MIAMI (September 20, 2016) – The FIU men's soccer team continued its run through some of the top collegiate soccer teams in the country on Tuesday night with the second of four matches against teams that are currently ranked in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Top 25 poll.

The Panthers (3-3-1), who received votes in this week's NSCAA poll and are coming off a thrilling 2-1 win over, then No. 21, Kentucky on Saturday in Miami, couldn't pick up its second-straight victory as No. 14 Wake Forest (6-1-1) handed FIU a 2-0 loss at Spry Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Unfortunately for the Panthers, it was a Wake Forest program record sixth-straight shutout, a stretch that has extended for 638 consecutive minutes dating back to a 1-0 win over Cleveland State on Sept. 3.

Early on in the match, Paul Marie made a bid to get the Panthers on the board, and end that shutout streak, with a low liner headed for the right post, only to have Wake Forest goalkeeper Alec Ferrell make a diving save in the 15^th minute.

The Demon Deacons had their first quality chance of the contest when Sam Raben headed a corner kick just off the cross bar in the 18^th minute. Just two minutes later, the Panthers seemed to have the momentum on their next possession as Donald Tomlinson fired a laser towards the goal that was saved by Ferrell.

The Demon Deacons, however, finally broke through, off a corner kick from Sam Raben in the 24^th minute. Jon Bakero headed home Raben's offering, beating FIU keeper Arthur Clapot to give Wake a 1-0 lead.

Wake Forest extended its advantage to 2-0 with just 10 seconds remaining when Hunter Bandy crossed the ball, from left-to-right through the box, finding Bruno Lapa who beat Clapot from five yards out.

Despite trailing in the one column that matters, the scoring column, the Panthers held a slight advantage in shots, 7-6, while the shots on goal were even at three apiece. Wake Forest led in corner kicks, 3-1, at the break.

Like they did in the beginning of the match, FIU came out fast in the second half. Joris Ahlinvi, who got his first career start in his third career match for the Panthers, took a corner kick from Brad Fountain and fired it towards the goal with Ferrell diving to his right to preserve the clean sheet in the 46^th minute. Then, one minute later, Ahlinvi had an opportunity lofting a long shot just over the reach of a leaping Ferrell, however the offering went just over the cross bar.

FIU had one last opportunity to get on the board off a set piece from Fountain in the 85^th minute. Fountain put a solid charge into the ball, bending it towards the back post, and beating Ferrell, however the shot went off the top corner of the post and cross bar.

The Panthers finished the night outshooting Wake Forest, 12-8, and held a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal.

Clapot finished the night with one save while facing three shots on goal.

The Panthers will stay in western North Carolina as they travel to Charlotte to face the No. 9-ranked 49ers on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. FIU will close out the three-match road trip at No. 21 New Mexico on Sept. 30 at 9 p.m. ET.

FIU will not return home until Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. when it faces cross-state rival Florida Gulf Coast University at the FIU Soccer Stadium.

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/.