
Senior Ashley Henry is averaging 13.5 points per game. In Henry's games against Concordia and Keiser, she had two double-doubles of 12 points and 10 rebounds against Concordia and 17 points and 12 rebounds against Keiser.
Series History:
FGCU is 9-0 against FMU. The last time both teams played was on February 6, 2006, where the Eagles won 70-27 when FGCU was an NCAA DII team.
The Eagles will play SD St on December 29 at 7:30 PM and then Florida Memorial on December 30 at 7 PM. Both games are punch pass games and both will air on ESPN 3.
FGCU Swimming and Diving vs Toledo Recap
While I am now gone to Bradenton for winter break, it doesn't stop me from writing about the FGCU swimming and diving team (4-2, 2-0 CCSA). After a tough loss to Northwestern, the Eagles bounced back and faced the University of Toledo (3-3), winning by a score of 182-60. I can't help myself by saying "Holy Toledo!"
"We had a great day today," FGCU head coach Dave Rollins said. "We continue to compete at a high level and race smart. The team was supportive, relaxed and had a lot of fun. It was great to end our semester with a win for FGCU."
In the first event, the Eagles took first and third place while Toledo took second in 200 yard medley relay. The team of freshman Petra Halmai, sophomore Cassidy Fry, senior Sommer Harris and junior Hannah Burdge took 1st place finishing with a time of 1:45.19, while the team of junior Kiley Eble, sophomore Lizzy White and seniors Yee Ching Wong Madi Clarke took 3rd with a time of 1:46.33. The team of sophomores Lindsay Manganiello and Karin Schienvar, redshirt senior Hannah Soutar and junior Hannah Wittman also competed in the relay as they finished 5th with a time of 1:50.60.
Event two was the 1,000 yard freestyle. Juniors Linda Shaw and Gracie Redding took 1st and 2nd place respectively. Shaw finished with a time of 10:34.28 while Redding finished with a time of 10:42.86. Freshman Rebecca Moynihan finished fifth with a time of 11:12.25.
For event three, the 200 yard freestyle, FGCU finished first, second and third respectively. Wong finished 1st with a time of 1:52.07, junior Christina Kaas Elmgreen finished 2nd with a time of 1:54.96, and junior Toni Baerens finished 3rd with a time of 1:55.38. Soutar also competed in the event, finishing 7th with a time of 2:00.13.
Event four was the 50 yard freestyle. The Eagles earned 1st, 3rd and 5th place finishes. Burdge took first with a time of 24.17. Clarke took third with a time of 24.53. Schienvar took 5th place with a time of 24.89. Eble finished 7th with a time of 25.15.
In event five, the 400 yard individual medley, the Eagle took first and second place respectively once again. Sophomore Liz Zeiger, the current CCSA Swimmer of the Week, finished in 1st place with a time of 4:23.74 while Halmai finished 2nd with a time of 4:27.50.
For event six, the one-meter dive, freshman Melissa Novak finished with a first place score of 245.25. Sophomore Natalie Keffer finished with a fourth place score of 191.63, while sophomore Stevie Meyerson finished in 5th place with a score of 159.15.
In event seven, the 100 yard butterfly, the Eagles took 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th respectively. Wong took first with a time of 55.78. Kaas Elmgreen took second with a time of 56.05. Sophomore Madi Jean took third with a time of 57.22. Junior Nicole Oppel finished 5th with a time of 59.79. Schienvar also competed in her third event finishing 7th with a time 1:01.50.
Event eight was the 100 yard freestyle. FGCU snagged 1st, 4th and 5th place. Redding finished in 1st with a time of 52.16, Moynihan finished 4th with a time of 53.62 and Clarke finished fifth with a time of 53.67. Baerens also competed in the event finishing 6th with a time of 54.72.
Event nine was the 100 yard backstroke. FGCU finished first and second respectively as well as fourth. Halmai finished in 1st place with a time of 58.28 while Wittman finished with a time of 59.56 for 2nd place. Eble finished 4th with a time of 1:00.98. Manganiello finished 7th with a time of 1:02.62.
For event 10, the 500 yard freestyle, the Eagles took 1st, 2nd and 4th place. In this event, it was Shaw's time to shine again. The native of Leeds, England took first with a time of 5:03.44. Fry finished second with a time of 5:08.15. Burdge finished with a 4th place finish with a time of 5:17.40.
Event 11 was the three-meter dive. Novak finished with a 1st place score of 274.124, Meyerson finished with a 3rd place score of 207.75 and Keffer finished with a 4th place score of 188.625.
In event 12, the 100 yard breaststroke, Halmai took first with a time of 1:05.12. Harris finished second respectively behind Halmai with a time of 1:05.30. Sophomore Lizzy White finished fourth with a time of 1:05.97. Zeiger also competed for a 7th place finish with a time of 1:09.42.
In the 13th and final event, the 400 yard freestyle relay, the Eagles took first and third place to conclude the meet. Wong, Redding, Moynihan and Burdge finished in 1st with a time of 3:29.00 while Wittman, Eble, Clarke and Fry finished 3rd with a time of 3:32.52. The team of Soutar, Jean, Schienvar and Baerens finished in 4th place with a time of 3:35.93.
"The meet reflects that we've been training really hard and the girls are tired, which is a good lesson to be learned at this point of the season," remarked Toldedo head coach Jonas Persson. "We had some really nice performances from senior Allison Dicke, freshman Lisa Eriksson, sophomore Bec Welke, and freshman Megan Peepers. Those four individuals led the team in and outside the pool and I'm proud of how they stepped up."
Key Notes:
"We had a great day today," FGCU head coach Dave Rollins said. "We continue to compete at a high level and race smart. The team was supportive, relaxed and had a lot of fun. It was great to end our semester with a win for FGCU."
In the first event, the Eagles took first and third place while Toledo took second in 200 yard medley relay. The team of freshman Petra Halmai, sophomore Cassidy Fry, senior Sommer Harris and junior Hannah Burdge took 1st place finishing with a time of 1:45.19, while the team of junior Kiley Eble, sophomore Lizzy White and seniors Yee Ching Wong Madi Clarke took 3rd with a time of 1:46.33. The team of sophomores Lindsay Manganiello and Karin Schienvar, redshirt senior Hannah Soutar and junior Hannah Wittman also competed in the relay as they finished 5th with a time of 1:50.60.
Event two was the 1,000 yard freestyle. Juniors Linda Shaw and Gracie Redding took 1st and 2nd place respectively. Shaw finished with a time of 10:34.28 while Redding finished with a time of 10:42.86. Freshman Rebecca Moynihan finished fifth with a time of 11:12.25.
For event three, the 200 yard freestyle, FGCU finished first, second and third respectively. Wong finished 1st with a time of 1:52.07, junior Christina Kaas Elmgreen finished 2nd with a time of 1:54.96, and junior Toni Baerens finished 3rd with a time of 1:55.38. Soutar also competed in the event, finishing 7th with a time of 2:00.13.
Event four was the 50 yard freestyle. The Eagles earned 1st, 3rd and 5th place finishes. Burdge took first with a time of 24.17. Clarke took third with a time of 24.53. Schienvar took 5th place with a time of 24.89. Eble finished 7th with a time of 25.15.
In event five, the 400 yard individual medley, the Eagle took first and second place respectively once again. Sophomore Liz Zeiger, the current CCSA Swimmer of the Week, finished in 1st place with a time of 4:23.74 while Halmai finished 2nd with a time of 4:27.50.
