A court-storming as the final buzzer sounds has become almost a yearly tradition at Alico Arena. FGCU Women's Basketball has won eight straight conference championships. With the season fast approaching, the Eagles are back on the court for the official start to preseason practices.
"Oh my gosh, it feels amazing," FGCU redshirt senior Maddie Antenucci said. "Finally, we get to play together."
Seven months removed from winning their latest ASUN title, the Eagles are beginning to lay the foundation for another deep run. Head Coach Karl Smesko says the team has bought into the FGCU playing style, but they are still learning every practice and working out the early season kinks.
"This is a real talented group," Smesko said. "We have a lot of versatility. We’re very athletic. It’s FGCU Basketball."
By that, he means FGCU will be living up to its "Raining Threes" mantra again this season. The Eagles are always toward the top, if not in the top spot, in almost every threes-related statistical category year in and year out. This season shouldn't be any different.
While the playing style will look the same, the roster looks a lot different. FGCU lost some impact players like Sofia Persson, Ajulu Thatha, Uju Ezeudu, Kierra Adams and Brylee Bartram. To fill all of those gaps, Smesko and his staff brought in seven newcomers, six of which are transfers.
"We have a lot of talented players," Smesko said. "We really hope to bring them together and make the most out of each other."
The players say they are already gelling together and spend a lot of time with each other off of the court to build team chemistry.
One of the new players is Lauryn Taylor, who transferred from Division II's Francis Marion. She says she came to FGCU to do what the Eagles do best — win.
"I wanted to be a part of a winning culture," Taylor said. "I wanted to go somewhere and feel like I was impacting a team."
That winning culture is being carried on by eight returners. Some big names like Emani Jefferson, Dolly Cairns and Casey Santoro are back. Plus, redshirt senior Maddie Antenucci has returned after missing the majority of conference play and the postseason due to a lower-body injury. As the most experienced player on the team this year, Antenucci is stepping up into a leadership role to help her squad.
"I’m just really trying to be the voice of the team," Antenucci said. "I know I’ve been there before. Learning everything can be overwhelming, so I just want to help encourage one another."
Despite all of those changes, FGCU is still the favorite to win the conference. With the banners hanging over their heads during practice, the Eagles have a daily reminder of FGCU's legacy and yearly standard.
"The expectation is to have a great team, get back to the NCAA Tournament, win championships, and hopefully advance in the NCAA tournament," Smesko said.
The first step in achieving those goals comes in a month. FGCU opens the season on the road at Davidson on Nov. 5. The Eagles will play their first home game against NJIT on Nov. 17.
"I’m just counting down the days, honestly," Taylor said. "We’re going to take it day by day through practice, but once the first game hits, we’re off and running."
Let the countdown begin.