FIU Beats FAU 2-1 at Leyva Field: Eight Unbeaten, and Possu's 10th Goal Does It
The Panthers scored once in each half on Friday night, stretched their unbeaten run to eight matches, and stayed perfect at home — and FAU's goal with under two minutes left came too late to change any of it.
FIU's men's soccer team took the South Florida rivalry game on Friday night, beating Florida Atlantic 2-1 at Leyva Family Field in a result the Panthers' own Caplin News described as a revenge win, almost a year after FIU's heartbreaking loss to the same rivals in the 2025 American Conference championship game. The Panthers scored once in each half and have now gone eight consecutive matches without a defeat, and they have yet to lose at home all season.
The deciding moment came in the 79th minute. A set piece delivered by midfielder Raul Carrasco reached the FAU box, centerback Emil Lausten tried to clear it, and the ball came off Possu's head and in — his 10th goal of the season, and the one that put FIU 2-0 up. FAU forward DJ Koulai pulled one back with a solo goal with under two minutes remaining, the 18th goal FIU has conceded in 14 games, but the Owls ran out of clock before they could find an equalizer.
The standings moved with the result. FIU went in sixth in the American Conference on six points, level with FAU, and came out fifth, two points behind first-place Missouri State's 11, at 7-3-4 overall and 2-1-3 in conference play, on the brink of playoff qualification. The Panthers' final home fixture of the regular season is Wednesday at 7 p.m. against Tulsa, who are tied for first place — the biggest home test of the run, with the conference table still tight enough for one result to reorder it.
