Temple entered its game against FIU Saturday coming off two straight wins to regain momentum as the postseason continues to near. The Owls sat in the final tournament spot entering the afternoon, just two points behind FIU with an opportunity to surpass the Panthers with a win.
In the 18th minute, the Owls had a chance to take an early lead, but defender Nikolai Zapolskikh’s shot was saved. That shot on goal wound up being the only one for either team all match as a defensive battle ensued.
FIU had a chance to take the lead in the 86th minute but its shot deflected off the right post, keeping the match scoreless. The game ended with neither team able to find the back of the net and the Owls have now gone four straight games without a loss.
Temple (4-6-5, 1-2-3 American Athletic Conference) tied FIU (4-5-5, 2-2-2 AAC) 0-0 on Saturday afternoon at the Temple Sports Complex. The Owls still control their own destiny for their first AAC tournament berth since 2020, sitting in the sixth and final spot with six points.
“I thought, defensively, the whole team did a great job,” said head coach Bryan Green. “They did threaten a little bit, but Flannan [Riley] came up huge.”
After struggling all season with finding an offensive rhythm, the Owls seemed to take steps forward with three goals in their back-to-back wins. Temple was able to overcome slow starts in both of those games but was unable to shake the rust off against FIU. The Owls only let up four shots in the first half, but they produced just two of their own.
FIU forward Bernardo Dos Santos Monteiro sent the first shot for the Panthers in the 11th minute, but it was blocked by the defense before reaching goalkeeper Flannan Riley. Just a minute later FIU Defender Mathys Lefebvre had a shot opportunity which was sent off target, leaving the Panthers scoreless.
Temple forward Elliot Rigbert looked to get the Owls on the board with a shot in the 18th minute. His attempt was blocked and Zapolskikh followed it up with a shot of his own. FIU goalkeeper Beltran Fernandez made the save which ended up being his only one of the game and the only shot on goal all game.
FIU had two more opportunities in the first half from forward Michael Appiah in the 20th minute and defender Joackim Betina in the final minute of the half. Neither shot was on goal and was easily defended by the Owls’ defense to send the match to halftime tied at zero.
Temple came out of the locker room looking like the aggressor as both teams searched for the go-ahead goal. Forward Xavier Rimpel was almost the one to break the tie after having the lone goal against UAB on Oct. 19 His shot was blocked by the Panthers’ defense and the game remained scoreless as the goal search continued for both sides.
FIU’s first shot of the second half came in the 76th minute from Dos Santos Monteiro, but the forward was off the mark. Defender Edgar Aguilar had a shot in the 82nd minute that missed the goal as well.
Forward Prince Ngeleka bypassed the back line and fired a shot that evaded Riley with four minutes remaining, but the ball connected with the right upright instead of the net. Neither team had another chance to break the tie and the match ended with no score.
In the defensive battle, the teams combined for just 12 total shots, seven from FIU and five from Temple. Zapolskikh’s shot on goal early in the first half was the only on-target shot from either side the entire afternoon.
“It was tough sledding, attacking-wise, for both teams,” Green said. “But we had our moments. I think we need to play with more confidence.”
The Owls will head down to Oklahoma to play Tulsa (2-8-3, 1-3-1 AAC) on Nov. 1 at 8 p.m. with a tournament spot still well in play.
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