Box Score HOUSTON (Nov. 6, 2913) - The FIU women's soccer team fell to North Texas, 4-1, Wednesday night from Houston in the quarterfinals of the Conference USA Championship.
“We had a great chance at 2-1, but we couldn't find the equalizer,” said Head Coach
Thomas Chestnutt. “We were able to gain momentum but North Texas put up two terrific goals.”
North Texas came out firing, getting four looks in the first 12 minutes, but freshman goalkeeper
Vanessa Plasencia was able to tame the one shot on goal she faced during that span, while the other three sailed high and wide. The Mean Green pulled ahead in the 21st minute following a foul on FIU. From 18 yards out, Karla Pineda pinned the ball near the left post for her fifth goal this season.
A converted penalty kick in the 36th minute gave North Texas a 2-0 lead. Current C-USA Defensive Player of the Year Kelsey Hodges was credited with the score.
Despite the two-goal deficit heading into half time, FIU was able to put two good chances together later in the half. Senior
Kim Lopez and junior
Johanna Volz both missed just wide of the net.
Volz would get another chance in the 56th minute, following a dust up in the box as Lopez challenged the North Texas defender for the ball. Play was stopped as the Portland, Ore., native converted the third penalty kick goal of her career. The goal was also Volz' third of the season.
The Mean Green put the deficit back to two goals following Karla Pineda's direct shot from 25 yards out. The Panthers got another look immediately after when redshirt sophomore
Sara Stewart's header off freshman
Alyssa Robinson's corner hit just wide. North Texas would tab one more in the final eight minutes.
Other notable Panthers include junior
Caroline Hernandez, who put up three shots and had her best look in the 75th minute saved from the Mean Green goalkeeper. Lopez and Volz also finished with three apiece.
In the team's inaugural season as a member of C-USA, the Panthers finished 7-12-0. It's the sixth-consecutive year that the team has earned a conference tournament berth and graduates a senior class that is the third-winningest in the program's history with 42 wins.
“They were a special group,” said Chestnutt. “We had a lot of success with them and I know they'll do great things in the future.”
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUWomensSoccer) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUWSoccer) for all the latest FIU women's soccer news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), 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 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 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s 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. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu
