Box Score MIAMI (Oct. 21, 2012) – A six-goal first half put the game out of reach as the FIU women's soccer team won its final home game of the 2012 regular season in convincing fashion, defeating the UALR Trojans, 7-0, on Sunday afternoon at the FIU Soccer Stadium.

"Today's game was just what we were looking for," Head Coach Thomas Chestnutt said. "UALR has had an up-and-down season and as a team that is out of the conference tournament, they are dangerous. They are not playing with any pressure on them. So, that can always be a dangerous game. We wanted to make sure that we took the danger out of the game early."

"We came into today's game and did what we had to do," goalkeeper Kaitlyn Savage said. "I think overall it was a good performance by this team."

Savage, who was playing in her final home game as a Panther, picked up her 10th win of the season, making three saves and notching her sixth shutout of the season. The
clean sheet also marked the 20th of her career, tying the school record for shutouts in a career.

"I felt that the girls were focused and disciplined in our approach to today's game," Chestnutt said. "Obviously, getting goals in the third, seventh and ninth minutes put the game away early and that is what we were looking to do."

The Panthers scored three quick goals to start the game as sophomore Scarlett Montoya (third minute), freshman Madlen Weinhardt (seventh minute) and junior Chelsea Leiva (ninth minute) each found the back of the net.

"We came out with the focus on scoring goals today," Montoya said. "We started the game with such intensity, that we were able to score three goals in the first nine minutes. Everyone had the mindset to get involved and that was evident by the scoreboard."

Montoya, who had two goals and an assist in the match, netted her eighth score of the season in the third minute. Leiva sent a long through pass to Montoya, who blasted a shot far post to beat UALR goalkeeper Natalie Marsh. Leiva along with sophomore Carolina Hernandez were credited with assists on the goal. 

Weinhardt added the Panthers' second goal of the game in the seventh minute, striking a shot from the edge of the 18-yard box for her first-career goal. Junior Nicole DiPerna and sophomore Marie Egan notched assists on the score.

Leiva, who assisted on Montoya's goal in the third minute, notched her eighth score of the year in the ninth minute to extend FIU's lead to 3-0.  The Royal Palm Beach, Fla., native scored her 23rd-career goal on a pass from sophomore Nikki Rios. Rios notched her second assist of the season on Leiva's goal.

The Panthers continued the offensive onslaught as FIU notched another goal in the 25th minute, 30th minute and 41st minute.

DiPerna scored her third goal of the year in the 25th minute, weaving her way past the Trojan defense. The Melbourne, Fla., native beat Marsh to her right to give FIU a 4-0 lead. Weinhardt registered the first of two assists of the day on the score. 

Five minutes later, Montoya scored her second goal of the game and team-leading ninth of the season, striking a loose ball in the area to move the Panthers' advantage to 5-0 in the 30th minute.

Following Montoya's second goal, the UALR coaching staff replaced Marsh in net with Shantel Wittke. That didn't stop the Panthers from scoring as sophomore Ashleigh Shim scored FIU's sixth goal of the half in the 41st minute. Shim slotted a cross from Montoya for the Jacksonville, Fla., native's second goal of the season. Montoya and Weinhardt earned assists on the score.

"Today's win really pumps us up and gives us the confidence that we're a capable of having these types of games," Montoya said. "It also shows us that there are no excuses when we get into the final third of the field. When we get scoring opportunities, we need to finish them."

FIU rounded out the scoring with a goal in the 51st minute by freshman Morgan Morris. It marked the second-straight game in which the Oak Hill, Va., native has scored a goal. Shim picked up her fifth assist of 2012 on Morgan's goal.

Even though the offense shined brightly in the contest, it was the team's defensive effort which set the tone and created the opportunities for the offense. The backline shut down UALR's forwards, allowing just five shots (three on goal) in the game.

"They (the FIU backline) are a very solid group," Savage said. "Both our starters and subs kept the intensity up throughout the game and that is good to see.  I think this team as a whole, from the defenders to midfielders to the forwards, did an excellent job on the defensive side."

For the game, FIU out-shot the Trojans, 30-5, with the Panthers peppering the UALR goalkeepers with 19 shots on goal.

The win gave FIU its 10th win of the season, marking four-straight seasons in which the Panthers have recorded 10-or-more wins in a year. It also moved FIU three points closer to the top of the Sun Belt Conference standings. With one game remaining, the Panthers are just three points behind first-place North Texas.

"Today's win should put us in a good position as we move closer to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament," Savage said. "We need to just keep getting better and better each day."

"I can't say enough about this group and how much they have matured over the season," Chestnutt said. "Being able to send Kaitlyn (Savage) out in her final home game with a win as well as the shutout was just icing on the cake."

FIU will travel to Boca Raton, Fla., to take on the Florida Atlantic Owls in the team's regular season finale on Thursday, Oct. 25. Game time is 7:00 p.m.

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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 U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelors, masters and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/