RUSTON, La – The fourth--seeded FIU women's soccer team prepares to open the 2023 Conference USA Women's Soccer Championships, as the Panthers face off with fifth-seeded Sam Houston in the quarterfinals round on Wednesday, Nov. 1, at the Robert Mack Caruthers Field in Ruston, La. The matchup marks the first between the two programs in the C-USA Tournament.
Wednesday, Nov. 1 vs. #5 seed Sam Houston (5-6-4, 3-3-2 CUSA)
FIU concluded the regular season 8-5-4 and 3-2-3. The eight regular season victories are already the most wins for the program since 2015.
The Panthers finished in fourth in the conference, which is the highest seeding to finish a regular season in their tenure in Conference USA.
The 2023 season has been one of the most successful campaigns as a member of Conference USA, already with 36 goals, which is the most in their 11 seasons in CUSA, while most since 2012. In addition, their scoring offense of 2.11, goals per game, sits atop of CUSA, while placing second in points (98).
FIU boasted seven selections to the All-CUSA Team with
Noemi Paquin marking her first ever first-team award.
Reagan Bridges,
Camille Sahirul,
Kim Schneider and
Nikole Solis all tabbed to the second team, while
Delinda Sehlin and
Ithaisa Vinoly were placed to the third team. It is the most selections to a Conference USA team in program history.
The trio of Paquin, Solis, and Schneider lead the offense with a combined 20 goals and 11 points as well. Solis is tied for the conference-lead in goals (9), Schneider has shined in her sophomore campaign with six goals, while Paquin leads the conference in shots (53) with a career-high of four assists.
The Panthers have been a steady force defensively, allowing just 16 goals this season, which the program record in least amount of goals conceded in a single-season in FIU history.
The Panthers backline have played major roles this season with
Anna Rockett,
Sehlin and Bridges leading the way, and having logged over 1,3500 minutes on the year, individually.
In net, true freshman
Gwen Jordan has started the last two matches, recording seven saves. Jordan tallied five saves in the loss to Middle Tennessee on Oct. 27, a career-high.
LAST TIME OUT
FIU prepares to match up with Sam Houston for the first time in the postseason, while second meeting overall.
Both teams matched up on Sep. 21 this season as the Panthers dominated in the second half, winning 3-0 on the road in a clean-sheet victory.
Farah El Tayar, Bridges, and Sahirul all secured goals, while
Kim Schneider led the night with two key assists.
SCOUTING THE BEARKATS
The Bearkats head into the contest with a 5-6-4 (3-3-2 CUSA) record as the fifth seed, ending the season with back-to-back draws against New Mexico State on Oct. 22 and UTEP on Oct. 28. Sam Houston has yet to record a goal in their past three matches, with their last goal coming on Oct. 8.
The team is led offensively by Sophomore Pam Murray paces the team in points (9) and shots (21). She is tied with sophomore Kennedy Baquero, who each have four goals recorded thus season.
Sam Houston sits 7
th in offense this season, averaging 1.2 goals per game with a total of 18 goals as a team this season.
At the net, senior Savannah Hall has started in nine games with 52 saves and a 1.78 goals against average on the season while allowing 18 goals.
UP NEXT
The winner of FIU/Sam Houston will take on the #1 seed New Mexico State Aggies on Friday, Nov. 3 in the semifinals.
First kick is set for 5:30 p.m. EST and can be streamed on ESPN+.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Instagram (
@FIUWSoccer), Twitter (
@FIUWSoccer), and Facebook (
Facebook.com/FIUWSoccer) for all the latest Women's Soccer news.
General athletic news can also be found at
@FIUSports on Facebook and
@FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.
