Good morning. The Florida Atlantic University football team (4-5, 3-2 AAC) put forth a valiant comeback effort that came up just short in a 45-42 shootout against the UAB Blazers (3-6, 2-3 AAC) on Saturday afternoon.
 
Down by 21 in the second half, the Owls responded with 28 unanswered points to go ahead in the fourth quarter. 
 
Leading the way was the newest addition to the Biletnikoff Award Watch List: junior wide receiver LaJohntay Wester, who continues to raise the bar each week. 
 
His most recent performance goes down in history books as the greatest game by an Owls wide receiver ever, setting a program record of 219 yards on 11 catches with a total of four touchdowns. 

What else can you find mixed into today’s Brew?

🌊 FAU swim team takes home many victories
🧹 That’s a sweep for FAU volleyball
🦉 And much, much more

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To quote Eminem, “You only get one shot.” Florida Atlantic men's soccer is moving on to the American Athletic Conference Semifinals. The Owls scored with five seconds left in regulation on Sunday night to shock No. 23 FIU 1-0.
 
With time ticking down in regulation, Arthur Widiez won a footrace to a loose ball near the corner. The Frenchman sent something of a "Hail Mary" cross into the FIU penalty area, where Noah Kvifte was waiting at the back post to finish it off. It was the Owls' only shot on goal in the match.

Rotem Fadida stood tall in goal for the Owls. Though the graduate senior finished with just two saves, he was in command of his penalty area all night. The FAU backline also blocked several FIU attempts at goal. The final shot tally was 9-3 in favor of the Panthers but just 2-1 in shots on goal.
 
After a nine-year drought without a victory over their neighbors from the south, Florida Atlantic won both matchups with FIU this season.

The Owls will now face Charlotte in the semifinals at 4:30pm ET on Thursday. The AAC Tournament will shift to Dallas, where SMU will host the semis and championship game.

To stay up to date on all things Florida Atlantic men's soccer, follow FAU on social media @FAUMSoccer.

Read the article for some post-game thoughts by head coach Joey Worthen.

🔼 A Battle Royale. While in previous football games, the offense and defense went back and forth on who would be the tone setter, this time, it was Chad Lunsford's special forces unit that stepped up to the plate when linebacker Jarrett Jerrells recovered a blocked field goal to give the Owls the ball back.
 
Florida Atlantic's offense needed a spark in the second half, and the run game provided it. A 65-yard drive, all from the ground, was highlighted by a 39-yard scramble by quarterback Daniel Richardson and culminated in a three-yard handoff to Wester for the score. 
 
At the very beginning of the fourth quarter, Richardson launched a ball downfield to who else other than a wide-open Wester, who juked and spun his way into the end zone for a monster 76-yard touchdown to tie it up.

Graduate running back Kobe Lewis punched the ball in from 14 to complete the 28-0 run and give the Owls their first lead of the afternoon at 42-35.
 
UAB responded with a touchdown of their own, and the Owls ultimately ran out of time, with the Blazers kicking a 26-yard field goal with just three seconds left to take the 45-42 victory.

"I am really proud of the fight,” head coach Tom Herman said. “To be one of five teams with just four games left that had a chance to win the conference championship speaks to the fight in these guys.”

The Owls will return home to FAU Stadium to take on East Carolina (1-8, 0-5 AAC) on Saturday, Nov. 11. Kickoff will be at 4pm ET.

Some more Brew headlines to keep you in the know ⏬

 🏈 Catch LaJohntay Wester mugging after his fourth TD on Saturday.

👀 More LaJohntay in action.

🔼 The Best Strokes. The Florida Atlantic University men's and women's swimming teams wrapped up an intense and busy weekend with a home meet against the University of Toronto on Saturday afternoon.
 
Competing in their second meet in as many days, the Owls fought hard, with many swimmers setting new personal bests.

The men took victories in both the 200 medley and 200 free relays. Dalton Lillibridge earned a victory in the 100 breast (54.43). Timo Paisley captured first in the 500 free (4:32.54). Peyton Ming continued his excellent season with a win in the 100 fly (49.50)

The women were equally impressive, with freshman Nula Gow nabbing a win in the 200 breast (2:16.65). They closed out the afternoon with a victory in the 200 free relay, with Izzy Jones, Bry Bellile, Maggie Casey, and Lydia Lanahan combining for a time of 1:35.43

The Owls will enjoy a weekend of rest before heading to Fairfax, Va., for their midseason Patriot Invitational from Nov. 16 - 18.

