Oct. 28, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - For the sixth week this season the UCF women's soccer team owns a spot in the national rankings, as Soccer Buzz, one of the four main collegiate polls, has the Knights at No. 22 this week. UCF currently stands at 11-4-3 on the year with a 6-2-2 mark in Conference USA heading into its final regular-season match at Southern Miss Friday at 4 p.m. ET.
UCF's No. 22 ranking is its highest spot in the Soccer Buzz national poll in school history. Meanwhile, the Knights are fifth in the Southeast region, also a program high.
Earlier this year, UCF climbed to No. 18 in the Soccer America rankings on Sept. 15, which was its best showing overall since 1992 (No. 16). The Black and Gold began the 2008 campaign No. 29 in the Soccer Buzz preseason poll.
The Knights have shutout their last three opponents by a combined score of 10-0, with freshman keeper Aline Reis leading the way. The Campinas, Brazil, native tallied 13 saves last weekend to earn C-USA Defensive Player of the Week honors. She also posted shutouts vs. No. 19 Florida and No. 17 Illinois in non-conference play. UF is now as high as No. 6 in the country with one of their two losses coming at the hands of UCF.
Sitting in third place in the C-USA standings, the Knights have 20 league points and are just two points behind East Carolina and Memphis. UCF played ECU to a draw but defeated Memphis in overtime this year.
At the conclusion of the regular season on Friday, the top eight schools will then travel to Houston, Texas, for the C-USA Championship Nov. 5-9 hosted by Rice. While they all will be competing for the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament, UCF is playing for an insurance policy as well through a possible at-large berth. As of Oct. 19, it reached No. 24 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.