For event six, the one-meter dive, freshman Melissa Novak finished with a first place score of 245.25. Sophomore Natalie Keffer finished with a fourth place score of 191.63, while sophomore Stevie Meyerson finished in 5th place with a score of 159.15.
In event seven, the 100 yard butterfly, the Eagles took 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 5th respectively. Wong took first with a time of 55.78. Kaas Elmgreen took second with a time of 56.05. Sophomore Madi Jean took third with a time of 57.22. Junior Nicole Oppel finished 5th with a time of 59.79. Schienvar also competed in her third event finishing 7th with a time 1:01.50.
Event eight was the 100 yard freestyle. FGCU snagged 1st, 4th and 5th place. Redding finished in 1st with a time of 52.16, Moynihan finished 4th with a time of 53.62 and Clarke finished fifth with a time of 53.67. Baerens also competed in the event finishing 6th with a time of 54.72.
Event nine was the 100 yard backstroke. FGCU finished first and second respectively as well as fourth. Halmai finished in 1st place with a time of 58.28 while Wittman finished with a time of 59.56 for 2nd place. Eble finished 4th with a time of 1:00.98. Manganiello finished 7th with a time of 1:02.62.
For event 10, the 500 yard freestyle, the Eagles took 1st, 2nd and 4th place. In this event, it was Shaw's time to shine again. The native of Leeds, England took first with a time of 5:03.44. Fry finished second with a time of 5:08.15. Burdge finished with a 4th place finish with a time of 5:17.40.
Event 11 was the three-meter dive. Novak finished with a 1st place score of 274.124, Meyerson finished with a 3rd place score of 207.75 and Keffer finished with a 4th place score of 188.625.
In event 12, the 100 yard breaststroke, Halmai took first with a time of 1:05.12. Harris finished second respectively behind Halmai with a time of 1:05.30. Sophomore Lizzy White finished fourth with a time of 1:05.97. Zeiger also competed for a 7th place finish with a time of 1:09.42.
In the 13th and final event, the 400 yard freestyle relay, the Eagles took first and third place to conclude the meet. Wong, Redding, Moynihan and Burdge finished in 1st with a time of 3:29.00 while Wittman, Eble, Clarke and Fry finished 3rd with a time of 3:32.52. The team of Soutar, Jean, Schienvar and Baerens finished in 4th place with a time of 3:35.93.
"The meet reflects that we've been training really hard and the girls are tired, which is a good lesson to be learned at this point of the season," remarked Toldedo head coach Jonas Persson. "We had some really nice performances from senior Allison Dicke, freshman Lisa Eriksson, sophomore Bec Welke, and freshman Megan Peepers. Those four individuals led the team in and outside the pool and I'm proud of how they stepped up."
Key Notes:
- The Eagles took 1st place in all 13 events.
- Zeiger's time in the 400 IM was set as a season-best.
- Shaw contributed with 18 points after her first place finishes in the 500 and 1,000 yard freestyle.
- In all 13 events, including the diving portion, FGCU finished first in all 13.
- Six swimmers competed in four events (Schienvar, Halmai, Wong, Eble, Burdge, Clarke).
- Six swimmers competed in three events (Soutar, Moynihan, Redding, Fry, Baerens, Wittman).
- Five swimmers competed in two events (Harris, Kass Elmgreen, Jean, Manganiello, Zeiger).
FGCU WBB vs. Harvard Recap
After a disappointing loss to Chattanooga, the FGCU women's basketball team was able to redeem themselves with a tough win over Harvard in the FGCU Hilton Garden Inn Classic.
In a prior game, SIU-Edwardsville faced Akron late afternoon. The Zips (6-4) beat the Cougars (3-7) 59-58.
For the Zips, sophomore Haliegh Reinoehl led the way with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds along with one assist, one block and one steal.
Redshirt junior Megan Sefick had 10 points, two assists, one block and one steal.
Sophomore Shaunay Edmonds was held to eight points, but added five assists and four steals.
Off the bench, sophomore Alyssa Clay had eight points and one steal, senior Lauren Hung had six points and one steal and sophomore Caitlin Vari had five points, five rebounds and one steal
For the Cougars, redshirt senior Lauren White had 28 points, five rebounds, one assist and three steals.
Senior Donshel Beck had eight points, four rebounds and one block.
Junior Sydney Bauman had six points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
Off the bench, seniors Gwen Adams and Elina Berzina had seven points each. Adams added three rebounds and two assists while Berzina added four rebounds and one assist.
Let's fast forward to the game between FGCU and Harvard. The Eagles (11-3) took down the Crimson (5-5) by a score of 65-56. This was the third time that both teams met and with the win, the Eagles are now 3-0 against the Crimson.
"This was a really competitive game," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I give Harvard credit. They pounded us on the boards. They just wouldn't go away. Anytime we got a lead they came right back at us."
Senior Rose Julien led the way offensively. The Port St. Lucie native had 22 points (8-for-12 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 5-for-6 FT), six rebounds, three assists and one block.
Senior Erica Nelson had five points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan had six points, two rebounds and one assist. Grandijan's six points came from behind the arch, which also came in at a crucial point. With the six points, Grandijan had 1,038 career points and is 25 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time and with the two three pointers, she has 251 career three pointers.
Grandijan remains No. 3 all-time and is 44 threes away from surpassing Whitney Knight for 2nd all-time.
Grandijan surpassed Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for seventh most rebounds in program history with 424 rebounds and surpassed Kaneisha Atwater (3,160, 2013-16) for the eighth most minutes in program history.
"It all came down to plays in the last minute essentially," Smesko said. "Gradinjan hits a big three. Lisa makes a big steal and gets a layup, and Rose and Lisa were able to knock down the foul shots to make the game look like it wasn't as close as it really was."
Sophomore Nasrin Ulel had only two points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly only played three minutes. She had two points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. The Jupiter native sat out the rest of the game due to dizziness during the game. Adderly had one offensive rebound and had 147 career overall.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Jessica Cattani led the way. The Muskego, Wisconsin native led the bench with 14 points (5-for-9 FG, 4-for-7 3FG), two rebounds, one block and two steals.
Redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka had eight points (3-for-6 FG, 2-for-4 FT), three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Redshirt senior China Dow had five points, nine rebounds, four assist and two steals.
For Harvard, senior Taylor Rooks had a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebound along with two assists.
Junior Madeline Raster had 12 points all from the three point line, six rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Sophomore Jeannie Boehm had 10 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block.
Off the bench, junior Nani Redford had two points, six rebounds, and two assists.
Junior Sydney Skinner had four points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Freshman Jaydn Bush added two points and eight rebounds.
FGCU returns to action on December 21 against SIU Edwardsvillle at 7 PM. Harvard will play Akron in an earlier game at 4:30 PM.
The game will be aired on ESPN 3 for FGCU and SIUE while the Harvard-Akron game will be aired on Facebook Live. Below are the links to access both games:
https://www.facebook.com/fgcuwbb/
http://www.espn.com/watch/_/id/3226701/siuedwardsville-vs-florida-gulf-coast-w-basketball
In a prior game, SIU-Edwardsville faced Akron late afternoon. The Zips (6-4) beat the Cougars (3-7) 59-58.
For the Zips, sophomore Haliegh Reinoehl led the way with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds along with one assist, one block and one steal.
Redshirt junior Megan Sefick had 10 points, two assists, one block and one steal.
Sophomore Shaunay Edmonds was held to eight points, but added five assists and four steals.
