MIAMI (November 11, 2016) – The No. 3-seed FIU men's soccer team advanced to its second-straight Conference USA Tournament final on Friday with a 2-0 win over No. 7-seed Old Dominion at the C-USA championships held at the Veterans Memorial Soccer Complex in Huntington, West Virginia. With the win, FIU improves to 10-6-2 on the year while the Monarchs' season comes to a close with a 6-9-2.
The clean sheet for FIU is its sixth on the season.
The Panthers, who extend its unbeaten streak to eight matches, will face the No. 5-seed New Mexico on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 2 p.m. and look to defend their 2015 C-USA Tournament title. The Lobos advance to the title match following a 2-1 win over top-seeded and No. 5-ranked Charlotte. FIU's eight-match stretch equals the longest such stretch since 1991.
Sunday's match can be seen live on ESPN3. Check FIUSports.com for more information as it becomes available.
"I am very proud of our players," said FIU Head Coach
Scott Calabrese. "This was a hard fought match against a very talented and well coached ODU team. We are excited to have the opportunity to compete for a championship."
All-Conference First-Team selection
Paul Marie led the way for FIU after tallying both goals in the contest. While in the box in the 57th minute, All-C-USA first-teamer
Santiago Patino sent a pass to
Ismael Longo who then sent a one-touch pass to Marie as he sent a dribbler into the bottom right post of the net. Marie added an insurance score nine minutes later after tapping in his own rebound from three yards out.
Marie's scores were his second and third on the year, respectively.
The Panthers dropped a 4-1 decision at New Mexico on Sept. 30.
On the night, FIU outshot the Lobos 14-6 and 7-4 in shots on goal.
Daniel Gagliardi got the win for FIU in net, improving to 4-0, posting four saves. In addition, it was his third shutout in five games played.
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/.
