IRVING, Texas – Charlotte and FIU won their first-round matches on Friday, Nov. 8 to advance to the semifinals of the 2024 American Athletic Conference Men’s Soccer Championship.
No. 3 Charlotte (9-2-5) earned a 3-1 home win over No. 6 Temple (5-7-5), while fifth-seeded FIU (5-5-6) defeated fourth-seeded Florida Atlantic (7-6-3) 1-0 in Boca Raton. Charlotte will take on No. 2 South Florida (6-5-4) in the first semifinal on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 3:30 p.m. CT. The Panthers will face host and No. 1 seed Memphis (7-6-3) in the second semifinal on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT.
Charlotte used a flurry of goals in the first half to take a commanding 3-0 lead. Charlotte’s Abubacarr Fofana scored the first goal in the 2nd minute, before Ryan Dunn added two more goals before the first half ended (8’, 25’). The Owls would get one back in the 84th minute off the foot of Aaron Markowitz.
In Boca Raton, the rematch of last season’s first round matchup saw a defensive battle in a low-scoring affair. FIU used an early goal from Eduardo Mustre to take a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute over in-state rival Florida Atlantic. The Panthers turned to defense the rest of the game to keep the Owls off the board and secure the first-round win.
2024 American Athletic Conference Men’s Soccer Championship Schedule
First round at campus sites
Semifinals and final at home site of the No. 1 seed Memphis
(all times Central)
First Round – Friday, November 8
Game 1 – No. 3 Charlotte 3, No. 6 Temple 1
Game 2 – No. 5 FIU 1, No. 4 Florida Atlantic 0
Semifinals – Wednesday, November 13
Game 3 – No. 3 Charlotte vs. No. 2 South Florida | 3:30 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 4 – No. 5 FIU at No. 1 Memphis | 7 p.m. | ESPN+
Championship Final – Saturday, November 16
Game 5 – Semifinal Winners | Noon | ESPN+
