MIAMI (Sept. 3, 2015) – The FIU men's soccer team (1-2-0) earned a thrilling 2-1 victory over the Fairfield Stags on Thursday night at the FIU Soccer Stadium. Senior Daniel Gonzalez was responsible for netting the game-tying goal, while junior Luis Betancur knocked in the game-winner in the 82^nd minute.

In a match where the Panthers outshot the Stags 16-8, FIU wasted no time testing Fairfield's keeper. Freshman Santiago Patino hooked Gonzalez up with a nice ball just three minutes in, as he tapped it from inside the 18 to outside the box where he found Gonzalez, who knocked it just wide. The opportunities for Gonzalez continue in the first half, as he fired off a rocket that was heading top shelf, but Fairfield keeper Matt Turner was there to make a great save. Nearly 10 minutes later, Gonzalez had a very similar opportunity, but Turner was effective again.

With the opportunities continuing for FIU, junior Juan Benedetty chased down a ball outside the box in played in in perfectly to Betancur, who got a head on it but Turner was there yet again. Just as FIU had seemed to be dominating the attack, Fairfield suddenly took a 1-0 lead in the 76^th minute as Dominic Marshall found the back of the net.

Following the goal, the Panthers continued to put on a hard attack, as junior Marvin Hezel put a head on the ball that went wide nearly a minute after the Fairfield goal.

The hard work in the attacking third finally paid off, when Gonzalez came through to tie it up in the 78^th minute. Freshman Steffen Bohm played a perfect cross in the center of the box, where he found Gonzalez who struck it hard and put it in the back of the net.

The go-ahead score came in the 82^nd minute on a beautiful setup. Sophomore Brad Fountain and junior Jamar Campion-Hinds put together a fancy give-and-go that eventually set Campion-Hinds with the ball down in the corner. From there, the Tamarac, Fla., native place the ball perfectly on Betancur's head, who buried it to the back of the net, putting FIU ahead for good, 2-1.
 
FIU is back in action this Sunday, when it travels to Stetson at 7 p.m.
 
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/.