JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – North Florida men's soccer played from behind nearly the entire match and couldn't pull off a comeback as the Ospreys fell 5-3 vs. Florida International at Hodges Stadium on Sunday night.
UNF wrapped up non-conference play with a 1-7 mark while the Panthers move to 3-5 on the season.
Goals
FIU: 5' – Santiago Patino (Assisted by Andrew Booth)
FIU: 11' – Owen Green (Assisted by Andrew Booth)
FIU: 14' – Andrew Booth (Unassisted)
UNF: 40' –
Mikey Connell (Unassisted)
FIU: 43' – Joris Ahlinvi (Assisted by Andrew Booth)
UNF: 59' –
Zane Bubb (Assisted by
Mikey Connell)
FIU: 60' – Santiago Patino (Unassisted)
UNF: 84' –
Mikey Connell (Penalty Kick)
How it Happened
- FIU took a quick lead in the fifth minute when Santiago Patino broke free on the right side and found the back of the net.
- The Panthers doubled their lead when Owen Green took the pass from Andrew Booth and scored from the right side of the box.
- North Florida's first attempt to comeback was in the eighth minute when Kondjo Zebina's shot was blocked after penetrating the left side of the box and putting pressure on the FIU defense.
- Booth capitalized on a miscue on goal kick from the Ospreys and launched the ball into the net from 30 yards out into the empty net to give the Panthers the 3-0 advantage.
- After a Panther foul, Mikey Connell cut the deficit to two goals after striking the ball into the back of the net on the free kick from 20 yards out.
- Following FIU's fourth goal of the match, Nick Lodovico nearly trimmed the deficit in half right before intermission after lacing the ball from 25 yards out, but the attempt ricocheted off the crossbar and the Ospreys trailed 4-1 at the break.
- Zane Bubb scored his first career goal in the 59th minute on a header from the corner kick by Connell.
- The Panthers tacked on their final goal of the match when Santiago Patino stole the ball near the top of the box and launched the ball into the top of the goal.
- Connell cut the Panther lead to two goals for the third time of the match after scoring his second goal of the match on a penalty shot.
- North Florida nearly came within a goal in the 64th minute when AJ Williams received a cross, but his header attempt landed just wide of the goal.
Thoughts From the Top
"I don't think we played well tonight and gifted them goals. With the slow start we found ourselves down 3-0. When you dig yourself a hole early and start to climb back, just can't give up the goals right after. We cut the deficit to two and gave up a really poor goal on a bad turnover that led to an easy chance for them, and they got great players going forward. The have some very nice attacking players and you saw that with the quick start for them to the match.
Mikey Connell has been very consistent for us this year, he comes to perform and battle every night. We have four days to get ready for ASUN play, it's not how we wanted it, but at least we scored some goals and had some positives from guys coming off the bench who have been out with injuries."
Quick Kicks
- The Panthers outshot North Florida by a 17-12 margin while both teams notched four corner kicks.
- Freshman Zane Bubb scored his first career collegiate goal.
- Mikey Connell registered five points in the match and leads the team with five goals and two assists on the season.
- 19 Ospreys saw action in the final non-conference match.
What's Next
The Ospreys are back on the road next weekend as North Florida opens conference play at ASUN newcomer Liberty on Saturday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. in Lynchburg, Va.
