MIAMI (Oct. 15, 2014) – The FIU men's soccer team (4-7-1, 0-4-0) used two early first-half goals to hand the UCF Knights a 2-1 loss on Wednesday night from the FIU Soccer Stadium.

Senior Quentin Albrecht's conference-leading seventh goal of the season put FIU ahead not even three minutes into the match. Off a pass from junior Daniel Gonzalez at the top of the 18, Albrecht connected with the ball from 10 yards out to put it past the keeper's leg-kick save.

Sophomore Juan Benedetty nearly missed the Panthers' second score of the night in the 13^th minute off a diving header that UCF's Zach Briggs was barely able to get a finger on. Two Knights' corners in the 15^th minute provided UCF's first opportunity of the night, but a strong Panthers' defense prevented a shot from getting off.

Senior Sean McFarlane provided some insurance for the Panthers in the 22^nd minute. After his initial header deflected back into play, the Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., native tapped the rebound in past the left post.

Redshirt freshman Donald Tomlinson nearly made it consecutive games with a goal in the 27^th minute, but his chance bounced off the lower half of the crossbar.  A one-on-one situation for Albrecht at the 40-minute marker was close to giving the Hessen, Germany, native his second score of the night, but Briggs came up with another goal-saving play.

The Panthers entered halftime without surrendering a shot to the Knights, credit to a smothering FIU backline, while also holding a heavy, 7-0, advantage in the category.

Two initial shots from Albrecht in the opening minute of the second half led to an eventual set piece chance for sophomore Marvin Hezel, whose header was inches off. UCF's first look came in 56^th minute off a free kick three yards outside of the box.

Junior goalkeeper Robin Spiegel saw only two tests through 88 minutes of action. With both teams playing aggressively, a penalty kick opportunity for the Knights was assessed in the 88^th minute. The Knights' Romario Williams converted for his team-leading sixth goal.

The Panthers are back in action on Oct. 25, when the team travels to Marshall for a 1 p.m. matchup.

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).

#####  

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 offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoralprograms in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 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 ofConference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.