By: Andres Leon / Staff Writer
Despite outshooting the Owls and forcing their veteran goalkeeper Jeremy Crumpton to make 11 saves on the night, the Golden Panthers did not finish the weekend with two wins.
The FIU men’s soccer team would settle for a 1-1 draw in a heated game against the Florida Atlantic Owls on Sunday, Aug 28.
After beating Nova Southeastern on Aug. 26 to open their season, confidence was high for the team although they would be without key players being ready for Sunday’s match, things did not look so bad without the talents of Nicolas Rodriguez and Jahbari Willis.
ALBRECHT SHINES
New players would emerge for FIU as Quentin Albrecht linked up with a pass from Joe Dawkins and put the ball in the net in the 10th minute to give the Golden Panthers the early lead.
Albrecht made his first start for FIU, not only scoring the lone goal for the team, but also recording six shots with five on target.
“We didn’t finish the game the way we wanted to, but we have new talent showing on the team and I’m happy with Quentin’s performance,” said head coach Munga Eketebi after the frustrating tie.
In the 23rd minute, the Owls would strike back when Darnell King lobbed a ball into Lukas Simons., who finished the play and tied the game at 1-1.
After that point, the game got sloppy. With the pitch a bit muddy, both teams combined for 32 fouls and four yellow cards would be handed out throughout the match.
With tensions building, starting goalkeeper Erick Reyes would make his best save yet after Owls’ midfielder Deniz Bozkurt put a strike on goal, aiming for the low corner.
Reyes stretched out and made an acrobatic save.
“We had a lot of good opportunities in the game and we couldn’t finish the ball, but I’m proud that the team only let the ball pass them twice. Luckily, I was there to make the saves,” said Reyes. “But overall, its not the worst result and we continue to work on things to get the success we want.”
EXTRA TIME
After 90 minutes, both teams huddled up to try and dig something out for the 20th minute extra time.
In collegiate soccer there are no penalty kicks to decide a game, only two 10-minute halves of extra time.
FIU would record the only two shots in extra time, but were unable to break the tie.
“It’s a tough one to lose,” Eketebi said. “We out shot them 20-7, everyone played great, but we still need to work on finishing plays off.”
FIU (1-1-0, CUSA 0-1-0) will return to action when they go to the Midwest to take on powerhouses Ohio State on Sept. 2 and Penn State on Sept. 4, respectively.
These two away games will be key for RPI rankings and overall confidence boosters for the season.
The Golden Panthers will return home on Sept. 9 to take on Stetson at FIU Soccer Stadium and kickoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m.