BOCA RATON, Fla. – (Nov. 1, 2019) – On a night where 10 seniors were celebrated, two of them scored goals, which was enough for the Florida Atlantic University women’s soccer to edge FIU on Friday night, 2-1. The win gives the Owls the 2019 Conference USA regular season championship and clinches the No. 1 seed for the team in next week’s C-USA Championship.
The Turning Point:
The Owls (14-3-1, 8-1-1 C-USA) scored late in the first half and early in the second to take the advantage. Mary O’Hara finished off a nice assist from Madison Davenport in the 36th; on a corner kick in the 51st, Sammy Vitols found the foot of Jessica Monteiro for a 2-0 lead.
The Finish:
A counter and breakaway goal – on just the second shot of the match for visiting FIU (2-15-0, 0-10-0 C-USA) – cut the lead in half, but that would be the final attempt of the night for the Panthers. The Owls controlled possession for most of the final 13-plus minutes, and celebration of the title ensued at the final horn.
Notables:
· O’Hara’s 10th goal made her just the 10th women’s soccer player to reach double digits in a single season in program history (and first since Claire Emslie in 2012)
· Monteiro, not generally a player that records counting stats in her role as holding mid, notched her second goal this season and fourth of her career
· For Davenport, it was her second assist this year (and in her two-year career), and Vitols moved into the team lead with five helpers on the season, for now seven in her career
· The team reached the 14-win plateau for just the sixth time in program history, and first time since 2005
· The regular season title is the fifth ever for the Owls, following last year’s co-championship, and Atlantic Sun trophies in 2002, 2003 and 2005
Quotable:
“Just proud of our girls,” said head coach Patrick Baker. “Proud to be champions of Conference USA, proud to be the No. 1 seed, and excited for what the tournament might hold regardless of who we play. It’s a brand new season, everybody’s got the same opportunities … (but) we’re excited to get the No. 1 seed.”
“We’re just really happy,” said senior midfielder Jessica Monteiro. “We had to put this one away, and I think we did. It’s a lot of emotions being a senior, and doing this with my team, but it was great to do it at home, and it’s great to do it on Senior Night.”
Full Video with Coach Baker:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK4RteSGzZc
Full Video with Jessica Monteiro:
What’s Next:
The Owls will take on whichever C-USA team earns the No. 8 see (Louisiana Tech, UTEP and Middle Tennessee all finished 5-4-1 in the league for 16 points, to finish in a three-way tie for sixth). The bracket, with first day gametime and that opponent, will soon be officially announced by the conference. The tournament will be played beginning Wednesday in Denton, Texas.
2019 Senior Night:
The 10 members of the Class of 2019, consisting of Monteiro, Maddie Winch, Abby Ribas, Elisha Holmes, Carolynn Wotring, O’Hara, Emma Jacobs, Alex Maxson, Tiril Haga and Pernille Velta, were honored pregame.
– FAUSports.com –
Florida Atlantic University Athletics:
FAU Athletics is comprised of 21 intercollegiate teams involving 450 student-athletes that compete in baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, volleyball, beach volleyball, cheer and dance. The Owls are a NCAA Division I-A (FBS) institution and compete in Conference USA and the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) (beach volleyball, men’s swimming). The Owls have been playing football since 2001 and are a perfect 3-0 in bowl games, the most recent being a 50-3 victory over Akron in the 2017 Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl. The dance team finished its 2014 season No. 8, nationally. FAU cheer won a national championship in 2016.
About Florida Atlantic University:
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.
