Men's soccer scrapes by UCF, 4-3

Brian Olmo | Editor-in-chief

Men’s soccer took down the #10 UCF Knights 4-3 in a thrilling back-and-forth match on Wednesday, Sep. 11, 2024 at Leyva Family Field at the FIU Soccer Stadium.

The match started with an FIU goal by senior Bernardo Monteiro. UCF quickly retaliated, rattling off two goals of its own to put the Knights up 2-1 heading into the break. The second goal was a penalty shot by junior Clarence Awoudor.

Senior Bernardo Monteiro got things going for the Panthers in the first half. Natalia Bonifaz | PantherNOW

Heading out of the break, senior Michael Appiah and junior Nicolas Villalobos both scored goals to give FIU the lead. For Villalobos, it was his first goal of the season.

Junior Nicolas Villalobos scores his first goal of the season. Natalia Bonifaz | PantherNOW

The Knights didn’t give up however. Even after going down, they fought and were able to tie the game again at 3-3 with a goal from fifth year Jonas Fritschi in the 62nd minute.

It was senior midfielder Diego Castillos who sealed the deal for the Panthers by cashing in a free-kick in the 65th minute of the match.

Four Panthers finished with goals and FIU’s sophomore goalkeeper Nigel Van Haveren had five saves.