Off the bench, sophomore Alyssa Clay had eight points and one steal, senior Lauren Hung had six points and one steal and sophomore Caitlin Vari had five points, five rebounds and one steal
For the Cougars, redshirt senior Lauren White had 28 points, five rebounds, one assist and three steals.
Senior Donshel Beck had eight points, four rebounds and one block.
Junior Sydney Bauman had six points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
Off the bench, seniors Gwen Adams and Elina Berzina had seven points each. Adams added three rebounds and two assists while Berzina added four rebounds and one assist.
Let's fast forward to the game between FGCU and Harvard. The Eagles (11-3) took down the Crimson (5-5) by a score of 65-56. This was the third time that both teams met and with the win, the Eagles are now 3-0 against the Crimson.
"This was a really competitive game," FGCU head coach Karl Smesko said. "I give Harvard credit. They pounded us on the boards. They just wouldn't go away. Anytime we got a lead they came right back at us."
Senior Rose Julien led the way offensively. The Port St. Lucie native had 22 points (8-for-12 FG, 1-for-4 3FG, 5-for-6 FT), six rebounds, three assists and one block.
Senior Erica Nelson had five points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Redshirt senior Taylor Grandijan had six points, two rebounds and one assist. Grandijan's six points came from behind the arch, which also came in at a crucial point. With the six points, Grandijan had 1,038 career points and is 25 points away from surpassing Katie Schrader (1,062 career points) for 8th all-time and with the two three pointers, she has 251 career three pointers.
Grandijan remains No. 3 all-time and is 44 threes away from surpassing Whitney Knight for 2nd all-time.
Grandijan surpassed Katie Meador (422, 2012-16) for seventh most rebounds in program history with 424 rebounds and surpassed Kaneisha Atwater (3,160, 2013-16) for the eighth most minutes in program history.
"It all came down to plays in the last minute essentially," Smesko said. "Gradinjan hits a big three. Lisa makes a big steal and gets a layup, and Rose and Lisa were able to knock down the foul shots to make the game look like it wasn't as close as it really was."
Sophomore Nasrin Ulel had only two points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Sophomore Tytionia Adderly only played three minutes. She had two points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. The Jupiter native sat out the rest of the game due to dizziness during the game. Adderly had one offensive rebound and had 147 career overall.
Off the bench, redshirt senior Jessica Cattani led the way. The Muskego, Wisconsin native led the bench with 14 points (5-for-9 FG, 4-for-7 3FG), two rebounds, one block and two steals.
Redshirt junior Lisa Zderadicka had eight points (3-for-6 FG, 2-for-4 FT), three rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Redshirt senior China Dow had five points, nine rebounds, four assist and two steals.
For Harvard, senior Taylor Rooks had a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebound along with two assists.
Junior Madeline Raster had 12 points all from the three point line, six rebounds, one assist and two steals.
Sophomore Jeannie Boehm had 10 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block.
Off the bench, junior Nani Redford had two points, six rebounds, and two assists.
Junior Sydney Skinner had four points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.
Freshman Jaydn Bush added two points and eight rebounds.
FGCU returns to action on December 21 against SIU Edwardsvillle at 7 PM. Harvard will play Akron in an earlier game at 4:30 PM.
The game will be aired on ESPN 3 for FGCU and SIUE while the Harvard-Akron game will be aired on Facebook Live. Below are the links to access both games:
https://www.facebook.com/fgcuwbb/
http://www.espn.com/watch/_/id/3226701/siuedwardsville-vs-florida-gulf-coast-w-basketball
FGCU Men's Basketball Bios
Another season occurs for the FGCU men's basketball and the run for another chapter of Dunk City.
Last year, the men's basketball team went 26-8 with a 12-2 record in conference. They won the conference tournament and an automatic bid in the national tournament as the No. 14 seed, but would fall to FSU in the first round by a score of 86-80.
The team is led by Joe Dooley. Dooley enters his 5th season as head coach for FGCU.
A native of West Orange, N.J., Dooley came in clutch after Andy Enfield's departure for USC.
Prior to his coaching career, Dooley played for George Washington University where he was a four-year letterwinner and started his last two seasons and elected a team captain as a senior.
After his tenure with GW, Dooley began his coaching career as an assistant coach for South Carolina and East Carolina before securing the head coach position for ECU. Dooley lead the program to a 57-52 record over four seasons prior to his stint at New Mexico where he was one of just two head coaches in ECU history to produce a winning record at the D-I level. In his first season at the helm in 1995-96, Dooley also became the winningest first-year head coach in more than 20 years with a 17-11 mark.
In 2007, he was rated the fourth-best recruiter in the nation by Rivals.com for the class that included McDonald's All-American Cole Aldrich and Tyrel Reed. He also brought in future NBA draftees Sasha Kaun and Mario Chalmers. Kansas produced 300 wins, nine straight Big 12 regular-season titles, six Big 12 Tournament championships, six NCAA Sweet 16s, five NCAA Elite Eight appearances and two Final Fours, including the 2008 National Championship.
After his tenure with ECU, Dooley served a three year tenure as an assistant coach with New Mexico and a one year tenure with Wyoming before taking a position as an assistant coach with Kansas. Dooley’s 10 seasons with Kansas yielded nine in which the Jayhawks averaged more than 75 points per contest, including 80 or more three times. Kansas finished in the top three in the Big 12 in scoring seven of 10 years, highlighted by the 2009-10 and 2010-11 campaigns in which it posted a league-high 81.6 and 81.2 points per game, respectively.
In July 2010, Dooley was ranked first in the Top 25 High-Major Assistants by Foxsports.com, which was up from his No. 6 ranking by the media outlet in 2008.
After his 10 year tenure with the Jayhawks, Dooley became head coach for FGCU.
Kevin Mickle has graduated and transferred to Ohio University using his last year of eligibility there as a grad student.
Junior Rayjon Tucker transferred to the University of Arkansas-Little Rock.
Junior Maxx Bleecher quit to be with his fraternity and sophomore Rendjis Feikners quit to go back to Latvia.
Junior Reggie Reid transferred to NCAA DII Texas A&M-Commerce.
C.J. Williamson was dismissed prior to last season due to disciplinary reasons and is now playing for NJCAA Chipola College.
This year's squad consists of four seniors, four juniors, five transfers, two sophomores and four freshman.
The four seniors that come into play strongly are as followed: Josh Ko (G), Christian Terrell (G), Antravious Simmons (F) and Brandon Goodwin (G).
First up is Josh Ko.
A 6-1 guard from Kailua, Hawaii, Ko came with a strong purpose and opportunity.
Prior to FGCU, Ko played for the University of Pittsburgh of the ACC his freshman and sophomore years. He played a total of 15 games before transferreing to FGCU as a preferred walk-on. Ko sat out the whole season upon transferring due to the NCAA transfer rules and was listed as a redshirt junior.
In his redshirt junior year, Ko appeared in five games where he had seven points (1.4 PPG), five rebounds (1 RPG), five assists and two steals.
For Ko, he will make his presence known that he's ready for his senior year.
Next up is my best friend Christian Terrell.
The 6-5 guard from Jacksonville, Florida can really bring impact as a 3-point specialist.
In his freshman year, Terrell played in all 33 games with one start. Terrell had 110 points (3.3 PPG), 52 rebounds (1.6 RPG), 26 assists, seven blocks and nine steals. Terrell's hard work earned him a spot for the A-Sun Conference All-Freshman Team and was the first FGCU selection since Bernard Thompson and Brett Comer were selected during the 2011-12 season.
