Sept. 20, 2009

Final Stats

Texas A&M International University closed out a season-opening six-game home stand with a 2-0 Heartland Conference win over UT-Permian Basin on Sunday afternoon at Dustdevil Field. The win places TAMIU atop the conference standings with seven points and a 2-0-1 record in league play.

Despite out-shooting UTPB 18-7, TAMIU (2-3-1 overall) could not quite put the Falcons away until very late in the game. The Dustdevil attack was balanced with nine shots taken in each half.

Alex De la Fuente pushed TAMIU to a 1-0 lead when he ended a long run with a shot into the net from 10 yards out on the left side in the 17th minute. Caio Zanata fired a laser shot in the 28th minute that missed the upper left corner of the net by only inches.

TAMIU had several opportunities in the second half but none were capitalized on until Roy Hernández put the ball into the lower left corner of the net on a one-on-one situation with the UTPB (2-3-1, 0-1 HC) defender in the 87th minute. Theo Brown was credited with an assist on the score that all but clinched the win for the home team.

Senior goalkeeper Luis Rincon finished with six saves in a complete-game effort for the for the Dustdevils. The shutout is TAMIU's first since a 1-0 win over Eastern New Mexico on Oct. 31, 2008.

TAMIU will play its next four games on the road, beginning with a non-conference game at Midwestern State on Friday and a conference tilt at UT-Permian Basin next Sunday. MSU defeated TAMIU 1-0 on Sept. 11 in Laredo.