Florida Atlantic men’s soccer (9-3-1) let a two-goal lead slip away in the final minutes of a 3-3 draw against the University of Alabama at Birmingham (4-7-2) on Friday night at FAU Soccer Stadium.

FAU controlled the majority of the game, creating numerous clear chances and dominating possession. However, despite leading 3-1 deep into the second half, the Owls were unable to hold off UAB’s late surge.

The Blazers opened the scoring early through a penalty kick, but FAU responded with three unanswered goals. Senior defender Kerfalla Toure equalized, followed by back-to-back finishes from junior forwards Fabian Wagner and Oliver Moller-Jensen, giving the Owls a 3-1 advantage.

In the closing minutes, UAB capitalized on defensive lapses, and a red card was shown to FAU’s freshman right back Emil Lausten to level the score at 3-3.

“It’s disappointing,” said Head Coach Joey Worthen. “We played really well on the attacking end, put three goals past a team that defended with five in the back, and that’s not easy. But we’ve got to close out games like that, especially at home.”

Worthen praised his team’s patience and creativity in breaking down UAB’s compact defensive shape but admitted frustration with the loss of focus late in the match.

“When you’re up 3-1, you’ve got to finish it,” Worthen added. “I think it was a little bit of fatigue and a lack of concentration, but there’s no excuse — we need to win that game.”

With the draw, FAU remains unbeaten in its last eight matches, but missed an opportunity to extend its home winning streak to eight. The Owls will look to bounce back on the road against the University of South Florida (8-1-5) on Wednesday, Oct. 29, in Tampa.

David Hoyos is a Contributing Writer for the University Press. Email him at hoyosd2025@fau.edu or contact him on Instagram @hoyos_2k.