In his sophomore year, Terrell started 24 of his 35 games played backing up Filip Cvjeticanin before being named a starter for the rest of the season. Terrell had 446 points (12.7 PPG), 177 rebounds (5.1 RPG), 82 assists, 13 blocks and 42 steals. Terrell was named on the A-SUN All-Tournament Team for his hard work in the conference tournament.
In his junior year, Terrell's stats dropped a bit. Starting 31 of his 33 games, Terrell had 337 points (10.2 PPG), 105 rebounds (3.2 RPG), 80 assists, eight blocks and 26 steals. Terrell was ranked 4th on FGCU in scoring, 3rd in 3-point percentage (.351 – 53-151) and 3rd in assists.
With his hot shots, Terrell will be making sure that everyone is keeping eyes on him.
You need a guy with a big body and Antravious Simmons is a god fit.
The 6-9 forward from Miami, Florida certainly has the body to box out opposing big men and it shows.
Simmons has more physic to be a football player than a basketball player and arguably it's true. Simmons originally played offensive line in high school before being a basketball player to transform his body better to play basketball.
Prior to FGCU, Simmons played his freshman year for Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) of the Atlantic 10 Conference, he played in three games for VCU averaging 0.7 PPG and 0.7 RPG before transferring to FGCU.
In his redshirt sophomore year, Simmon was not originally expected to be eligible to play, but the NCAA gave him a waiver 24 hours before the season started. Simmons started 16 of his 34 games played where he had 269 points (7.9 PPG), 178 rebounds (5.2 RPG), 23 assists, 14 blocks and 14 steals.
In his redshirt junior year, Simmons started 11 of his 34 games played with 185 (5.4 PPG), 117 rebounds (3.4 RPG), 13 assists, six blocks and 10 steals.
With his strong physic, Simmons will show that no one can step up to him in the paint.
Last, but never least is Brandon Goodwin.
A 6-2 guard from Norcross, Georgia, Goodwin came with a opportunity for redemption.
Prior to FGCU this season, Goodwin played his first two years at the University of Central Florida (UCF) of the American Athletic Conference.
In his freshman year as a Golden Knight, Goodwin played in 28 games with nine starts with 83 points (3 PPG), 53 rebounds (1.9 RPG), 49 assists (1.8 APG), one block and 13 steals (0.5).
When sophomore year hit for Goodwin, things turned around. He managed to get 307 points (10.2 PPG), 117 rebounds (3.9 RPG), 127 assists (4.2 APG) four blocks and 37 steals (1.9 SPG) before transferring to FGCU.
After sitting out one whole season because of the NCAA Transfer Rule, Goodwin went off for his redshirt junior year. Starting all 34 games played, Goodwin had the program’s single-season scoring record of 629 points (18.5 PPG), 154 rebounds (4.5 RPG), 139 assists (4.1 APG), two blocks and 41 steals (1.2 SPG). As a result, Goodwin was named 1x A-SUN Player of the Week, a league record 6x A-SUN Player of the Week, a member A-SUN All-Tournament Team, the A-SUN All-Tournament MVP, a A-SUN All-Conference First Team member, a NABC District 3 First Team member and the first unanimous winner of the A-SUN Newcomer of the Year.
For Goodwin, he will make everyone know that second chances can make people stronger.
To back up the seniors, four juniors come in profoundly: Ricky Doyle (F), Michael Gilmore (F), Dolan Mahoney (G) and Zach Johnson (G).
The first of four juniors is Ricky Doyle.
The 6-10 forward from Cape Coral, Florida came with strong local talent.
Prior to FGCU, Doyle spent his first two years at the University of Michigan of the Big Ten Conference.
In his freshman year at Michigan, Doyle started 19 of his 31 games with 190 points (6.1 PPG), 98 rebounds (3.2 RPG), eight assists (0.3 APG), seven steals (0.2 SPG) and 12 blocks (0.4 BPG).
In his sophomore year, Doyle started 11 of his 36 games with 136 points (3.8 PP), 71 points (2 RPG), two assists (0.1 APG), three steals (0.1 SPG) and seven blocks (0.2 BPG) before transferring to FGCU.
Doyle sat out the whole season due last year due to the NCAA Transfer Rule, but you can bet he'll be ready for this season.
Next up is Michael Gilmore.
The 6-10 forward from Jacksonville, Florida came to FGCU, like Goodwin, looking for a second chance.
Prior to FGCU, Gilmore came as a double transfer for Miami and VCU.
After sitting out the whole season while being with the U, Gilmore transferred to VCU.
In his freshman year at VCU, Gilmore played in 25 games with 51 points (2 PPG), 39 rebounds (1.6 RPG), four assists (0.2), six blocks (0.2) and five steals (0.2).
In his sophomore year at VCU, Gilmore produced better numbers. Starting 18 of his 30 games played, Gilmore had 96 points (3.2 PPG), 84 rebounds (2.8 RPG), 12 assists (0.4 APG), seven blocks (0.2 BPG) and 12 steals (0.4 SPG) before transferring to FGCU in the spring.
This season, Gilmore will sit out two semesters per NCAA transfer rules, and will be eligible to begin playing with the Eagles in December of 2017 following completion of the fall semester. He will be eligible for the duration of the 2017-18 season and the entire 2018-19 campaign.
For Gilmore, I'm looking to see him make his debut for FGCU.
A player who I can relate to is Dolan Mahoney.
The 6-2 guard from my town I lived in since I was 9: Bradenton, Florida came to make a difference with FGCU.
Beginning as a walk-on his freshman year, Mahoney played in 10 games with five points (0.5 PPG), one rebound (0.1 RPG), one assist, (0.1 APG) and two steals (0.2 SPG)
In his sophomore year, Mahoney played in five games with five points (1 PPG) and one assist (0.2 APG).
For Mahoney, he will make his presence known to represent Bradenton with ease.
Last but not least is Zach Johnson.
The 6-2 guard from Miami, Florida, Johnson can overcome many odds that fit the eye.
He was originally suppose to play the start of his freshman year at FGCU, but had to medical redshirt, but was able to maintain all four years of elgibility.
In his redshirt freshman year, Johnson went on a tear. Starting 20 of his 35 games, Johnson had 387 points (11.1 PPG), 89 rebounds (2.5 RPG), 115 assists (3.3 APG), 19 blocks (0.5 BPG) and 31 steals (0.9 SPG). Johnson's 387 points set the FGCU freshman scoring record, surpassing the previous mark of 374 by Anthony Banks. Johnson was so successful that he was named a member of the A-SUN All-Freshman Team and the A-SUN All-Tournament Team. Johnson's golden moment was during the Conference Championship finals against Stetson where he made the game saving block to help the Eagles advance to the national tournament.
In his redshirt sophomore year, Johnson had 393 points (11.9 PPG), 93 rebounds (2.8 RPG), 102 assists (3.1 APG), 12 blocks (0.4 BPG) and 45 steals (1.4 SPG). Johnson was ranked 2nd on the team in points and assists.
With his slashing ability and speed, Johnson will give it all he's got.
FGCU managed to ink five transfers to join: Troy Baxter Jr. (F-UNLV), Kyle Hoffman (G- Ottawa/Kansas), Mark Matthews (G- UNCW/USC Aiken), Brady Ernst (F- Iowa State/Indian Hills CC) and Dinero Mercurius (G- USF/UTRGV/Daytona St.)
The first is Troy Baxter Jr.
The 6-8 forward from Tallahassee, Florida came with a good amount of height.
