LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University men's soccer team will square off with FGCU at 6 p.m. (ET) Friday in the quarterfinals of the ASUN Championship.

Bellarmine (6-7-2, 2-4-1 ASUN) is the six-seed while FGCU (4-7-1, 4-3) is the three-seed. They'll meet at host Central Arkansas, which faces the winner of the contest in the semifinals and is the two-seed.

LAST TIME OUT
Bellarmine needed a win or tie in its regular-season finale against Jacksonville to earn a berth in the conference tournament, and the Knights secured the latter with a scoreless draw against the Dolphins at Owsley B. Frazier Stadium.

Jacksonville had a few dangerous chances in the first overtime but not much materialized in the second extra session. Bellarmine had enough promising opportunities in the attack to feel the contest probably should never have gone to OT in the first place.

Still, the Knights recorded their fourth shutout with a clutch performance, and senior goalkeeper Connor Range was rewarded with an ASUN Defensive Player of the Week acknowledgement.

"The guys gave a great effort in the Jacksonville game on Saturday," Knights Coach Tim Chastonay said. "We knew we needed a clean sheet and the guys battled for 110 minutes. It was disappointing not to finish off some of the chances we created but did enough to get to the ASUN Tournament." 

LAST MEETING
Bellarmine and FGCU clashed Oct. 9 in Fort Myers, Florida in their regular-season matchup, with the Eagles claiming a 1-0 victory after scoring in the 68th minute.

It took a skillful strike on a challenging shot by Markus Maurer to beat Bellarmine, but FGCU's control of the ball and ability to stifle the Knights' attack are what defined the contest. The Knights attempted a single shot.

"The first game against FGCU was a difficult night for our team," Chastonay said. "They held possession for long stretches and had us defending deep. We didn't create much on the attacking side of things. Although they were the better team that night, we were in striking distance the whole game." 

FGCU SINCE THEN
FGCU carried only one win into the first meeting against Bellarmine, but including the victory over the Knights, the Eagles won three of four ASUN games to close out the season.

FGCU enters the ASUN Championship on a two-game winning streak after knocking off North Florida 1-0 and Stetson 2-1. The lone setback in that span was 2-1 in overtime to a Lipscomb squad that earned the top seed in the tournament.

O'Vonte Mullings has remained one of the most dangerous threats in the league. His six goals are nearly half of FGCU's season total of 13. Aiden Jokomba is the only other multi-goal scorer with two.

"They really prefer to keep the ball and build their attack," Chastonay said. "FGCU will be patient and look to create good chances on goal. Playing a very good nonconference schedule certainly prepared them for a good run in conference play."

ROLLERCOASTER
Bellarmine's record is close to even. The Knights haven't always come away with a positive result, but they've been in every game, including against the likes of Louisville and then-No. 5 Kentucky.

Two years into Division I play, the footing remains solid.

"Our season has been filled with some real up-and-down moments," Chastonay said. "We've had some big wins and some heartbreaking losses. Overall, we have progressed as a group and really come together. The guys have accepted the challenge of playing a good NCAA D1 schedule, and the staff could not ask for anything more out of them. This group has been so much fun to work with this year. They have set the standard for the next several years."

For more coverage of Bellarmine athletics, follow us on Twitter (@BUKnights), Instagram (BUKnights) and Facebook (BUKnights).