MIAMI – The FGCU men's soccer team will head across Alligator Alley to face in-state foe FIU Wednesday night in one of three remaining non-conference contests still on the slate mid-way through the season.

Matchup: FGCU (4-3-1, 1-1-0 ASUN) vs FIU (4-5, 3-0 C-USA)
When: Wed Oct. 3 | 7:00 PM EST | Miami, FL.
Links: Watch | Live Stats
Coaches: Jesse Cormier (2nd Season @ FGCU; 15th Overall, 126-98-51) |
Kevin Nylen (2nd Season @ FIU; Same Overall, 16-7-4)
 
OPENING KICK
FGCU and FIU have played every year since the Eagles' program began in 2007, with the exception of the 2012 campaign. FIU holds a 7-3 edge in the all-time series and had won four meetings in a row until FGCU's 4-1 victory in 2016 when the Eagles were ranked #12 – the last time the Eagles were in Miami facing the Panthers.

INSIDE THE FGCU LINEUP
Shak Adams (Antioch, Tenn./Cane Ridge HS) leads the FGCU offense with five goals, pairing that with four assists which is good for second in the conference for a team-best 14 points thus far – tied for third in the ASUN. Freshman O'Vonte Mullings (Toronto, Ontario/ Northview Heights Secondary) is right behind the junior tallying three goals along with a pair of assists. Through eight matches, the Eagles boast eight different scorers on their roster. Chris Clement (Mallorca, Spain/Lycee Francais de Palma) most recently joined the list this past weekend with his first goal of the season against Lipscomb.

Between the posts, keeper Gustavo Vasconcelos (Recife, Brazil/Colegio GGE) is 2-2-1, as he leads the ASUN in saves (37), save percentage (.822) and goals against average (GAA) (1.29).

The Eagles are currently ranked 80th in the RPI standings.

ASUN OVERVIEW
FGCU was narrowly picked 2nd in the ASUN preseason coaches' poll earlier this month, making it the first time since 2012 the Eagles were not selected as the preseason league favorite. Senior Preston Kilwien (Pleasant Hill, Calif./College Park HS) was installed as league's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year while Adams and senior Dennis Zapata (Orlando, Fla./University HS) joined Kilwien on the preseason all-conference team as FGCU's three selections were the most of any team in the league.

The Green and Blue finished just behind defending tournament champion Lipscomb in the preseason poll with 41 points while the Bisons had 42 points. Lipscomb received four 1st-place votes, while FGCU had one, 3rd-place Jacksonville (28 points) also had one and 4th-place NJIT (25) additionally picked up a top vote. Stetson (5th, 23 points), league newcomer Liberty (6th, 22 points) and North Florida (7th, 15 points) rounded out the preseason poll.

ASUN DOMINANCE
FGCU owns a dominant record of 45-7-6 (.839 winning percentage) in all ASUN regular-season games since the start of the 2010 season. Out of a possible 174 points that could have been earned in that time, the Green and Blue have claimed an impressive 141 of them (82 percent).

AROUND THE ASUN

School	Pts	ASUN	Overall	Last Week
Jacksonville	6	2-0-0	2-8-0	L- Creighton (2-1), W- NJIT (4-2)
UNF	3	1-0-0	2-7-0	W- Liberty (3-2)
FGCU	3	1-1-0	4-3-1	L- Lipscomb (3-2)
Lipscomb	3	1-1-0	2-7-0	W- FGCU (3-2)
Stetson	1	0-0-1	4-5-1	L- USF (3-1), W- FAU (2-1), L- SMU (3-1) (Monday)
Liberty	1	0-1-1	3-4-1	L- UNF (3-2)
NJIT	0	0-2-0	5-5-0	L- LIU Brooklyn (3-2), L- Jacksonville (4-2)

MATCHES TO WATCH THIS WEEK
Tuesday, Oct. 2
Liberty @ Longwood 6 PM
Jacksonville @ UCF 7 PM

Wednesday, Oct. 3
FGCU @ FIU 7 PM
Temple @ NJIT 3:30 PM

Saturday, Oct. 6
NJIT @ Liberty 2 PM
Lipscomb @ UNF 7 PM
Stetson @ FGCU 7 PM

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Selected as preseason Conference USA (C-USA) favorites, the Panthers are currently 4-5 overall with a 3-0 mark in conference play. The squad has won the last three of four, scoring nine goals in two recent road wins against UNF (5-3) and New Mexico (4-2). An All-American and MAC Hermann semifinalist last year, Santiago Patino continues to churn the FIU attack netting eight goals this season – he's produced all 17 of his points (8g, 1a) in five of his last seven matches –  while Joris Ahlinvi is second in line tallying four goals along with two assists.

