MIAMI (November 12, 2016) – The No. 3-seed FIU men's soccer team is on the verge of doing something that it hasn't done since the early 2000's … win back-to-back conference tournament championships and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Panthers will play for the Conference USA championship on Sunday at 2 p.m. when they meet No. 5-seed New Mexico at Marshall University's Veterans Memorial Soccer Complex in Huntington, West Virginia.
The contest will air on ESPN3. Fans can watch FIU defend its C-USA crown by
clicking here.
Fans can also access the ESPN3 broadcast online via WatchESPN and the ESPN App.
Conference USA Tournament Bracket
C-USA Men's Soccer Championship Central
FIU looks to move into elite company in program history winning back-to-back titles for the first time since the Panthers won three-consecutive Atlantic Soccer Conference titles from 2002-04.
In addition, the Panthers look to become the first Conference USA team to win back-to-back titles since Tulsa won three-consecutive from 2007-09.
FIU (10-6-2) moves into the championship after defeating No. 7-seed Old Dominion, 2-0, on Saturday night. All-Conference First-Team selection
Paul Marie led the way for FIU after tallying both goals in the contest, marking his second and third on the year, respectively. In addition, goalkeeper
Daniel Gagliardi got the win and posted his third shutout in five games played.
On the year,
Santiago Patino leads the team in points scored with 17 (8g, 1a) and has recorded three multi-goal matches and four multi-point contests. Ahlinvi (5g) and
Luis Betancur (4g, 2a) are tied for second on the team in scoring with 10 points apiece. Six other Panthers have also netted goals this season. In addition to Marie (3),
Jamar Campion-Hinds (2),
Luca Giovine (2),
Juan Benedetty (1),
Brad Fountain (1) and
Alvaro Alvarez (1) have all found the back of the net this season.
The Lobos (11-6-2) advance to the final after upsetting the tournament's top seed, and fifth-ranked Charlotte, 2-1 in Saturday's first semifinal.
Niko Hansen leads New Mexico in scoring with 24 points (11g, 2a) while Chris Wehan is second with 16 points (7g, 2a) on the year.
Earlier this season, the Lobos handed the Panthers a 4-1 loss in Albuquerque. Ahlvini scored the lone goal for FIU in the loss.
The winner will receive C-USA's automatic bid to the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
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).
#####
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/.
