FAU men’s soccer (5-4-2, 2-4-0 C-USA) were unable to stun the nationally-ranked Charlotte 49ers (5-2-1, 5-0-0 C-USA) on the road Saturday afternoon, losing 1-0 as a result. With the loss, it prevents FAU from attaining at least a .500 winning percentage in conference play.

Charlotte scored the lone goal early on in the ninth minute, as junior forward Preston Popp kicked the ball to the low left side of the net. The assist was awarded to senior defender Luke Johnson.

FAU had its first shot on goal in the 21st minute with junior midfielder Alonso Coello Camarero taking it to the high right side of the net. Unfortunately, it was saved by Charlotte’s redshirt senior goalkeeper Austin Mullins.

The 49ers tried adding on to their lead in the 43rd minute with a shot from redshirt sophomore midfielder Jaxson Watermann, but Owls’ junior goalkeeper Neil Strauber prevented that from happening.

FAU almost got its equalizer in the 66th minute with a header from senior forward Ivan Mykhailenko. The officiating ruled him offside, however, as the goal didn’t count at the Owls’ expense.

Despite their efforts, the Owls couldn’t find a real goalscoring opportunity due to the lack of execution in passing the ball, as it went out of bounds multiple times due to too much power being placed in the passes.

The Owls host their final game of the season at FAU Soccer Stadium, taking on the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) on April 17 at 1 p.m. It will be broadcast on C-USA TV.

Richard Pereira is the Sports Editor for the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him @Rich26Pereira.