Charlotte, N.C. (Nov. 15, 2015) – The FIU men's soccer team (12-6-1) defeated Marshall (8-9-2), 1-0, in the Conference USA Championship game to claim the 2015 C-USA title. The championship was the first for FIU since joining the league in 2005.
The Panthers dominated the first half of the match, both offensively and defensively. At the end of the half, FIU had out-shot Marshall 11-3, with six shots on goal for the Panthers and none for the Thundering Herd.
In the 75th minute, the lone goal of the match was scored by senior
Patrick Lopez with a header far post. Senior
Daniel Gonzalez set up the header with a corner kick from the right side. The goal was the third of the season for Lopez and his second game-winner of the season.
Marshall managed to hold possession the last 15 minutes of the match and had a near shot at registering the equalizer in 90th minute off a corner, but failed to deliver.
FIU out-shot Marshall, 19-6. The back line of Lopez,
Marvin Hezel,
Deshawon Nembhard and
Jesse Wear allowed only one shot on goal by Marshall.
"We fought so well. We deserved it," Conference USA Tournament Defensive MVP,
Arthur Clapot said.
Clapot improved his record to 8-3-1 and recorded his fourth shutout of the season.
"That was a different team than the one we played in the regular season," Gonzalez said. "They came out strong, a lot of respect to them; they deserve being in the final. We wanted it and we fought till the end and we won, we took it home."
Gonzalez was named the Tournament Offensive MVP.
Gonzalez, Clapot, Hezel, and Lopez were all named to the C-USA Soccer Championship All-Tournament Team.
The championship title is the first for FIU since winning the Atlantic Soccer Conference crown in 2004.
With the automatic bid, FIU will return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004. It will mark the Panthers' 17th appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Men's Soccer Selection Show will take place on Monday live on www.ncaa.com
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 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/.
