NASHVILLE, Tenn. (November 4, 2023) – The University of North Alabama women's soccer team travels to Nashville, Tenn. to take on FGCU in the ASUN Championship Final on Sunday, Nov. 5. The Lions are seeking to make history as the first ASUN conference champion across all sports at UNA since the jump to Division I in 2018.
 
MATCHUPS
 
North Alabama vs FGCU
Sunday, November 5
1 p.m.
Nashville, Tenn.

Live Stats | Watch | Game Notes | Tickets

NOTES
 
How We Got Here: The No. 4 Lions knocked off the top seeded Lipscomb Bisons to advance to the second ASUN Championship Final in program history. Freshman Adelyn Speight notched her first goal of the season to send UNA to the final to take on No. 3 FGCU. UNA advanced to the ASUN Semifinal thanks to a 1-0 victory over No. 8 Queens in Florence in the ASUN Quarterfinal.

FGCU Series History: The two schools have met on four occasions prior to Sunday's match with the Eagles having won all four meetings. The two schools squared off earlier this season with the Eagles defeating the Lions 1-0 in Florence. This is set to be the first meeting between the two sides at a neutral site and is the first meeting in a postseason setting. 

Scouting the Eagles: FGCU finished the regular season as the three seed in the ASUN tournament, on the opposite side of the bracket of UNA. FGCU advanced to the Semifinal with a 3-2 victory over No. 7 Austin Peay in Fort Myers, Fla and then punched their ticket to the Championship Final with a 2-0 victory over No. 2 Central Arkansas. FGCU enters the match with a 12-4-4 record and has a 10 match unbeaten streak.

Seeking Number One: The Lions advanced to the ASUN Title match with a win over No. 1 Lipscomb on Thursday. The Lions are seeking both the first ASUN Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance across all sports since the jump to Division I in 2018. The match against FGCU will be the fourth championship appearance for UNA's athletic department, including the two for soccer, softball in 2022 and men's basketball in 2021.

Timely Contributions: The University of North Alabama women's soccer team arrived in the ASUN Championship Final thanks to some timely goals from a pair of midfielders. Kellie Hovis, who scored the game winning goal against Queens, and Speight, who did the same against Lipscomb, both rattled off their first goals of the season to advance the Lions to the ASUN title match on Sunday. Speight, a freshman, and Hovis, a transfer from Samford, are both in their first seasons with the program.

UNA in the Postseason: For the first time in program history, the UNA women's soccer team hosted an ASUN Tournament match in a 1-0 victory over Queens, followed by earning the first win over Lipscomb since 2006. The Lions have appeared in six tournament matches since the jump to Division I in 2018 and now hold a 4-2 record, which includes two victories in the 2018 tournament and an appearance in the 2018 ASUN Championship Final prior to this season.

Shutouts Galore: The UNA soccer team has tallied 13 shutouts on the season entering the match against FGCU. This mark sets the program record for most in a season by a North Alabama team, along with earning Adriana Wright the record for the most in a season by a goalkeeper. Wright is ranked first in the country with 13 shutouts. The Lions have also set NCAA Division I program records for consecutive scoreless minutes and consecutive shutouts this season.

Third Time's the Charm: Entering the match against FGCU, the Lions have played 487 minutes across six matches without allowing a goal. The 2023 UNA squad has already broken the Division I program record for consecutive shutout minutes on defense three times this season. Entering the season, the number was set at 369 minutes. From Aug. 24 to Sept. 7, the Lions did not allow a goal until the 65th minute on a penalty kick by Southern Illinois. UNA then started a new streak marked by that goal that carried until Sept. 24 against FGCU. The newest streak began on Oct. 8 in the 53rd minute against Bellarmine and has spanned five consecutive shutouts.

North Alabama Brings Home 10 ASUN Honors: The University of North Alabama women's soccer team took home 10 total ASUN honors in the 2023 postseason. The Lions earned five All-ASUN selections, three Academic All-Conference honors, one All-Freshman team selection and the ASUN Goalkeeper of the Year award. Six North Alabama individuals combined to take home the 10 awards, which ranks second in the conference behind ASUN semifinal opponent Lipscomb (16).

Lions Shatter Expectations: The Lions were selected to finish 12th in the ASUN Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. The Lions placed fourth in the final standings after turning in a nine-win regular season, tied for the most regular season wins in Division I program history. The Lions outperformed their preseason predicted finish by eight places, the most of any team in the conference with Central Arkansas' second place finish (6th preseason) and four-place difference the second biggest margin.

For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.