Florida Gulf Coast women's hoops are back at it this week preparing for the second half of their season -- the conference matchups. When it comes to the Eagles, everyone knows that winning is kind of their thing.
"Everybody wants to beat us," said FGCU head women's basketball coach Chelsea Lyles. "So we know the pressure that comes behind it."
Year after year after year, the Eagles have gotten to hoist the ASUN championship trophy. FGCU has won the last seven consecutive titles, and the road to claim another conference title is about to begin.
"We're all excited, I'm excited," said FGCU senior Skyler Gill. "We have big things for this team, and we all know we can accomplish big things."
FGCU finished out the non-conference slate with a 9-3 record, going 9-1 since Chelsea Lyles took over the head coaching reins in November after Karl Smesko left FGCU for a head coaching position with the WNBA's Atlanta Dream.
"They're a competitive group and they have a resilient attitude about them," said Lyles. "And when things get tough, they rise to the occasion."
The focus is shifting to the second half of the season as the ASUN conference schedule tips off, but the mentality stays the same.
"We haven't changed much," said FGCU senior Dolly Cairns. "The standard is still the same. We still expect to win the conference and play in the NCAA tournament."
The Eagles are a force when it comes to conference play. They are regular season conference champions in 13 of the last 14 years, going 218-10 against ASUN opponents in that timeframe.
"Conference is a totally different beast," said Lyles. "No matter what you did in the non-conference, conference just brings a different level of competitiveness."
Eagles senior and newcomer Skyler Gill has witnessed the FGCU wrath firsthand. Before her one-year stint at Kansas last season, she played for North Alabama for two years.
"It was hard," Gill laughed. "It was really difficult. You're going into practice and coach is intense, practice is intense and everybody wants to beat FGCU. That's the thing."
So with the targets on their back like always, the Eagles head into their first conference matchup this week.
"We all have kind of a bigger purpose that we're playing for. So just collectively coming together and really just having a strong, conference play."
You can catch FGCU host Queens on Thursday, January 2nd at 6 p.m.