MIAMI (October 13, 2017) – The No. 14 FIU men's soccer team looks to extend its unbeaten streak to 11 on Saturday when the Panthers continue their road stretch to face South Carolina. First touch is slated for 7 p.m.
The Panthers come into the meeting against the Gamecocks as the only unbeaten team in Conference USA with a 7-0-3 record and a 3-0-1 record in the league. FIU pulled out a thrilling 4-3 double-overtime come-from-behind win at FGCU on Oct. 10.
The Panthers, one of just three Division I men's soccer programs in the country without a loss, come into this week ranked in all four of the collegiate soccer world's major polls, including a No. 14 ranking in the United Soccer Coaches poll. FIU is ranked No. 20 by TopDrawerSoccer.com and Soccer America and No. 23 by College Soccer News poll. The Panthers were also named NCAA Team of the Week over No. 2 Wake Forest and No. 7 Notre Dame for the week ending in Oct. 11.
The Panthers are currently fifth in the nation in win-loss-tie percentage (.850), and joins Indiana (10-0-2) and Maryland (9-0-3) as the only teams without a blemish in the loss column. In addition, the Panthers are second in the nation in scoring offense, averaging 3.00 goals-per-game.
Santiago Patino (Orlando, Fla. / Freedom H.S) pulled in multiple weekly honors for the second consecutive week on Monday. For the fourth time this season, Patino was tabbed the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week. In addition, the junior forward was named to the College Soccer News and TopDrawerSoccer.com National Team of the Week. Patino leads the nation in points-per-game, averaging 2.70 per contest and in goals-per-game, averaging 1.20 per outing. He is also tied for first in the nation in total goals with 12 and second in total points with 27.
Alessandro Campoy (Port au Prince, Haiti / Immaculate-LaSalle H.S.) (4g, 4a) trails with 12 points; while
Joris Ahlinvi (Gujan-Mestras, France) (2g, 4a) and
Inigo Sagarduy (Coral Gables, Fla./Belen Jesuit Prep) (1g, 6a) both total eight points scored. Sagarduy tallied three of his assists during the FGCU mid-week match on Tuesday. In nine matches played, goalkeeper
Hugo Fauroux (Cannes, France) boasts a 6-0-3 record, tallying 29 saves. On the year, he has allowed only 10 goals, totaled 3.5 shutouts, and boasts a 0.744 save percentage.
South Carolina comes into Saturday's match with a 4-7-1 overall record and a 0-3-1 record in C-USA. The Gamecocks dropped a pair of losses, including a 3-2 loss to Virginia Tech on Tuesday (10/3) and a 1-0 shutout by No. 20 Kentucky.
Following Saturday's match, the Panthers will end their road stretch in Tampa at USF, to face the Bulls on Tuesday, Oct. 17 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 eight different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including Riccardo Silva 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/.
