Memphis to Finish Regular Season at FIU

MIAMI, Fla. – Memphis men's soccer travels to Miami to face FIU for the regular season finale. The match is set for a 6 p.m. start on Friday, Nov. 1 and will be broadcast on ESPN+.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

Memphis (7-6-2, 4-1-1 American) comes in to Friday's match after securing a thrilling comeback victory over Florida Atlantic. The Tigers find themselves completely in control of their AAC tournament destiny, as a win would clinch both an outright regular season title and the No. 1 seed in the AAC Championship.

In Memphis' most recent match, it took late-match heroics from a pair of substitutes to seal the victory for the Tigers. After going down on a Noah Kvifte goal, Lleyton Imparato and Luciano Galizzi entered the match and momentum shifted instantly. Galizzi would find the back of the net first from an Anders Bordoy cross. Six minutes later, Imparato gave Memphis its first lead of the night and the Tigers would not relinquish it for the remainder of the match.

Two Tigers, Lleyton Imparato and Ryan Ruguaru, received weekly awards in the conference. Imparato was named Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. Ruguaru earned Freshman of the Week honors for the second time in his 2024 campaign. Filip Sabatti also earned an honorable mention for his performance against Florida Atlantic.

Lleyton Imparato still leads the Tigers in goal contributions with ten (five goals, five assists). The defensive triangle of Jackson Kim and Logan Longo at center backs and Filip Sabatti in net are the three Tigers to have eclipsed the 1100-minutes played mark. Kim and Longo, along with Luciano Galizzi, are still the only Memphis players to have started in every match.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS

FIU (4-5-5, 2-2-2 American) enters Friday's match coming off a scoreless draw at Temple that extended the Panthers' winless streak to four matches. FIU failed to record a shot on target against the Owls.

The Panthers have been aided by consistency, as six Panthers have started in at least 13 of 14 matches played. Florida International boasts a balanced attack, as nine players have found the back of the net this season and eight players have recorded at least one assist. Bernardo Dos Santos Monteiro, Nicolas Villalobos and Michael Appiah sit in a three-way tie for the goals lead with three apiece. Dos Santos Monteiro and Villalobos are also tied with Diego Castillo for the lead in contributions with four.

Nigel Van Haveren has spent much of the season in net, starting in 13 matches for FIU. He currently leads the conference with 55 saves, but did not appear in the Panthers' most recent match. After starting a match against Florida Atlantic on Oct. 20, Van Haveren left with an injury and did not appear at Temple. Junior goalkeeper Beltran Fernandez has played the last two matches in goal. The former Davis & Elkins transfer did not appear in any competitions last season and has made two appearances this season.

Memphis is 5-6 against FIU and has fallen in the last three matches in the series. In last year's matchup between the two teams, the Panthers scored two second half goals en route to a victory.

TOURNAMENT SCENARIOS

If Memphis defeats FIU, the Tigers would clinch the No. 1 seed in the AAC Championship and be outright regular season conference champions.
Memphis would also be outright regular season conference champions and earn the top tournament seed in the event of a Charlotte draw or loss.
If Memphis draws with FIU and Charlotte wins at Florida Atlantic, the Tigers would be the No. 1 seed and would share the regular season conference title with Charlotte.
If Memphis loses to the Panthers and the 49ers defeat the Owls, Memphis would drop to the 2^nd tournament seed and Charlotte would be outright regular season champions.

Earning the No. 1 seed would result in Memphis hosting the semifinals and finals of the AAC Championship on Nov. 13 and Nov. 16.

UP NEXT

Memphis has clinched at least a 2^nd seed position in the AAC Championship and earned a first-round bye, meaning its first match of the tournament will be on Nov. 13. All details regarding location, opponent, time and seeding will be determined after the regular season concludes on Nov. 2.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS

For complete information on Memphis Tigers Soccer, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Anders Bordoy

Luciano Galizzi

Lleyton Imparato

Jackson Kim

Logan Longo

Ryan Ruguaru

Filip Sabatti

University of Memphis Athletics