For complete coverage of FAU swimming & diving, follow us on social media (@FAUSWIMDIVE).

🔼 Swept Away. The Florida Atlantic Owls volleyball team (16-11, 8-6 AAC) earned their first series sweep of the season, picking up a four-set win over the Memphis Tigers (8-19, 4-11 AAC) on Saturday at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena.

Arianna Beckham and Madison Dyer led the Owls in Saturday's win over the Tigers. Beckham tied for a match-high 14 kills while also picking up her fifth double-double of the season with 15 digs. She also added three blocks and a service ace. Dyer recorded a team second-best 10 kills, hitting .381, while also adding a team-leading five blocks. Isabelle Northam took charge of the Owls’ back line with a team-high 24 digs, while Victoria Hensley dished out a match-leading 41 assists in the win.

Florida Atlantic will head back out on the road next weekend as they head to Charlotte, N.C., for a series against the Charlotte 49ers on Friday, Nov. 10, and Sunday, Nov. 12.

For updates, follow @FAUVolleyball on Twitter and Instagram or like FAU Volleyball on Facebook.

🔼  The Sun Set on Owls Soccer. The Florida Atlantic women's soccer team's 2023 season came to a close on Thursday, as the Owls fell 3-0 against SMU in the 2023 AAC Championship semifinals in Lakewood Ranch, Florida. The Owls finish with an overall record of 8-7-5.
 
The Mustangs took the lead with two minutes in the match. In the eighth minute, SMU took a penalty kick to extend their lead 2-0. Going into the half, the Owls were trailing two nil. With ten minutes remaining in the match, the Mustangs scored again to eventually close out the 3-0 contest.

Goalkeeper Lexi Gonzalez recorded three saves on the night, making it 103 career saves, and she now ranks tenth all-time in saves at Florida Atlantic. Sophomore Elin Simonardottir was the leading goal scorer (5) for Florida Atlantic. In conference play, Sofia Voldby led the Owls with three goals. Voldby was named AAC Weekly Honor Roll twice throughout the regular season. Forward Michelle Horan led in assists as she finished with five on the season.

The Owls closed out their first season in the American Athletic Conference as the seventh seed in the 2023 American Athletic Conference Championship tournament.

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🤔 POWER OWLS TRIVIA

Paradise Trivia is brought to you by the PowerOwls Club—an exclusive community dedicated to connecting FAU fans and student-athletes. Stay in the know about all they’re doing here.

Elite production. In the Elite Eight game against Kansas State, who had 14 points and 13 rebounds to help the Owls reach their first Final Four?

Think you know the answer? Scroll down to the bottom to find out!

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🦉 ONE BIG THING

Ballers. Arianna Beckham recorded her fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 14 kills and 15 blocks, and Madison Dyer tallied 10 kills and posted a team-leading five blocks!

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Monday 11/6

(No activities scheduled)

Tuesday 11/7

(No activities scheduled)

Wednesday 11/8

🏀 Men’s Basketball vs. Loyola Chicago @ Barstool Sports Invitational @ 7pm ET

Thursday 11/9

⛹🏼‍♀️ Women’s Basketball @ Mercer @ 7:30pm ET | Live Stats

Friday 11/10

👟 Men’s Cross Country @ NCAA South Regionals @ 10am ET

💨 Women’s Cross Country Track & Field @ NCAA South Regionals @ 10am ET

🏐 Women’s Volleyball @ Charlotte @ 6:00pm ET | Live Stats

Saturday 11/11

🏈 Football vs. East Carolina @ 4:00pm ET - on Fox Sports South Florida

Sunday 11/12

🏐 Women’s Volleyball @ Charlotte @ 1:00pm ET | Live Stats

🦉 Click here to view the entire FAU Athletics Calendar

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

That’s right—Vladislav Goldin put up a solid double-double to help the Owls get to the Final Four.

🦉 Have a great Monday, y’all.