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