AMHERST, Mass. (Oct. 3, 2015) -- UMass gave FIU as chilly a reception as the New England weather in the Panthers' first-ever trip into the state of Massachusetts. Playing under a cold, lead gray sky the Minutemen more than doubled FIU in total offensive yards and recorded their first win of the season, 24-14.
 
UMass improved to 1-3. FIU is now 2-3.
 
The Minutemen needed just 37 seconds to open the scoring. UMass quarterback Blake Frohnapfel found Marken Michel streaking down the middle of the field for a 57-yard touchdown with 10:29 left in the first quarter.
 
UMass made it 14-0 in the second quarter when Frohnapfel connected with Tajae Sharpe for a 6-yard touchdown.
 
The Panthers got back into the game late in the second quarter after defensive tackle Imarjaye Albury recovered a fumble by Frohnapfel at the UMass 37.
 
Two plays later Alex McGough hit Alex Gardner for 15 yards to the UMass 16. McGough also connected with Thomas Owens for 13 yards to the three. Owens finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown catch on a fade pass from McGough in the right corner of the end zone. It was Owens's fifth touchdown reception of the season and McGough's 10^th touchdown throw.
 
McGough finished the day with 115 yards on 22-of-34 passing with one touchdown. Owens three passes for 20 yards as the Boynton Beach, Fla., native caught a touchdown pass in his fourth-straight game.
UMass got a career-long 48-yard field goal from Logan Laurent on the final play of the first half to take a 17-7 lead into the locker room.
 
Late in the third quarter the Panthers narrowed the deficit to three points after Gardner scored from one yard out. UMass led 17-14 going into the fourth quarter. Gardner rushed for 59 yards on 17 carries and one touchdown and also caught a career-high 10 passes for 58 yards.
 
Frohnapfel and Michel struck again to ice the game for the Minutemen. The UMass quarterback perfectly placed a fade pass into the right corner of the end zone that Michel hauled in for his second touchdown of the game.
 
For the game, UMass out-gained FIU, 495-188 in total offense, while the Panthers committed 10 penalties for 111 yards.
 
FIU returns home for its next game. The Panthers host UTEP at 12 p.m. Saturday at FIU Stadium.
 
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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 offer 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 $8.9 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/.