Prior to FGCU, Baxter played his freshman year at UNLV of the Mountain West Conference (MWC). There, Baxter averaged 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game and reached double-figure points four times.
Baxter will be listed as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining, but will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule, but I assure he will be ready for next season.
Next up is Kyle Hoffman.
The 5-9 guard from Lawrence, Kansas comes to FGCU as a double transfer walk-on.
Prior to FGCU, Hoffman played on the junior varsity team for Ottawa University of the NAIA Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) before transferring to Kansas.
Hoffman will be listed as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining, but will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule,
Another local product joining the squad as double transfer walk-on is Mark Matthews.
The 6-6 guard from Ft. Myers comes back to his hometown to make his return.
Prior to FGCU, Matthews started his freshman year at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington (UNCW) of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). There, in 23 games played, Matthews had 78 points (3.3 PPG), 37 rebounds (1.6 RPG), 13 assists (0.6 APG), one block (0.1 BPG) and 10 steals (0.4 SPG).
After his freshman year with the Seahawks, Matthews transferred to NCAA DII USC Aiken of the Peach Belt Conference. There, Matthews started 25 of his 26 games played where he had 403 points (15.5 PPG), 208 rebounds (8 RPG), 59 assists (2.7 APG), two blocks (0.1) and 23 steals (1.1 SPG).
Matthews joins FGCU as a redshirt junior with two years of eligibility remaining, but despite transferring from DII to DI, Matthews will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule. I can assure that he will bring his local talent to the extreme next season.
The final double transfer joining FGCU to bring height to the depth is Brady Ernst.
The 6-10 forward from Clinton, Iowa came for a recovering redemption.
Prior to FGCU, Ernst started his freshman year at Iowa State of the Big 12 Conference. Ernst saw action in six games before being shut down for remainder of season due to a knee injury.
Hoping for another chance to play, Ernst transferred as a redshirt freshman to Indian Hills Community College of NJCAA Region 11/Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC). There, Ernst started 23 of his 28 games played where he had 263 points (9.4 PPG), 183 rebounds (6.5 RPG), 12 assists (0.3 APG), 31 blocks (1.1 BPG) and nine steals (0.3 SPG).
Ernst joins FGCU as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining and is automatically eligible due to the 4-2-4 transfer rule with the NCAA and NJCAA. I look forward to the depth of height he brings for FGCU.
The last of the transfers that is to me the most unique player on the team: Dinero Mercurius.
The 6-4 guard from Orlando, Florida comes to FGCU as a triple transfer (yes, there is such title as a triple transfer) and as a three point specialist.
Prior to FGCU, Mercurius started his freshman year at USF of the AAC. Starting three of his 29 games played, Dinero had 97 points (3.3 PPG), 55 rebounds (1.9 RPG), 21 assists (1.1 AGP) and 11 steals (0.5 SPG).
After transferring to the University of Texas Rio-Grande Valley of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) his sophomore year and sitting out via the NCAA Transfer rule, Mercurius transferred, as a redshirt sophomore, to Daytona State College of NJCAA Region 8/Florida Collegiate School Athletic Association (FCSAA). There, Mercurius had 515 points (17.8 PPG), 132 rebounds (4.6 RPG), 82 assists (3.8 APG), seven blocks (0.2 BPG) and 50 steals (1.7 SPG). Because of his hard work with the Falcons, Mercurius was named to the Mid-Florida Conference First Team.
Mercurius joins FGCU as a redshirt junior with two years of eligibility remaining and is automatically eligible due to the 4-4-2-4 transfer rule with the NCAA and NJCAA.
I look forward to Mercurius opening the banks with his money making 3's.
Two returning sophomores join the fray for FGCU: Raysean Scott Jr. (F) and Christian Carlyle (G).
The first of two sophomores is Raysean Scott Jr.
The 6-7 forward from Compton, California came into play with good measures.
Starting five of his 25 games played as a freshman, Scott had 84 points (3.4 PPG), 52 rebounds (2.1 RPG), nine assists (0.4 APG), three blocks (0.1 BPG) and four steals (0.2 SPG).
With a new style of play, Scott will give it all he's got.
Lastly is Christian Carlyle.
The 6-6 guard from Jacksonville, Florida came as a wild card in the beginning.
In his freshman year, Carlyle played in 20 games with 45 points (2.3 PPG), 21 rebounds (1.1 RPG), 18 assists (0.9 APG), two blocks (0.1 BPG) and eight steals (0.8 SPG).
For Carlyle, he will take the world by storm.
FGCU managed to ink four freshman on the team: Darnell Rogers (G), Ryan McAdoo (G), Brian Thomas (F) and Ryan Roucant (C).
The first of the freshman class is Darnell Rogers.
The 5-2 guard from Baltimore, Maryland came to make a statement. Yes he is considered to be currently the shortest player in the NCAA, but remember the old saying: "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
Prior to FGCU, Rogers played at Indian Land High School under head coach Nate Smith. There, he was a one-time All-County Lancaster Player of the Year and two-time Region 4-2AA Player of the Year. Rogers also led Indian Land to win its first Region 4-2AA Championship in 30 years and won it again in 2014-15.
Rogers then transferred to Shiloh High School his senior year where he finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,776 points.
After graduating, Rogers enrolled at Believe Preparatory School where he averaged 23 points, seven assists and two steals per game.
With his ability, Rogers will make his presence known that he's ready.
Joining FGCU as a preferred walk-on and a basketball blood background is Ryan McAdoo.
The 6-5 guard from Boca Raton, Florida brings NBA blood with him from his father, Bob McAdoo (Yes, the same Bob McAdoo from the 1982 and 1985 NBA Champion L.A. Lakers).
Prior to FGCU, McAdoo played at St. Andrews School under head coach John O'Connell. There, McAdoo averaged 6.2 points, 5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game as a senior and garnered Most Improved Player honors after increasing those numbers from 3 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.5 apg and 0.6 spg as a junior.
With his basketball family background, McAdoo will keep the family blood in order.
One player who made the right choice to come to FGCU is Brian Thomas.
The 6-9 forward from Kennesaw, Georgia made the right move by not going to Kennesaw State.
Prior to FGCU, Thomas played for Kell High School under head coach Jermaine Sellers. Thomas was rated a 3-star recruit by Rivals and tabbed as the 16th-best player in the entire talent-laden state of Georgia. Thomas averaged 11 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks per game as a junior and was named an all-region performer the same year. According to HoopSeen.com, Thomas was named as the top recruit in the entire A-SUN Conference.
With his height and blocking ability, Thomas will be the sure factor for the team.
Last, but not least on the team who I knew prior to FGCU is Ryan Roucant.
The 6-10 center from Estero, Florida brings local talent to the mix.
Prior to FGCU, Roucant played for Estero High School under head coach Willie Neal. There, Roucant averaged 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks per game as a junior and was a Summa Cum Laude graduate.
Roucant is a preferred walk-on, but will redshirt to maintain all four years of eligbility.
For Roucant, he will surely bring it on for the locals.
I've hung around some of the greatest players from Dunk City and meeting the new players and getting to know who they are is quite nice.
This season may have some curves and hurdles coming to them, but I know they can bounce back and show what Dunk City is all about.
PC: FGCUathletics.com
Last year, the men's basketball team went 26-8 with a 12-2 record in conference. They won the conference tournament and an automatic bid in the national tournament as the No. 14 seed, but would fall to FSU in the first round by a score of 86-80.
The team is led by Joe Dooley. Dooley enters his 5th season as head coach for FGCU.
