Catching up with the Eagles: Aug. 21-28 FGCU soccer, volleyball results include Big 10 wins

Here is a roundup of how FGCU athletic teams fared in contests played from Sunday, Aug. 21 to Sunday, Aug. 28 and a schedule for games being played this week.

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Men's soccer downs Northeastern

FGCU picked up its sixth win over a Power Five school in program history by downing Northwestern 1-0 on Sunday night at Pickering Field.

Davi Alves buried the ball inside the far post at the 23:17 minute after a corner kick was sent in from the far sideline for the game's only goal.

The Eagles commanded possession for most of the night which resulted in a 23-to-11 shot advantage. The 23 shots is tied as the fifth-most for a single game in program history.

"I loved our first half - I thought it was full of passing, movement, and rhythm. I thought they were really struggling to sort of maintain structure and we were able to break through it at times," said head coach Jesse Cormier. "Davi's goal was fantastic, but I think there were a lot of opportunities in the game, especially in the first half. You can't give a team life, and we did that a bit in the second half. They are a mentally tough team and they're a Big Ten team. They tied Notre Dame last week, so they are not going to fall out of the game. We have to do a much better job to put a team away, but it's definitely progression in terms of how we played as opposed to what we did at USF."

The previous Eagles wins against Power Five schools were Penn State (2008), Ohio State (2010), South Carolina (2012), Rutgers (2016) and Michigan (2019).

FGCU and South Florida battled for 90 minutes, but neither team could score on a 0-0 draw on Thursday night at Corbett Stadium.

"What a challenge, what a battle, the game was delayed, it's their home opener, and we had a few key guys having to come off with cramping; but we still achieved a clean sheet and got a point on the road," said Cormier. "Our guys maintained structure, competed for virtually every moment and I felt we were a bit unlucky to not take the lead in the first half. Our depth and quality substitutes shined tonight with a special recognition for our defense getting the shutout."

Overall, the Bulls posted 10 shots but none reached FGCU sophomore Wyatt Kistner, while the Eagles tallied seven but had four on goal.

Women's soccer beats Southern

The FGCU women's soccer team picked up its first win of the season Thursday night, beating Southern, 4-1, at Pickering Field. The Eagles improved to 1-2 on the season.

"It's great to get our first win under us," said head coach Jim Blankenship. "I love the way we played and I feel like we've gotten better each game. It's nice to be rewarded with some pretty goals and great team effort."

Sophomore Ashley Labbe scored twice. Junior Louise Lillback and redshirt-freshman Lindsey Saad added goals for the Eagles. FGCU's offense was relentless all night as they took 34 shots, half of which were on goal, while they allowed just five shot attempts

The Eagles hit the road for the first time this season on Sunday, Aug. 21 and fell 3-1 to South Florida.

"We got off to a slow start in this game, but I thought we played better in the second half," Blankenship said. "We'll try to use what we did in the second half to build on for the next game and the rest of the season."

Lillback found the back of the net for the Eagles, Labbe picked up the assist on the play.

FGCU took an early lead against No. 23 UCF Sunday afternoon, but could not hold on as the Knights defeated the Eagles, 3-1.

"We got off to a great start taking the early lead, but UCF is a good team and they responded," Blankenship said. "This was a good game to see how we match up against a top-25 team and we can use what we learned today for the rest of the season."

Lillback got the scoring started just 81 seconds into the game as she look a pass from graduate student Libby Helverson in the box and fired a shot just past the outstretched foot of UCF keeper Caroline DeLisle.

The goal was Lillback's 28th of her career which ties her for second all-time in FGCU history with Shannen Wacker, only behind Tabby Tindell's 66.

volleyball defeats Maryland

FGCU defeated Maryland 3-1 on the road to go undefeated at the Maryland Invite Saturday. The victory marked the eighth Power Five win and the third win over a Big Ten opponent in program history.

"So pleased with the effort and focus tonight," head coach Matt Botsford said. "Maryland is a quality squad that has a lot of talented and physical players that pose a lot of matchup issues. I thought the team did a nice job at the service line to disrupt their offense, and that played a big role in our successes. A lot of great individual performances, but we won this one because of the team's consistency and depth in each position. Nice to get a road win against a Big Ten team and a great way to finish the weekend!"

With the weekend sweep at the Maryland Invite, FGCU improved to 3-0 to begin the 2022 season after the Eagles defeated Navy and Rhode Island 3-1 on Friday.

The ASUN Preseason Player of the Year Erin Shomaker tallied 27 kills, tying a career-high and tying fifth all-time in FCCU individual match records for the most kills in a single contest. For a four-set contest, 27 kills tie the program record for a single match. Shomaker also moved into sixth place all-time in career kills at FGCU at 938.

Skylar English added 13 kills to the Eagle cause. FGCU also topped the Terps in overall aces 11-5 thanks to English's teaming-leading five.

Dana Axner recorded a team-leading 19 digs, while Chelsey Lockey added 15 digs and 49 assists.

Axner became the FGCU's new all-time leader in career digs (1,986) in the win over Navy Friday. Clark had 11 kills. Shomaker added eight kills and seven blocks. Lockey recorded 28 assists. With 14 digs against Navy, Axner became FGCU's new all-time leader in career digs (1,972), surpassing Whitney Hendry's (2004-07) total of 1,965.

Shomaker (15) and Clark (12) posted double-digit kills against the Rams. Tennessee transfer Lilly Felts struck for nine. Shomaker is now 16 kills away from moving into sixth all-time in career kills at FGCU, 911. Lockey recorded 46 assists and English posted five blocks.

Eagles schedule this week

FRIDAY

Men's Soccer vs. Central Florida, 7 p.m.

Volleyball at Alabama State, 1 p.m. at Colorado State Invitational

Men's Cross Country at UCF Invitational, 6 p.m.

Women's Cross Country at UCF Invitational 6 p.m.

Volleyball at Colorado State, 9 p.m. at Colorado State Invitational

SATURDAY

Volleyball vs. Arkansas, 1 p.m. at Colorado State Invitational

SUNDAY

Women's Soccer vs. Florida Atlantic, 1 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Florida Gulf Coast soccer and volleyball beat Maryland, Northwestern