MIAMI (Sept. 18, 2014) – The FIU men's soccer team (1-3-1) opens a three-game homestand with the No. 25 San Diego State Aztecs this Friday at approximately 7:30 p.m. The match will follow the women's game versus Stetson, which begins at 5 p.m.

Coverage
Friday vs. San Diego State – 7:30 p.m.
Venue: FIU Soccer Stadium (2,000) – Miami, Fla.
Follow on Twitter: @FIUMensSoccer
LiveStats: Click Here
Stream: Click Here

Last Time Out
The Panthers are coming off a 2-1 defeat to the East Tennessee State Buccaneers on Tuesday. Senior striker Quentin Albrecht scored his first goal of the 2014 season early in the contest off an assist from junior Daniel Gonzalez. FIU outshot the Buccaneers, 10-7, and had four more corners than ETSU, 6-2. The Panthers were aggressive all night, committing 13 fouls while the opposition committed just four.
 
Scouting San Diego State
SDSU carries a 5-1-0 overall record, as they swept two matches over the weekend to finish its season-opening, six-match homestand. It is San Diego State's best start to a season since the 2005 campaign, as the Aztecs have won five-consecutive matches. Forrayah Bass leads the Aztecs with 10 points on three goals and four assists through six matches this season.
 
All-Time vs. the Aztecs
FIU put together a string of goals in the first and second half to defeat the Aztecs 5-3 last season. The story for FIU was a five minute span that started in the 39th minute when Josue Espana netted his first career goal. Then Gonzalo Frechilla and Quentin Albrecht scored back-to-back goals in the 42nd and 44th minute, respectively, to put the Panthers ahead 3-1. The Panthers and Aztecs meet for the third time. The Panthers hold a 2-0 edge in the series, which dates back to 1983.
 
First Win Over a Ranked Opponent in Three Years
FIU downed No. 19 Michigan, 1-0, on Aug. 29. The win over the Wolverines gave FIU its first win over a ranked opponent since Oct. 2, 2011 vs. No. 21 Kentucky, 1-0.

New Man in Charge
Head Coach Scott Calabrese comes to FIU after a successful six-year stint as head coach at East Tennessee State. A program that began play in 2008, Calabrese led ETSU to two Atlantic Sun Tournament Championships (2010, 2013), a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances, and four consecutive seasons of 10-or-more wins (2010-13). This past season, the Buccaneers were crowned 2013 Atlantic Sun Champions after earning a 3-1 victory over North Florida in the A-Sun Tournament Championship.
 
Panthers Return Nearly 82 Percent of 2013 Scoring
In total, FIU scored 27 goals last season. Of those goals that were scored last year, 22 of those goals are from players that are returning to this year's squad (81.5 percent). That ranks 10th in the country.
 
1.    SIU Edwardsville – 100.0 (14/14)
2.    Evansville – 97.1 (33/34)
3.    Syracuse – 96.7 (29/30)
4.    North Carolina – 89.5 (17/19)
5.    Missouri State – 88.2 (15/17)
6.    Virginia – 86.6 (39/45)
       Buffalo – 86.6 (13/15)
8.    NJIT – 84.0 (21/25)
       Duke – 84.0 (21/25)
10.  FIU – 81.5 (22/27)
 
Albrecht Approaching School's Top 10 Scoring List
Senior Quentin Albrecht enters Friday with 22 career goals. His 53 career points ranks him 22^nd in the all-time FIU record books, just 12 points shy of cracking the top 10.
 
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 offers 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 $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 of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.