With the program's 19th berth to the NCAA Tournament, the Florida Southern College Moccasins women's basketball team will take on the Union University Bulldogs, from Jackson, Tenn. and the Gulf South Conference, in the opening game Friday, March 13 of the 2026 NCAA Division II South Region Championship. The Moccasins, the seventh seed in the region, will take on the Bulldogs, the second-seed in the bracket, at 2:30p.m. central time in the first of four games at SportsMED Arena in Spragins Hall on the campus of University of Huntsville in Alabama.
 
Tournament Information
Location: Huntsville, Ala.
Campus: University of Huntsville in Alabama
Gymnasium: SportsMED Arena in Spragins Hall
Tournament Page - https://uahchargers.com/sports/2026/3/9/ncaa-division-ii-womens-basketball-south-region-championship.aspx
Bracket - https://www.ncaa.com/brackets/basketball-women/d2/2026
Live Courage - https://www.ncaa.com/game/6538002
 
2026 NCAA DII South Region
The South Regional will feature four Sunshine State Conference teams with two Gulf South Conference programs and two Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). Nova Southeastern, Florida Southern, Eckerd, and Embry-Riddle represent the SSC in the tournament while Alabama-Huntsville, and Union represent the GSC. Miles won the SIAC championship for the automatic bid with Edward Waters dropping from four into the no. 8 seed after Miles won its third consecutive conference title .
 
(3) Eckerd takes on (6) Embry-Riddle in the regional's first game of the weekend at noon on March 13 followed by (2) Union and (7) Florida Southern at 2:30 p.m. GSC Champion (1) RV UAH will take on (8) No.22 Edward Waters at 5 p.m. with (4) SIAC Champion No.24 Miles facing (5) SSC Champion No. 14 Nova Southeastern in the nightcap at 7:30 p.m.
 
The Matchup
This will be the first ever meeting between the two teams. The Mocs were set to face the Bulldogs in the 2019-2020 in the South Regional but the season was cut due to Covid-19. 
 
Distance to Regional
(2) Union  – 180-213 miles, 3 hr 18 min to 3 hr 24 mins
(7) Florida Southern – 637-662 miles, 10 hr 37 min to 10 hr 43 min
 
7th-Seed - Florida Southern College Moccasins (23-7)
Florida Southern enters at 23-7 overall after finishing fourth in the Sunshine State Conference regular season and as tournament finalists falling at Rick Case Arena 74-70 to the Sharks. It's the first appearance in the South Regional since the 2021-2022 season where the Mocs fell to a familiar conference opponent, the Eckerd Tritons, 69-64.
 
The 2025-26 season opened with Florida Southern making the trip to Cleveland, Tenn. to face two regional opponents in the SSC/GSC Crossover. The Mocs fell to Lee University 75-61 and defeated The University of Alabama in Huntsville 76-65. The UAH win marked the start of a 10 game win streak for the Mocs, before falling to #4 Nova Southeastern on the road in early January. This start marks one of the program's best in school history. 
 
Florida Southern posted an 6-1 out of conference record with a 15-5 mark in league play. Leading the charge for the Mocs this season were All-Sunshine State Conference First and Third Team selections Sydney Gomes and Carlota Gomez Alonso. Gomes was named the SSC Player of the Year and was also named to the All-SSC Defensive Team. 
 
As a team, the Mocs ranked amongst the top of the SSC and top 50 nationally in several statistical categories. FSC averaged 75.9 points per game and held opponents to 61.4 (+14.5) while shooting 43.6% from the field and 33.1% from beyond the arc. Florida Southern is 76.8% from the free throw line, which ranks 33^rd overall in Division II while the 75.9 ppg is 22nd in DII. 
 
Gomes leads all scorers for Florida Southern with 550 total points this season for a 18.3 ppg average. Gomez Alonso is second at 12.8. ppg (295) followed by Lily Randgaard at 10.1 ppg (242), and Monica Balistrere at 9.3 ppg (278). Lily Pereira and Gianna Vos are fifth on the team at 8.2 ppg (245) having started all 30 games this season.
 