A native of West Orange, N.J., Dooley came in clutch after Andy Enfield's departure for USC.
Prior to his coaching career, Dooley played for George Washington University where he was a four-year letterwinner and started his last two seasons and elected a team captain as a senior.
After his tenure with GW, Dooley began his coaching career as an assistant coach for South Carolina and East Carolina before securing the head coach position for ECU. Dooley lead the program to a 57-52 record over four seasons prior to his stint at New Mexico where he was one of just two head coaches in ECU history to produce a winning record at the D-I level. In his first season at the helm in 1995-96, Dooley also became the winningest first-year head coach in more than 20 years with a 17-11 mark.
In 2007, he was rated the fourth-best recruiter in the nation by Rivals.com for the class that included McDonald's All-American Cole Aldrich and Tyrel Reed. He also brought in future NBA draftees Sasha Kaun and Mario Chalmers. Kansas produced 300 wins, nine straight Big 12 regular-season titles, six Big 12 Tournament championships, six NCAA Sweet 16s, five NCAA Elite Eight appearances and two Final Fours, including the 2008 National Championship.
After his tenure with ECU, Dooley served a three year tenure as an assistant coach with New Mexico and a one year tenure with Wyoming before taking a position as an assistant coach with Kansas. Dooley’s 10 seasons with Kansas yielded nine in which the Jayhawks averaged more than 75 points per contest, including 80 or more three times. Kansas finished in the top three in the Big 12 in scoring seven of 10 years, highlighted by the 2009-10 and 2010-11 campaigns in which it posted a league-high 81.6 and 81.2 points per game, respectively.
In July 2010, Dooley was ranked first in the Top 25 High-Major Assistants by Foxsports.com, which was up from his No. 6 ranking by the media outlet in 2008.
After his 10 year tenure with the Jayhawks, Dooley became head coach for FGCU.
From the first time he set foot on the beach-lined campus, Dooley stressed the importance of filling Alico Arena, and the fans responded during the 2013-14 season as the Eagles posted a season-high-tying 15 home victories inside the friendly confines. A record 73,780 fans – including 13 sellouts, six standing-room sellouts and an average of 4,340 – witnessed Dunk City in action at Alico, roughly 12,000 more than the previous two seasons combined. Dooley completed his first season on the FGCU sidelines in 2013-14, guiding the Eagles to their first A-Sun regular-season championship and first trip to the NIT. FGCU finished the year with a 22-13 record, including a record 14 wins as part of a 14-4 A-Sun mark. The 22 victories were the most in Dooley’s tenure as a head coach, and represented the second-most in FGCU’s Division-I era (2007-08).
In his second season, Dooley posted his second-consecutive 22-win season with FGCU as the Eagles made their third-straight postseason appearance by hosting a CIT (CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament) opening-round game. The Green and Blue finished with a 22-11 overall record, including an 11-3 mark in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
In his third season, Dooley posted his third-straight 20-win season (21-14) with FGCU in 2015-16 as the Eagles won their second Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Championship in four years. FGCU won its third NCAA Tournament game in four years with a 96-65 victory over 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson in the First Four with the 31-point margin of victory in that round of the tournament being the largest in NCAA history. The Eagles would go on to face top-seeded North Carolina in the First Round and trailed by just one at halftime, 41-40, before falling to the Tar Heels in Raleigh, 83-67.
In his fourth season, Dooley was named the A-SUN Coach of the Year and District 3 Coach of the Year after guiding FGCU to a 26-8 record, matching the program’s Division-I single-season wins record and posting the first single-digit loss campaign in the D-I era. The Eagles set a D-I program record for regular-season wins with 23, and finished the A-SUN slate at 12-2 for a program-best .857 winning percentage. Those 12 wins were enough for FGCU to claim its first outright ASUN regular-season title in program history (second overall; shared in Dooley’s first season in 2013-14), and followed it up with a second-straight A-SUN Tournament Championship. The Eagles played their sixth NCAA Tournament game in five seasons after receiving a program-best No. 14 seed and fell just short to No. 3 seed Florida State, the second-tallest team in the nation by a score of 86-80.
With his experience as head coach, Dooley will make other teams aware Dunk City is always ready.
The team has lost eight players: Marc-Eddy Norelia and Demetris Morant have graduated and are playing professional ball overseas in Greece (Morant) and France (Norelia).In his second season, Dooley posted his second-consecutive 22-win season with FGCU as the Eagles made their third-straight postseason appearance by hosting a CIT (CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament) opening-round game. The Green and Blue finished with a 22-11 overall record, including an 11-3 mark in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
In his third season, Dooley posted his third-straight 20-win season (21-14) with FGCU in 2015-16 as the Eagles won their second Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Championship in four years. FGCU won its third NCAA Tournament game in four years with a 96-65 victory over 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson in the First Four with the 31-point margin of victory in that round of the tournament being the largest in NCAA history. The Eagles would go on to face top-seeded North Carolina in the First Round and trailed by just one at halftime, 41-40, before falling to the Tar Heels in Raleigh, 83-67.
In his fourth season, Dooley was named the A-SUN Coach of the Year and District 3 Coach of the Year after guiding FGCU to a 26-8 record, matching the program’s Division-I single-season wins record and posting the first single-digit loss campaign in the D-I era. The Eagles set a D-I program record for regular-season wins with 23, and finished the A-SUN slate at 12-2 for a program-best .857 winning percentage. Those 12 wins were enough for FGCU to claim its first outright ASUN regular-season title in program history (second overall; shared in Dooley’s first season in 2013-14), and followed it up with a second-straight A-SUN Tournament Championship. The Eagles played their sixth NCAA Tournament game in five seasons after receiving a program-best No. 14 seed and fell just short to No. 3 seed Florida State, the second-tallest team in the nation by a score of 86-80.
With his experience as head coach, Dooley will make other teams aware Dunk City is always ready.
Kevin Mickle has graduated and transferred to Ohio University using his last year of eligibility there as a grad student.
Junior Rayjon Tucker transferred to the University of Arkansas-Little Rock.
Junior Maxx Bleecher quit to be with his fraternity and sophomore Rendjis Feikners quit to go back to Latvia.
Junior Reggie Reid transferred to NCAA DII Texas A&M-Commerce.
C.J. Williamson was dismissed prior to last season due to disciplinary reasons and is now playing for NJCAA Chipola College.
This year's squad consists of four seniors, four juniors, five transfers, two sophomores and four freshman.
The four seniors that come into play strongly are as followed: Josh Ko (G), Christian Terrell (G), Antravious Simmons (F) and Brandon Goodwin (G).
First up is Josh Ko.
A 6-1 guard from Kailua, Hawaii, Ko came with a strong purpose and opportunity.
Prior to FGCU, Ko played for the University of Pittsburgh of the ACC his freshman and sophomore years. He played a total of 15 games before transferreing to FGCU as a preferred walk-on. Ko sat out the whole season upon transferring due to the NCAA transfer rules and was listed as a redshirt junior.
In his redshirt junior year, Ko appeared in five games where he had seven points (1.4 PPG), five rebounds (1 RPG), five assists and two steals.
For Ko, he will make his presence known that he's ready for his senior year.
Next up is my best friend Christian Terrell.
The 6-5 guard from Jacksonville, Florida can really bring impact as a 3-point specialist.
In his freshman year, Terrell played in all 33 games with one start. Terrell had 110 points (3.3 PPG), 52 rebounds (1.6 RPG), 26 assists, seven blocks and nine steals. Terrell's hard work earned him a spot for the A-Sun Conference All-Freshman Team and was the first FGCU selection since Bernard Thompson and Brett Comer were selected during the 2011-12 season.
