MIAMI (September 5, 2012) – A year ago this week, FIU junior goalkeeper Eric Reyes was called up to his country’s national team to play in a World Cup qualifier match against Canada. Since then, Reyes has accumulated five caps playing for Puerto Rico and will once again get to represent his county in the first round of the 2012 Caribbean Cup in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

“It’s quite an honor for Eric to be called up to his national team and an even greater honor to be called up to play in such an important tournament like the Caribbean Cup,” FIU men’s soccer Head Coach Kenny Arena said. “We are very supportive and proud of him. Anyone who knows Eric knows that he is a very positive, hard-working and talented individual and he deserves all the recognition that he’s getting. We hope he does well and we can’t wait to get him back.”

Reyes carries on a great tradition of FIU players who have played for their country’s national teams such as FIU standouts Robin Fraser (27 caps with USA), Steve Ralston (34 caps with USA), Tyrone Marshall (81 caps for Jamaica), and Bobby Boswell (3 caps with USA). Most recently, FIU senior defender Anthony Hobbs helped his home country of New Zealand qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“Our job as coaches is to keep finding players like Eric and Anthony and hopefully when they get to FIU, they aspire to reach the highest level possible. Eric is a perfect example of that,” Arena added.

Puerto Rico, a member of Group 1, will face Bermuda on Friday, Sept. 7; St. Martin on Sunday, Sept. 9; and host nation Haiti on Tuesday, Sept. 11, in the 2012 Caribbean Cup.    

The FIU men’s soccer team heads into the weekend with the best record (3-0-0) in Conference USA and will play Wisconsin on Friday, Sept. 7, at 6:00 p.m., and UIC on Sunday, Sept. 9, at Noon ET.  Fans can watch the match with Wisconsin via www.UWBadgers.com (subscription based) by clicking HERE.

For tickets to FIU home matches, call the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or log onto www.FIUSports.com. Fans can follow @FIUMensSoccer on Twitter and find us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/FIUMensSoccer. Fans can also watch all FIU men’s soccer home matches live on FIUSports.com on our free webcasts.

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelors, masters and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida’s anchor institutions, FIU is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.

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