LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University women's basketball team is set for a two-game road swing in the Sunshine State as the Knights will head to Stetson for a Thursday night contest before shifting to defending ASUN champion FGCU for a Saturday evening clash.

Riding a three-game winning streak, Bellarmine (7-13, 3-4 ASUN) will meet both Stetson (8-12, 2-5) and FGCU (18-3, 6-1) at 7 p.m. (ET) on the respective game days in DeLand and Fort Myers.

Bellarmine will be squaring off with its third and fourth straight opponents from the Sunshine State. In last week's conference action, the Knights took down North Florida 65-59 and Jacksonville 66-54 in Freedom Hall. Those followed an 85-77 triumph over visiting Eastern Kentucky, as BU's three-game winning streak is its longest in the Division-I era since the Knights won four in a row in 2020-21.

Triumphing on the road is the next big step for surging Bellarmine. The Knights captured a neutral-site victory over St. Bonaventure at host Cleveland State in late November, but they're still aiming for their first true road win of the season. BU has climbed to seventh in the 14-team ASUN.

Stetson is looking to snap a three-game skid. The Hatters fell 77-75 Saturday at Queens after their apparent game-winning 3-point heave as time expired was ultimately overturned as the officials ruled the shot came after the buzzer sounded. The contest was the quintessential tale of two halves, as Stetson led 42-28 at halftime before Queens outscored the Hatters 49-33 in the second half.

Khamya McNeal and Jaelyn Talley combined for 42 points for Stetson, with McNeal pouring in a game-high 22 points and Talley registering 20. Talley is the team's leading scorer at 11.1 points per game and McNeal is at 10.7. Jamiya Turner (11.0) has played six games this season — the most recent six — and scored in double figures in five of them.

FGCU will host Eastern Kentucky on Thursday before welcoming Bellarmine. The defending ASUN regular season and ASUN Tournament champion is coming off its first loss in league play, 88-78 in overtime at Liberty, after winning six straight to open conference action.

FGCU, which has earned eight NCAA Tournament berths since 2012, is tied with Austin Peay and Lipscomb atop the ASUN standings. The Eagles' high-powered attack ranks first in the conference in field-goal percentage (46.6), 3-point percentage (36.5) and 3-pointers made (233) and is second in scoring (77.1).

Tishara Morehouse was voted ASUN Preseason Player of the Year. The guard ranks second in the ASUN in scoring (16.3) and ninth in assists (3.6). Alyza Winston is a second top-10 scorer in the league, ranking eighth at 13.8 points per game. Led by the 41 of Morehouse, six Eagles have knocked down 21 3-pointers or more this season.

Bellarmine's Gracie Merkle is the two-time reigning ASUN Player and Freshman of the Week. The 6-foot-6 center has swept the two awards on three occasions this season. She is now a six-time ASUN Freshman of the Week. In the wins over North Florida and Jacksonville, Merkle averaged 25.0 points and 18.0 rebounds. She piled up a program-record 24 rebounds against the Dolphins while scoring 29 points.

Merkle is the national leader in field-goal percentage (73.2). In addition to FG percentage, she is leading the ASUN in rebounding (11.2) while ranking second in blocked shots (2.5) and third in scoring (16.0). She also tops the conference in double-doubles with 13.

Senior forward Sheniqua Coatney has scored in double figures in five straight games and recorded eight rebounds or more in four of those outings along with six assists against Jacksonville. Sophomore guard Hayley Harrison had career highs of four blocks and seven assists against Jacksonville while adding 11 points, the fourth double-figure outing in the last five games for the team's second-leading scorer (10.3).

Bellarmine is the ASUN leader in blocks (5.2 per game) and ranks second in rebounding margin (plus-5.1). The Knights ranked eighth and 12th (last) in those two categories last season.

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