In his sophomore year, Terrell started 24 of his 35 games played backing up Filip Cvjeticanin before being named a starter for the rest of the season. Terrell had 446 points (12.7 PPG), 177 rebounds (5.1 RPG), 82 assists, 13 blocks and 42 steals. Terrell was named on the A-SUN All-Tournament Team for his hard work in the conference tournament.
In his junior year, Terrell's stats dropped a bit. Starting 31 of his 33 games, Terrell had 337 points (10.2 PPG), 105 rebounds (3.2 RPG), 80 assists, eight blocks and 26 steals. Terrell was ranked 4th on FGCU in scoring, 3rd in 3-point percentage (.351 – 53-151) and 3rd in assists.
With his hot shots, Terrell will be making sure that everyone is keeping eyes on him.
You need a guy with a big body and Antravious Simmons is a god fit.
The 6-9 forward from Miami, Florida certainly has the body to box out opposing big men and it shows.
Simmons has more physic to be a football player than a basketball player and arguably it's true. Simmons originally played offensive line in high school before being a basketball player to transform his body better to play basketball.
Prior to FGCU, Simmons played his freshman year for Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) of the Atlantic 10 Conference, he played in three games for VCU averaging 0.7 PPG and 0.7 RPG before transferring to FGCU.
In his redshirt sophomore year, Simmon was not originally expected to be eligible to play, but the NCAA gave him a waiver 24 hours before the season started. Simmons started 16 of his 34 games played where he had 269 points (7.9 PPG), 178 rebounds (5.2 RPG), 23 assists, 14 blocks and 14 steals.
In his redshirt junior year, Simmons started 11 of his 34 games played with 185 (5.4 PPG), 117 rebounds (3.4 RPG), 13 assists, six blocks and 10 steals.
With his strong physic, Simmons will show that no one can step up to him in the paint.
Last, but never least is Brandon Goodwin.
A 6-2 guard from Norcross, Georgia, Goodwin came with a opportunity for redemption.
Prior to FGCU this season, Goodwin played his first two years at the University of Central Florida (UCF) of the American Athletic Conference.
In his freshman year as a Golden Knight, Goodwin played in 28 games with nine starts with 83 points (3 PPG), 53 rebounds (1.9 RPG), 49 assists (1.8 APG), one block and 13 steals (0.5).
When sophomore year hit for Goodwin, things turned around. He managed to get 307 points (10.2 PPG), 117 rebounds (3.9 RPG), 127 assists (4.2 APG) four blocks and 37 steals (1.9 SPG) before transferring to FGCU.
After sitting out one whole season because of the NCAA Transfer Rule, Goodwin went off for his redshirt junior year. Starting all 34 games played, Goodwin had the program’s single-season scoring record of 629 points (18.5 PPG), 154 rebounds (4.5 RPG), 139 assists (4.1 APG), two blocks and 41 steals (1.2 SPG). As a result, Goodwin was named 1x A-SUN Player of the Week, a league record 6x A-SUN Player of the Week, a member A-SUN All-Tournament Team, the A-SUN All-Tournament MVP, a A-SUN All-Conference First Team member, a NABC District 3 First Team member and the first unanimous winner of the A-SUN Newcomer of the Year.
For Goodwin, he will make everyone know that second chances can make people stronger.
To back up the seniors, four juniors come in profoundly: Ricky Doyle (F), Michael Gilmore (F), Dolan Mahoney (G) and Zach Johnson (G).
The first of four juniors is Ricky Doyle.
The 6-10 forward from Cape Coral, Florida came with strong local talent.
Prior to FGCU, Doyle spent his first two years at the University of Michigan of the Big Ten Conference.
In his freshman year at Michigan, Doyle started 19 of his 31 games with 190 points (6.1 PPG), 98 rebounds (3.2 RPG), eight assists (0.3 APG), seven steals (0.2 SPG) and 12 blocks (0.4 BPG).
In his sophomore year, Doyle started 11 of his 36 games with 136 points (3.8 PP), 71 points (2 RPG), two assists (0.1 APG), three steals (0.1 SPG) and seven blocks (0.2 BPG) before transferring to FGCU.
Doyle sat out the whole season due last year due to the NCAA Transfer Rule, but you can bet he'll be ready for this season.
Next up is Michael Gilmore.
The 6-10 forward from Jacksonville, Florida came to FGCU, like Goodwin, looking for a second chance.
Prior to FGCU, Gilmore came as a double transfer for Miami and VCU.
After sitting out the whole season while being with the U, Gilmore transferred to VCU.
In his freshman year at VCU, Gilmore played in 25 games with 51 points (2 PPG), 39 rebounds (1.6 RPG), four assists (0.2), six blocks (0.2) and five steals (0.2).
In his sophomore year at VCU, Gilmore produced better numbers. Starting 18 of his 30 games played, Gilmore had 96 points (3.2 PPG), 84 rebounds (2.8 RPG), 12 assists (0.4 APG), seven blocks (0.2 BPG) and 12 steals (0.4 SPG) before transferring to FGCU in the spring.
This season, Gilmore will sit out two semesters per NCAA transfer rules, and will be eligible to begin playing with the Eagles in December of 2017 following completion of the fall semester. He will be eligible for the duration of the 2017-18 season and the entire 2018-19 campaign.
For Gilmore, I'm looking to see him make his debut for FGCU.
A player who I can relate to is Dolan Mahoney.
The 6-2 guard from my town I lived in since I was 9: Bradenton, Florida came to make a difference with FGCU.
Beginning as a walk-on his freshman year, Mahoney played in 10 games with five points (0.5 PPG), one rebound (0.1 RPG), one assist, (0.1 APG) and two steals (0.2 SPG)
In his sophomore year, Mahoney played in five games with five points (1 PPG) and one assist (0.2 APG).
For Mahoney, he will make his presence known to represent Bradenton with ease.
Last but not least is Zach Johnson.
The 6-2 guard from Miami, Florida, Johnson can overcome many odds that fit the eye.
He was originally suppose to play the start of his freshman year at FGCU, but had to medical redshirt, but was able to maintain all four years of elgibility.
In his redshirt freshman year, Johnson went on a tear. Starting 20 of his 35 games, Johnson had 387 points (11.1 PPG), 89 rebounds (2.5 RPG), 115 assists (3.3 APG), 19 blocks (0.5 BPG) and 31 steals (0.9 SPG). Johnson's 387 points set the FGCU freshman scoring record, surpassing the previous mark of 374 by Anthony Banks. Johnson was so successful that he was named a member of the A-SUN All-Freshman Team and the A-SUN All-Tournament Team. Johnson's golden moment was during the Conference Championship finals against Stetson where he made the game saving block to help the Eagles advance to the national tournament.
In his redshirt sophomore year, Johnson had 393 points (11.9 PPG), 93 rebounds (2.8 RPG), 102 assists (3.1 APG), 12 blocks (0.4 BPG) and 45 steals (1.4 SPG). Johnson was ranked 2nd on the team in points and assists.
With his slashing ability and speed, Johnson will give it all he's got.
FGCU managed to ink five transfers to join: Troy Baxter Jr. (F-UNLV), Kyle Hoffman (G- Ottawa/Kansas), Mark Matthews (G- UNCW/USC Aiken), Brady Ernst (F- Iowa State/Indian Hills CC) and Dinero Mercurius (G- USF/UTRGV/Daytona St.)
