MIAMI (October 6, 2017) – The No. 17 FIU men's soccer team looks to extend its unbeaten streak to nine on Saturday when the Panthers return home to face Marshall. First touch is slated for 7 p.m.
The Panthers come into the meeting against the Herd as the only unbeaten team in Conference USA with a 5-0-3 record and a 2-0-1 record in the league. FIU is coming off last week with two wins, including a mid-week 5-0 shutout against North Florida (9/26) and a 4-1 win over Florida Atlantic (9/30).
The Panthers, one of just four 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. 17 ranking in the United Soccer Coaches poll. FIU is ranked No. 21 by TopDrawerSoccer.com, No. 24 by Soccer America and No. 30 by College Soccer News poll.
The Panthers are currently 10th in the nation in win-loss-tie percentage (.813), and joins Indiana (8-0-2), Maryland (8-0-3), and Columbia (5-0-2) as the only teams without a blemish in the loss column. In addition, the Panthers are second in the nation in scoring offense, averaging 2.75 goals-per-game, and tied for ninth in the nation in total goals with 22.
For the third time this season,
Santiago Patino (Orlando, Fla. / Freedom H.S.) was tabbed the C-USA Offensive Player of the Week for the week ending Oct. 1. In addition, he was named to the College Soccer News and TopDrawerSoccer.com National Team of the Week. On the year, he leads the team in points scored with 20 and total goals with nine. He leads the nation in points-per-game (2.50) and is second in goals-per-game (1.13). Patino also ranks in the top-five in the nation in total goals and total points and leads C-USA in all of the listed categories.
Alessandro Campoy (Port au Prince, Haiti / Immaculate-LaSalle H.S.) trails with nine points scored (3g, 3a). In seven matches played, goalkeeper
Hugo Fauroux (Cannes, France) boasts a 4-0-3 record, tallying 19 saves. He has allowed only seven goals this season and boasts a 0.731 save percentage.
Marshall comes into Saturday's match with a 5-4-1 overall record and 1-2 in C-USA. The Herd dropped two 2-1 losses last week, including a mid-week game at Fort Wayne on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and at home against New Mexico on Saturday, Sept. 30.
Following Saturday's match, The Panthers will take the road to face FGCU on Tuesday, Oct. 10, and South Carolina on Saturday, Oct. 14.
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/.
