MIAMI (February 1, 2017) – First year FIU men's soccer Head Coach Kevin Nylen announced the first signee while at the helm of the Panthers and he didn't have to stray too far from campus to get a name on the dotted line. On Wednesday morning, Nylen received a National Letter of Intent from Weston FC midfielder Matias Barraza (Doral, Florida).
 
"We are very excited about Matias becoming part of our program at FIU," said Nylen. "I want to thank our staff for their hard work during the recruiting process. Matias comes from Weston FC, a top academy in the country and has been well coached during his youth career. He is someone who has a good understanding of the game and his play has been rewarded due to him being part of the (United States) U-19 national team. Our staff is looking forward to coaching Matias and helping him continue to develop as a player at FIU."
 
Barraza, who attends Doral Academy, comes to FIU after spending the past two seasons playing for the Weston FC U-17/18. During his time with Weston FC, Barraza started in 43-of-45 matches and scoring 19 goals. This season, he has scored four goals in 16 games played with 15 starts, and has posted a 93.8 shot percentage.
 
In addition to his time with Weston FC, Barraza has also spent time with the United States U-19 Men's National Team.
 
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUMensSoccer) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUMensSoccer) for all the latest Men's Soccer news.
 
Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).
 
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $8.9 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.