MIAMI (October 9, 2016) – The FIU men's soccer team looks to get back on the winning track with a crucial Conference USA match against South Carolina on Oct. 10 at the FIU Soccer Stadium. First touch is slated for 7 p.m. The Panthers and Gamecocks will finally get on the pitch after their match, originally scheduled for Saturday, was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew. The contest is the second of five that FIU will play at home in its final seven outings of the regular season.
Monday's match also marks the sixth-straight contest that FIU will take the pitch against a team either ranked, or receiving votes in the Top 25 of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). South Carolina received six votes in this week's NSCAA poll.
FIU (3-6-1, 1-2 C-USA) looks to snap a four-match losing streak, however the task at hand on Saturday will certainly not be an easy one. The Gamecocks (7-3, 2-0 C-USA), like the Panthers previous opponent on Tuesday night – Florida Gulf Coast University – are in the midst of a lengthy winning streak. The Gamecocks have won seven-straight coming into Saturday's match, just two wins behind FGCU's nation-leading, eight-consecutive victories.
The Panthers are coming off a disappointing 4-1 loss to the Eagles on Tuesday in Miami.
Paul Marie scored his first goal of the season in the ninth minute of play giving FIU a 1-0 lead, marking the first time since Sept. 2, at Loyola Marymount, that FGCU had trailed in a game – a stretch of nearly 650 minutes of game action.
FGCU's winning streak looked to be in jeopardy for nearly 70 minutes until the Eagles scored four goals in a 16-minute stretch to put the game out of reach.
On the year,
Santiago Patino leads the team in points scored with 14 (7g) and has recorded three multi-goal matches and four multi-point contests. Only four other Panthers have netted goals this season –
Brad Fountain,
Jamar Campion-Hinds, Ahlinvi and
Luis Betancur – with the quartet scoring one goal apiece.
South Carolina has won its last six matches after starting the season 1-3 and have outscored their opponents 14-4 during that stretch. They have also recorded two clean sheets.
Danny Deakin leads the Gamecocks in scoring (14 points) and goals (5) scored on the year. He is one of six players with four-or-more points scored, and one-of-four players with three-or-more goals scored. Forward Bjorn Gudjonsson is the reigning Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week after scoring three goals in two games in wins versus High Point and Marshall.
Following tonight's match, FIU will take to the road again to butt heads with Marshall on Oct. 15 at 1 p.m. before returning home to close out the regular season with three-of-four on its home turf beginning with rival FAU on Oct. 21 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/.
