MIAMI (March 16, 2021) - Jesyka Burks-Wiley's squad won its first game at the C-USA Championships and earned a postseason berth to highlight this past week in FIU Athletics.

FIU had nine programs in action last week in total, as it was another busy week for the Panthers. Below is a recap of how each sport fared this past week.

Women's Basketball
Jesyka Burks-Wiley's squad won its first game at the C-USA Championships in Frisco, Texas, over Southern Miss before falling to top-seeded Rice. The Panthers downed the Golden Eagles 85-75 and were led by Jiselle Thomas who scored 34 points, which was the 10th-most ever by a player at the tournament in C-USA history. FIU was selected to the Women's Basketball Invitational earlier this week, as the Panthers earned the program's first postseason appearance since 2013. FIU will take on Northern Arizona in the opening round on Friday, March 19, at 7:30 p.m. in Frankfort, Kentucky. The Panthers will play two more games on Saturday and Sunday at the tournament. 

Softball
After dropping their first game of the week on the road to No. 24 UCF, the FIU softball team bounced back to sweep South Dakota at home. The Panthers earned a walk-off win to open the series, before outscoring the Coyotes 17-3 over the next two games. Jessica Rivera led the Panthers at the plate as she collected five hits and eight RBI on the weekend with a double and homer. Kendahl Dunford pitched in two games, earning a pair of wins in 8.1 innings of work. The Panthers will host FAU on Sunday, March 21, at 3 p.m. as FIU officially begins C-USA play. 

Women's Soccer
FIU women's soccer dropped a pair of matches last week, as the Panthers fell to ODU at home and Miami (FL) on the road. The Panthers will hit the road once again this week as FIU travels to Charlotte on Friday, March 19, before hosting Marshall on Monday, March 22 at 7 p.m. 

Women's Tennis
The FIU women's tennis squad earned a 7-0 win over FAMU this past Friday, as the Panthers hosted their first match at home in nearly a month. The win for FIU gives the program its first 4-0 start since 2007. FIU hosts East Tennessee State on Wednesday, March 17, with first serve set for Noon. 

Women's Golf
Joseph Vogel's squad played in the Arizona State Tournament in Mesa, Arizona this past weekend, as the Panthers finished seventh overall. The Panthers had three golfers finish in the top 25, as Carolina Andrade placed 15th, Gabriela Powel finished 23rd and Agueda Cortilla was at 24th to round out the trio. FIU will travel to Tucson, Arizona this weekend to take part in the Mountain View Collegiate, hosted by Kansas State. 

Baseball
The FIU baseball team split its first road series of the year last time out, as the Panthers took two games at Coastal Carolina. FIU won the first two games of the series thanks to six combined RBI from Steven Ondina and Dante Girardi. FIU travels to DeLand, Florida this weekend to take on Wichita State and Stetson for a pair of games each, before returning to host the Hatters on Tuesday, March 23. 

Beach Volleyball 
The Panthers went a perfect 4-0 this past weekend at the FIU Beach Bash after downing visiting FGCU, Palm Beach Atlantic and Florida Southern. Lina Bernier and Gina Lipscomb continued their winning streak as the pair won their 11th-straight match to improve to 13-1 on the year. FIU hosts North Florida and Florida Memorial for the Panther Beach Battle this weekend, with matches on Friday and Saturday. 

Men's Soccer
Kyle Russell's club battled tough on the road, but fell to No. 11 Marshall in overtime. Johan Peñaranda earned a career-best 14 saves despite the loss, as that total ranks as the most by any C-USA player this year. The Panthers are back home this Saturday, March 20 as FIU welcomes UAB at Noon. 

Volleyball
The Panthers hosted their final home series earlier this week, as FIU dropped a pair of matches to visiting Middle Tennessee. The Panthers will have one more series left in the regular season, with a short trip to Boca Raton scheduled on March 21-22 to take on the FAU Owls.

SOCIAL MEDIA
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