Gomes also leads Florida Southern in rebounding with 239 heading into the regional which is second overall in the conference, averaging 8.0 boards. Adding nine double-doubles through 30 games this season so far, Gomes moved up to 16 total for her career. She enters the weekend with 550 points, 239 rebounds, 152 assists, 77 steals, and 107 made free throws. Earlier this season, she became the second player in school history to eclipse 1,000 career points, 500 rebounds, and 300 assists. The Ponte Vedra, Fla. native was named SSC Player of the Week four times this season, and was SSC Defensive Player of the Week once. Most recently, Gomes set the FSC single game assist record with 15 vs Barry on February 25th and was just named D2CCA All-South Region first team. 

Gomez Alonso and Randgaard have been key contributors for the Mocs this season to go along with Gomes. Gomez Alonso has been a scoring spark off the bench, averaging around 12.8 points and 6.1 rebounds while shooting over 41% from the field and nearly 39% from three. Randgaard has also brought versatility and clutch play, averaging 10.1 points and 4.5 rebounds, shooting 49.1% from the floor and 42.9% from deep. Randgaard has come up with key baskets in tight games like the conference tournament win over Tampa, and her 23-point outburst (5-6 3PM) against Eckerd in the semifinals. 

In the Sunshine State Conference tournament, the Mocs edged past the 5th-seeded Tampa Spartans 52-50 and then defeated the top-seeded Eckerd Tritons 84-70, before falling 74-70 to the 3rd-seeded Nova Southeastern Sharks in the championship game. Despite the loss, Florida Southern secured an at-large bid, thanks to key victories during the regular season and playoff run. Over a challenging three-week stretch, FSC notched its first win over Eckerd in four years, earned its first home victory against Tampa in the same span, and capped it off with a senior night triumph over the #9 Sharks.
 
 
2nd-Seed – Union (24-9)
Union advances to the NCAA South Regional for the 11th time in 12 seasons, after posting a 24-9 overall record. The Bulldogs average 83.2 points per game and allow only 67.3 (+15.9). They also shoot 33.6% from three and make an impressive 11.3 3-point field goals per contest. Union has a group that is relatively spread out in scoring. Olivia Lee (16.8) and Courtney Zensen (11.6) lead the Bulldogs with double digit scoring averages on the year. Outside of Lee and Zensen, Union also has five players who are averaging between seven and ten points per game. Lee also leads in rebounding with 6.5 per game. 
 
The Bulldogs opened the season at the D2CCA, facing some of the nation's best very early. Union lost their season opener against #5 Gannon 66-51 before bouncing back with a 73-70 win over RV Ferris State. They concluded the weekend with a 112-94 loss against #15 Minnesota State, Mankato. In league play within the Gulf South Conference, Union went 16-6 and secured the two seed for the conference tournament.
 
The Bulldogs saw a pair of players earn All-GSC honors in Olivia Lee and Courtney Zensen. Zensen, the second-team selection led the conference in three-point percentage (.403) and three-pointers per game (2.9), tallying 346 points, 98 rebounds, 49 assists, 20 blocks, and 51 steals. Lee, who was named All GSC First-Team, was second in the conference in scoring (513) and sixth in free-throw percentage (.791), accumulating 187 rebounds, 87 assists, 13 blocks, 55 steals, and 2 double-doubles. 
 
The Union women's basketball team advanced through the 2026 Gulf South Conference Tournament with strong performances in both the quarterfinals and semifinals. In the quarterfinals, Union defeated West Florida 69-61 in a tightly contested game with 12 lead changes and 10 ties, led by Olivia Lee's 18 points and seven rebounds and Courtney Zensen's three 3-pointers. In the semifinals, the Bulldogs overcame Delta State 73-58, overcoming an early deficit with strong runs in each quarter, including a perfect fourth quarter shooting 6-of-6 from the field. Lee recorded a 26-point, 11-rebound double-double, Zensen added 13 points, and Morgan Escobedo chipped in 11. These wins sent Union to the GSC Championship game against conference favorite UAH where the Bulldogs won at the buzzer to secure their sixth conference title in the last seven years.