MIAMI (Sept. 24, 2021) – The No. 23 ranked FIU men's soccer team is set to open up Conference USA play this Saturday, Sept. 25, when the Panthers travel to face UAB.

First kick against the Blazers is set for 8 p.m. ET at BBVA Field.
 
The match will be streamed live via CUSA-TV. Live stats can be found here.
 
MATCH PREVIEW
FIU owns a 5-1-1 record this year and a 2-1-1 record on the road. The Panthers are coming off a dominating 6-0 victory over Jacksonville this past Tuesday at FIU Soccer Stadium. FIU posted its fourth clean sheet of the year against JU while producing its highest scoring output since Sept. 14, 2019 (6-1, FAU). FIU is looking for its first road win since Aug. 29, when the Panthers defeated FGCU 1-0 in double overtime.
 
UAB has a posted a 2-4 record this season and will be looking for its first home victory of the year, as the Blazers own a 0-3 record at BBVA Field. UAB is coming off a 5-1 victory over Gardner Webb last Saturday. Prior to that, the Blazers dropped three consecutive contests against Memphis (1-3), Central Arkansas (0-1), and UTRGV (2-3, 2OT).
 
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS
The Blazers are led offensively by Nathaniel St. Louis, who has recorded nine points with four goals and an assist. Between the pipes, Trevor Jackson has started the last three games for UAB and posted 13 saves with a .722 save percentage while allowing five goals.

ALL-TIME SERIES
FIU owns an 11-7-1 all-time record against UAB and has won the last six matches dating back to the 2016 season. The Panthers last saw UAB during the 2021 spring season and defeated the Blazers by a score of 4-0 in Miami. FIU enjoyed a 2-0 clean sheet victory over UAB when the two squads last met at BBVA Field in 2019.

FIU BY THE NUMBERS
The No. 23 ranked Panthers are the highest-ranked program in the state of Florida, and one of three teams from Conference USA to be ranked in the United Soccer Coaches (USC) Top-25 poll. FIU has now been ranked in three straight USC polls out of the four total this year.

Nine different Panthers have scored this season in what has been a truly balanced attack, with Bernardo Dos Santos Monteiro (3), David Garcia (3), Stephen Afrifa (2), Kareem Riley, and Talla Faye leading the way. Faye notched a Brace in FIU's last contest against JU, while Sander Jonassen Foro and Julian Hodek collected their first goals as Panthers.

FIU has seen a Panther defender score in six of its seven games this season, with Garcia, Riley, and Philip Hildebrandt (1) all contributing goals. Garcia leads the Panthers with seven points from the center back position.

The Panther center back duo of Garcia and Riley have anchored FIU's defense and lead the squad with 625 and 610 minutes-played, respectively.
 
Goalkeeper Grant Makela has started six contests for FIU and posted three clean sheets while nabbing 15 saves on 59 shots faced. FIU's lengthy netminder owns a 0.8 goals-against-average and a 0.75 save percentage on the year. Tyler Hogan started his first career game as a Panther in the last contest against JU and logged two saves with a clean sheet.

UP NEXT
The Panthers return to FIU Soccer Stadium for their C-USA home opener next Saturday, Oct. 2, when they host a rival Charlotte squad that has been receiving votes in the USC Top-25 poll all season. Kickoff against the 49ers is set for 7 p.m. ET.

SOCIAL MEDIA 
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