Parents Weekend Photo Album
MIAMI - After missing nine games due to injury, freshman Madeleine Hjorth-Stalgren made her presence known in her return on Sunday afternoon. The forward came in off the bench to record her first career goal and assist, leading the Golden Panthers to a 3-2 victory against Arkansas State that moved them into first place in the Sun Belt Conference team standings.
With the win, FIU (10-5-3, 8-1-1) recorded its sixth victory in a row to break the school record for longest winning streak, which was previously held by the 1992, 1993 and 2001 teams.
"We talked about picking up our level from Friday night and I felt like they did right from the start of it," coach Thomas Chestnutt said. "It's crunch time - teams are fighting for position. Teams are desperate to get wins so it's never easy. I felt like we really came out and did a good job of controlling the game. We're very happy with the result."
ASU (6-9-1, 3-5) committed a handball penalty inside the box, which gave FIU a penalty shot with roughly 21 minutes remaining in the first half. For the second consecutive game, forward Thaisa Moreno coolly finished the kick, scoring her seventh goal of the season.
With just over four minutes remaining in the first half, Amy Jackson moved the ball up the center of the field. She passed it to Hjorth-Stalgren in the left corner, and the freshman inserted it to Katrina Rose near the right post. The assist was the career first for Hjorth-Stalgren as Rose upped the score, 2-0.
"I play defense so I get really excited when they switch me to forward," Rose said. "My mentality was 'get the ball up, get it around.' Once I saw the ball go out to Madeleine, I knew she was going to cross it and I got really excited and finished it."
After the break, Hjorth-Stalgren scored just 1:03 into the second half after receiving the ball from Jessica Gambill inside the box. Her first game-winning goal of the season extended FIU's unbeaten streak to nine games.
"This is the first time I've practiced all week, so I felt a little rusty and it was hard but I did my best," Hjorth-Stalgren said.
Rose nearly scored again with 25 minutes left, dribbling around a defender inside the box. She took a few more steps toward the middle before firing, but ASU goalie Susan Brown deflected it over the cross bar.
The Red Wolves got on the scoreboard with an own goal with just over six minutes remaining in the game. Then, Tracy Powell assisted Tory Pitts a minute later from 10 yards outside of the box as Pitts connected with the upper left corner of the net.
"We picked it up a lot this game and we were able to get finishes early. Even though it's unfortunate they came back and scored, it feels good to break all these records and finally get FIU on the map," Rose said. "So many girls are stepping up so I'm very proud of our team."
The Golden Panthers close out the regular season on Friday against SBC foe Florida Atlantic at 7 p.m. on Senior Day. A win against the Owls would guarantee the No. 1 seed for FIU when it opens the league championships, Nov. 4-7, in Boca Raton.