The first is Troy Baxter Jr.
The 6-8 forward from Tallahassee, Florida came with a good amount of height.
Prior to FGCU, Baxter played his freshman year at UNLV of the Mountain West Conference (MWC). There, Baxter averaged 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game and reached double-figure points four times.
Baxter will be listed as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining, but will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule, but I assure he will be ready for next season.
Next up is Kyle Hoffman.
The 5-9 guard from Lawrence, Kansas comes to FGCU as a double transfer walk-on.
Prior to FGCU, Hoffman played on the junior varsity team for Ottawa University of the NAIA Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) before transferring to Kansas.
Hoffman will be listed as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining, but will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule,
Another local product joining the squad as double transfer walk-on is Mark Matthews.
The 6-6 guard from Ft. Myers comes back to his hometown to make his return.
Prior to FGCU, Matthews started his freshman year at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington (UNCW) of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). There, in 23 games played, Matthews had 78 points (3.3 PPG), 37 rebounds (1.6 RPG), 13 assists (0.6 APG), one block (0.1 BPG) and 10 steals (0.4 SPG).
After his freshman year with the Seahawks, Matthews transferred to NCAA DII USC Aiken of the Peach Belt Conference. There, Matthews started 25 of his 26 games played where he had 403 points (15.5 PPG), 208 rebounds (8 RPG), 59 assists (2.7 APG), two blocks (0.1) and 23 steals (1.1 SPG).
Matthews joins FGCU as a redshirt junior with two years of eligibility remaining, but despite transferring from DII to DI, Matthews will sit out this season due to compliance with the NCAA Transfer rule. I can assure that he will bring his local talent to the extreme next season.
The final double transfer joining FGCU to bring height to the depth is Brady Ernst.
The 6-10 forward from Clinton, Iowa came for a recovering redemption.
Prior to FGCU, Ernst started his freshman year at Iowa State of the Big 12 Conference. Ernst saw action in six games before being shut down for remainder of season due to a knee injury.
Hoping for another chance to play, Ernst transferred as a redshirt freshman to Indian Hills Community College of NJCAA Region 11/Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC). There, Ernst started 23 of his 28 games played where he had 263 points (9.4 PPG), 183 rebounds (6.5 RPG), 12 assists (0.3 APG), 31 blocks (1.1 BPG) and nine steals (0.3 SPG).
Ernst joins FGCU as a redshirt sophomore and will have three years of eligibility remaining and is automatically eligible due to the 4-2-4 transfer rule with the NCAA and NJCAA. I look forward to the depth of height he brings for FGCU.
The last of the transfers that is to me the most unique player on the team: Dinero Mercurius.
The 6-4 guard from Orlando, Florida comes to FGCU as a triple transfer (yes, there is such title as a triple transfer) and as a three point specialist.
Prior to FGCU, Mercurius started his freshman year at USF of the AAC. Starting three of his 29 games played, Dinero had 97 points (3.3 PPG), 55 rebounds (1.9 RPG), 21 assists (1.1 AGP) and 11 steals (0.5 SPG).
After transferring to the University of Texas Rio-Grande Valley of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) his sophomore year and sitting out via the NCAA Transfer rule, Mercurius transferred, as a redshirt sophomore, to Daytona State College of NJCAA Region 8/Florida Collegiate School Athletic Association (FCSAA). There, Mercurius had 515 points (17.8 PPG), 132 rebounds (4.6 RPG), 82 assists (3.8 APG), seven blocks (0.2 BPG) and 50 steals (1.7 SPG). Because of his hard work with the Falcons, Mercurius was named to the Mid-Florida Conference First Team.
Mercurius joins FGCU as a redshirt junior with two years of eligibility remaining and is automatically eligible due to the 4-4-2-4 transfer rule with the NCAA and NJCAA.
I look forward to Mercurius opening the banks with his money making 3's.
Two returning sophomores join the fray for FGCU: Raysean Scott Jr. (F) and Christian Carlyle (G).
The first of two sophomores is Raysean Scott Jr.
The 6-7 forward from Compton, California came into play with good measures.
Starting five of his 25 games played as a freshman, Scott had 84 points (3.4 PPG), 52 rebounds (2.1 RPG), nine assists (0.4 APG), three blocks (0.1 BPG) and four steals (0.2 SPG).
With a new style of play, Scott will give it all he's got.
Lastly is Christian Carlyle.
The 6-6 guard from Jacksonville, Florida came as a wild card in the beginning.
In his freshman year, Carlyle played in 20 games with 45 points (2.3 PPG), 21 rebounds (1.1 RPG), 18 assists (0.9 APG), two blocks (0.1 BPG) and eight steals (0.8 SPG).
For Carlyle, he will take the world by storm.
FGCU managed to ink four freshman on the team: Darnell Rogers (G), Ryan McAdoo (G), Brian Thomas (F) and Ryan Roucant (C).
The first of the freshman class is Darnell Rogers.
The 5-2 guard from Baltimore, Maryland came to make a statement. Yes he is considered to be currently the shortest player in the NCAA, but remember the old saying: "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
Prior to FGCU, Rogers played at Indian Land High School under head coach Nate Smith. There, he was a one-time All-County Lancaster Player of the Year and two-time Region 4-2AA Player of the Year. Rogers also led Indian Land to win its first Region 4-2AA Championship in 30 years and won it again in 2014-15.
Rogers then transferred to Shiloh High School his senior year where he finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,776 points.
After graduating, Rogers enrolled at Believe Preparatory School where he averaged 23 points, seven assists and two steals per game.
With his ability, Rogers will make his presence known that he's ready.
Joining FGCU as a preferred walk-on and a basketball blood background is Ryan McAdoo.
The 6-5 guard from Boca Raton, Florida brings NBA blood with him from his father, Bob McAdoo (Yes, the same Bob McAdoo from the 1982 and 1985 NBA Champion L.A. Lakers).
Prior to FGCU, McAdoo played at St. Andrews School under head coach John O'Connell. There, McAdoo averaged 6.2 points, 5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game as a senior and garnered Most Improved Player honors after increasing those numbers from 3 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.5 apg and 0.6 spg as a junior.
With his basketball family background, McAdoo will keep the family blood in order.
One player who made the right choice to come to FGCU is Brian Thomas.
The 6-9 forward from Kennesaw, Georgia made the right move by not going to Kennesaw State.
Prior to FGCU, Thomas played for Kell High School under head coach Jermaine Sellers. Thomas was rated a 3-star recruit by Rivals and tabbed as the 16th-best player in the entire talent-laden state of Georgia. Thomas averaged 11 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks per game as a junior and was named an all-region performer the same year. According to HoopSeen.com, Thomas was named as the top recruit in the entire A-SUN Conference.
With his height and blocking ability, Thomas will be the sure factor for the team.
Last, but not least on the team who I knew prior to FGCU is Ryan Roucant.
The 6-10 center from Estero, Florida brings local talent to the mix.
Prior to FGCU, Roucant played for Estero High School under head coach Willie Neal. There, Roucant averaged 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks per game as a junior and was a Summa Cum Laude graduate.
Roucant is a preferred walk-on, but will redshirt to maintain all four years of eligbility.
For Roucant, he will surely bring it on for the locals.
I've hung around some of the greatest players from Dunk City and meeting the new players and getting to know who they are is quite nice.
This season may have some curves and hurdles coming to them, but I know they can bounce back and show what Dunk City is all about.
PC: FGCUathletics.com
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