Weekend In Review: Nationally ranked men’s soccer wins sixth in a row

Defender Marvin Hezel scored the first goal in a 5-1 win over Marshall at FIU Soccer Stadium on Sept. 26.

By Joel Delgado ’12 MS ’17 

It’s been a great week for the FIU men’s soccer team.

One day after defeating the Florida Atlantic Owls 7-2 on the road Monday night, the Panthers received news that they were ranked No. 24 in the country in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.

On Saturday night at home against Marshall, the Panthers (6-2, 2-0 Conference USA) continued to build on their momentum with a 5-1 victory over the Thundering Herd. Four different Panthers scored goals to help extend FIU’s win streak to six games.

Defender Marvin Hezel wasted little time getting the Panthers on the scoreboard, scoring on a header from a pass delivered by defender Paul Marie in the 7^th minute to give FIU the early lead.

In the 25^th minute, Luis Betancur scored his fifth goal of the season to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead, which would hold until the end of the first half. Betancur leads the team in goals scored.

An own goal by Marshall and goals by Panthers midfielder Darren Rios and forward Luca Giovine in the second half helped give FIU run away with the match and remain unbeaten in conference play.

The Panthers will now travel to Orlando to take on UCF for a midweek match on Sept. 29 before returning home to face Charlotte at FIU Soccer Stadium on Oct. 3.

For more information on FIU men’s soccer, go to FIUSports.com.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

Teammates celebrate with Scarlet Montoya (#10) after she scored the game-winning goal against UTEP in the 90th minute on Sept. 27.

The FIU women’s soccer had an exciting pair of matches at FIU Soccer Stadium over the weekend as well.

On Friday night, they downed the UTSA Roadrunners in a 3-1 victory with goals from a trio of Panthers – freshman defender Lyrik Fryer, senior midfielder Scarlet Montoya and junior midfielder Alyssa Robinson.

The Panthers wrapped up the weekend with a bang, stunning the UTEP Miners with a 90^th minute goal by Montoya that gave FIU a 3-2 win.

With 2-1 lead in the 89^th minute, UTEP’s Aleah Davis momentarily knocked the wind out of FIU’s sails with a header off a corner kick that found its way into the back of the net to tie the game.

But a foul just outside of the penalty area less than a minute later set up a free kick for Montoya and one last opportunity to pick up a victory. Montoya’s free kick cleared the wall formed by UTEP defenders and found the left corner of the net for the game-winning goal.

FIU improves its record 6-5-0 on the season and 2-0 in Conference USA play and will now travel to Texas this weekend for matches against C-USA foes Rice and North Texas.

For more information on FIU women’s soccer, go to FIUSports.com.

FOOTBALL

Against Louisiana Tech, the preseason favorite to win Conference USA’s West Division, FIU football fell behind early and could not overcome the deficit in a 27-17 loss to the Bulldogs on Sept. 26 in Ruston, La.

The Panthers had trouble containing Bulldogs running back Kenneth Dixon, who rushed for 169 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. Dixon also caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jeff Driskel in the second quarter.

Quarterback Alex McGough delivered another strong performance at quarterback, completing 29 of his 44 passes for 263 yards passing and two touchdowns. But it wasn’t enough to make up for the run game, which struggled to gain traction throughout the game – the Panthers rushed for a total of 45 yards on Saturday.

FIU (2-2, 0-1 C-USA) will take on UMASS on the road Oct. 3 at 3 p.m. before returning home to face UTEP at FIU Stadium Oct. 10.

For more information on FIU football, go to FIUSports.com.    

INDOOR VOLLEYBALL

The road was not friendly for FIU indoor volleyball this weekend as the Panthers dropped matches at Rice and WKU.

A slow start doomed the Panthers against the Rice Owls on Sept. 25 and although they improved as the match wore on, they were still dealt a 3-0 sweep. Outside hitter Lucia Castro picked up her sixth double-double of the season with 10 kills and 14 digs in the loss.

Then the WKU Hilltoppers also swept the Panthers in three sets on Sept. 27. Castro added nine kills and nine digs in the loss.

The Panthers hope to bounce back at home against Marshall on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. and against UTEP on Oct. 4 at 1 p.m. Both matches will be played at FIU Arena.

For more information on FIU indoor volleyball, go to FIUSports.com.