Boca Raton, Florida. – The FIU women’s soccer team returns to Florida when it travels to Boca Raton to face Florida Atlantic in a rivalry showdown.
Thursday, August 22 in Florida Atlantic
FIU is coming off a game against Oklahoma in Norman, where the Sooners handed the Panthers their first loss of the season. FIU started 2024 with a win over FGCU, the first for the program since 2010.
The Panthers and Sooners were tied 1-1 late in the game before Oklahoma scored in the final three minutes to secure the 2-1 victory.
FIU gave Oklahoma a tough fight, not allowing the Sooners a point until the 77:50 minute mark, despite being down a player due to a red card in the 40th minute.
Second semester Valery Restrepo played a good game as goalie, finishing with three saves and many more plays that don’t appear on the stat sheets. The goalie stopped 12 of Oklahoma’s 14 shots from reaching the net, keeping the Panthers in the game despite the Sooners’ chances.
Oklahoma scored its first goal of the game after a nice assist into the box that resulted in a shot into the bottom center of the net.
FIU reacted quickly and forced a handball in the Oklahoma penalty area, resulting in a penalty. Nicole Solisthe Panthers’ top scorer last season, froze the Sooners’ defender and took the chance to tie the score at 1-1.
The two teams played closely together until the final minutes, when FIU was called for a foul just outside the Panthers’ penalty box. Oklahoma took the lead with a free kick in the top right corner of the net in the 87th minute, and the team held on to the win until the end.
In search of the owls
Florida Atlantic has started the season against two Power 4 teams, UCF and Miami. The Owls were defeated 5-1 by the UCF Knights in their first game of the season, but rebounded in the following game against the ‘Canes with a 1-1 tie.
FAU was picked to finish fifth in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll after finishing the 2023 season with an overall record of 8-7-5 and a conference record of 3-3-3, good for seventh place in the conference.
The Owls had three players on the AAC preseason watch list: goalkeeper Lexi Gonzalez, defenseman Jodi Smith and midfielder Sofia Voldby. Their goals so far this season have come from junior defenseman Stella Rubidoux against UCF and sophomore forward Olivia Bori against Miami.
FIU hasn’t won against the Owls since the 2013 season and will look to break that streak on Thursday night.
TAPSTIC HEALTH
The 2024 FIU men’s and women’s soccer seasons are presented by Baptist Health, the official sports medicine provider of FIU Athletics.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Instagram (@FIUWSoccer), Twitter (@FIUWSoccer) and Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUWSoccer) for all the latest news on women’s football.
General sports news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram
