MIAMI (Aug. 31 ,2013) – The FIU women’s soccer team (1-1-0) won its first game of the season against Stetson (1-1-1) Friday night, 2-0. After a late start due to weather, the Panthers pressed all game, getting off 17 shots in the match.

“We came out with a lot of energy,” said Head Coach Thomas Chestnutt.  “There was a lot of enthusiasm off the bench, and it was great. There could have been a lot of things working against us with the men’s delay and then OT, so it was good to see us come out like we did.”

Junior Ashleigh Shim netted her first goal of the season, the eighth of her career, in the 23rd minute to give FIU a 1-0 lead. A pass by junior Kim Lopez to the left side of the net gave Shim the easy cross, finishing off a strong sequence.

“We needed a goal early to get control of the game,” said Shim. “We were looking to get that early momentum, and we did just that. It felt good to put us on the board”

The Panther attack was strong in the first half, with Lopez, sophomore Madlen Weinhardt and redshirt freshman Shelby Bowden all testing the Hatters’ goal keeper, Victoria Troccoli.

Stetson tallied its first shot of the night in the 58th minute, which was stopped by freshman goal keeper Vanessa Plasencia. The rookie stopped two shots on the night, a stark contrast from the 13 she saved against Arizona in the season opener.

“Defense is a team effort, and the effort was a lot better tonight,” said Chestnutt. “We cut some things out before they were able to begin, so our defenders weren’t put under so much stress. As a whole, we defended well and limited their opportunities on goal.”

A red card in the 88th minute gave Weinhardt a penalty kick opportunity, which she capitalized on to solidify the Panthers victory.

Junior Nicole DiPerna led the team with three shots, two on goal, along with 88 minutes of action. Four Panthers saw 90 minutes of play, including sophomore Marlena Stablein and junior Marie Egan.

The Panthers come home to play the Florida Gators Sunday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. The first 150 fans will receive a free #PantherNation t-shirt and sunglasses.


Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUWomensSoccer) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUWSoccer) for all the latest FIU women’s soccer news. Follow all of FIU’s 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu