JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida's women's soccer opens up Atlantic Sun play on the back of a 2-1 win against Troy as the Ospreys host rival FGCU Thursday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m.

It's been over two years since the Ospreys hosted the Eagles, with North Florida earning a 1-0 win in the last such matchup.

MATCH DETAILS

• Who: FGCU
• What: Match 8, First Atlantic Sun match
• When: Thursday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. 
• Where: Hodges Stadium 
• Live Stats: www.unfospreys.com // sidearmstats.com
• Watch: ESPN+

MATCH NOTES
Series History
This is the 19th matchup between the Ospreys and Eagles … UNF won the last game that took place at Hodges Stadium, 1-0, Mar. 3, 2021… the Ospreys and Eagles last faced off in the first round of the 2022 ASUN Women's Soccer Championship, with FGCU narrowly taking a 1-0 lead on a punched in goal late … head coach Eric Faulconer has coached UNF to two wins over FGCU . 

Last Time Out
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - UNF women's soccer striker Jersi Dadah took full advantage of her second start this season, bookending Sunday's match with two goals as her brace helped lift North Florida (2-3-2) past Troy (5-3), 2-1, Sept. 10.

Scouting Report

• FGCU starts the season with a 3-3-1 record 
• The Eagles wins have come against Texas A&M - Corpus Christi, USF and FIU
• Before defeating FIU, the Eagles saw a 1-2 record on the road playing to a draw at High Point and falling to Appalachian State and FAU
• Sophomore Erika Zschuppe paces the team with three goals, one assist and seven points to her name 
• Grace Paradis leads the side with two assists
• Keeper Olivia Molina has played over 600 minutes making 48 saves in seven appearances 
• Jim Blankenship enters his 17th season as head coach, coming off the back of winning the 2022 ASUN Women's Soccer Championship and a first NCAA tournament appearance since 2017 
• FGCU was tabbed to finish second in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll

Dadah's Dramatics

• Jersi Dadah's brace lifted the Ospreys to a 2-1 victory over Troy, Sunday Sept. 10
• Dadah became the first Osprey to record a brace since Kayla Bond in a 4-1 win over Western Carolina Aug. 19, 2021
• Chloe Lynch, Gabby Daly and Sophia Goetz all recorded their first assist of the campaign against Troy 
• Dadah now paces the team with two goals and five points to her name

Of Note

• UNF is 9-1-0 under head coach Eric Faulconer when North Florida scores two goals
• North Florida is 31-1-2 under head coach Eric Faulconer when North Florida scores first

Conference Play - Looking Ahead

• The Ospreys open up conference play hosting FGCU Thursday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. 
• UNF is also set to host Lipscomb, Austin Peay, North Alabama and Central Arkansas 
• Stetson, Eastern Kentucky, Bellarmine, Queens (N.C.), Kennesaw State and Jacksonville will be played on the road 

Record Numbers 

• North Florida women's soccer set a new women's sporting event attendance record hosting a crowd of 4,459 at Hodges Stadium against #1/5 Florida State Thursday, Sept. 7 
• This shatters the previous record of 1,017 set by North Florida women's basketball against Liberty, Jan. 12, 2023 
• At the time it was the seventh highest across NCAA DI women's soccer this season 

Preseason Honors

• North Florida was tabbed third in the ASUN Preseason Coaches Poll
• Sofia Miliancano, Allyna Thurston and Zara Siassi all made the Preseason All-ASUN Team
• Miliancano put the league on notice with her play last year and was named ASUN Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
• Thurston was named to the United Soccer Coaches Defenders to Watch List

Taking Inventory

• The Ospreys return a veteran team that features 25 returners
• 19 of the 38 Ospreys are underclassmen, with 20 being upperclassmen
• UNF returns 88 percent of its scoring from last year while goalkeeper Sofia Miliancano brings back 12 matches of experience from a season ago 
• UNF's stingy defense in 2022 brings in a stretch of allowing just one goal from Oct. 9 through Oct. 27.