Hugo Fauroux (1-5) has seen the most action in net this season, logging in over 540 minutes with 17 saves in six matches, posting a 2.50 GAA.

BUILDING A CHAMPIONSHIP PROGRAM
Since the program's first two seasons in 2007 and 2008, FGCU has posted a winning record each of the past nine years. All-time, the Eagles are 106-71-28 (.598) in 11 seasons, including a dominant 57-20-8 (.746) record in ASUN contests. In just seven years of D-I postseason eligibility, FGCU has won four ASUN Tournament championships and made four NCAA Tournament appearances – in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2016 – and won an unprecedented six-straight ASUN regular-season championships from 2010-15. In 2017, the Eagles continued a stretch of never being seeded lower than 2nd and have reached at least the semifinals in all seven eligible seasons.

FGCU CAREER RECORDS
POINTS
1.         76 - Albert Ruiz (34g 8a) - 2014-17
2.         43 - Cristian Raudales (19g 5a) - 2008-11
3.         38 - Arion Sobers-Assue (12g 14a) - 2014-17
            38 - Felipe DeSousa (18g 2a) - 2012-14
5.         32 - Dylan Sacramento (12g 8a) - 2015-17
6.         31 - Josey Portillo (8g 15a) - 2008-11
7.         30 - Francesco DiStefano (9g 12a) - 2008-11
            30 - Scott Harrison (12g 6a) - 2008-11
9.         29 - Dennis Zapata (8g 11a) - 2015-Present
10.       28 - Deion Jones (9g 10a) - 2009-12
ASSISTS
1.         15 - Josey Portillo - 2008-11
2.         14 - Arion Sobers-Assue - 2014-17
3.         12 - Francesco DiStefano - 2008-11
4.         11 - Dennis Zapata - 2015-Present
            11- Andres Navas – 2009-12
6.         10 - Deion Jones - 2009-12
7.         9 - Skylar Wilks - 2013-15
            9 - Miguel Jaime - 2014-17
            9 - William Morse - 2009-12
10.       8 - Donovan Henry - 2010-12

INSIDE THE SCHEDULE
All told, the 2018 slate features 16 games, including 10 non-conference matchups to prepare the Eagles for what they hope is a fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in only eight seasons of eligibility. Of those 10 non-league contests, an incredible five are against NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago.

The FGCU Soccer Complex will host four upcoming contests, the next being this Saturday, Oct. 6 when Stetson comes into The Nest at 7 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU men's soccer program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_MSoccer, Instagram @FGCU_MSoccer, Facebook /FGCUMSoccer and YouTube /FGCUAthletics.

HEAD COACH JESSE CORMIER
Jesse Cormier is in his second season as head coach of the FGCU men's soccer program after being hired in January of 2017 to become just the 2nd head coach in program history. Cormier has guided FGCU to a 12-9-4 (.568) record overall, including an 8-6-3 (4-1-1 ASUN) mark in his 1st season with the team in 2017. The Eagles reached the ASUN Tournament semifinals for the 7th-straight season (every year of eligibility), as Cormier coached a program-record 10 all-conference selections. Cormier was the head coach at his alma mater the University of Vermont for the previous 13 seasons. He won 14 games with the Catamounts in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round. During his time with Vermont, Cormier guided the program to the America East Tournament in 12 of 13 seasons, making five title game appearances, winning two tournament crowns, claiming a regular-season championship and advancing to three NCAA tournaments, including a pair of Second Round appearances. Cormier holds an overall 126-98-51 (.562) record as a head coach in his fourteen plus seasons at the helm.

SUPPORT THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise.