FGCU Women’s basketball loses to Villanova, falling short of Sweet 16 bid

March Madness continued on Monday with the twelfth-seeded Lady Eagles facing the fourth-seeded Wildildcats.

FGCU fanatics and students grabbed a seat inside Alico Arena on Monday to watch the big game on the jumbotron against the Villanova Wildcats for a chance to be in the Sweet Sixteen.

“We’ve been here for years, and we always have our fingers crossed that this will be it,” longtime fan, Emily Foehl said.

“We’d have a 2023 banner for the Sweet 16 right next to the men’s banner,” FGCU Freshman Danny Bieber said.

“I’ve always loved FGCU this was actually my first selection, so I call it like my second home essentially, so it just means really close to my heart,” FGCU Freshman Ryan Jacobson said.

FGCU fans started worrying a bit when the Eagles didn’t start the first half on the note they wanted.

But, knowing what was on the line, the Eagles kept fighting to keep hope alive, managing to reduce the Wildcat lead to six at the half.

“They’ve proven they can make up ground,” Foehl said.

“I feel like this is a very winnable game. They came back and the energy was a lot more hype,” a fan watching at Alico Arena said.

The Wildcats put the pressure on FGCU to start the second half by going on a 9-0 run, stretching the lead to 48-33.

FGCU couldn’t make up the deficit falling to the Wildcats 76-57.

Despite the final score, the fans at the watch party were proud of their team.

“The program is great as it is. I mean they don’t need to get to the Sweet 16. They just got a great program. You just have to look at what Smesko has done over the last 20 years it’s amazing,” a fan at the watch party said.

Sha Carter led the way in scoring for the Eagles, scoring 11 points on 5-12 shooting. Carter added six rebounds and an assist in 29 minutes of gameplay.

Alyza Winston added 10 points on 4-9 shooting while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out four assists.