Aug. 20, 2010
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By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
UCF Notes for the UF Game in PDF Format
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - The 2010 regular season opens with a top-25 tussle as No. 25 UCF hosts No. 11 Florida Sunday at 7 p.m. Admission is free, and the match will be shown live on Fox Sports Florida and the Gator TV network.
Spectator Notes: Fans looking to bring lawn chairs to the match may do so but they may only be set up on the outside portion of the track, as no loose seating (unless it has sufficient padding underneath) is permitted on the track area. Also, with Sunday serving as the evening before classes begin on campus, parking may be limited in Garage F. Free parking will also be available in Lot E8 north of Bright House Networks Stadium.
Previewing Florida
-UF went 16-6-2 in 2009 along with winning the SEC regular season. The Gators are the preseason favorite to win the SEC title again this year.
-Florida returns its top-three point generators from a year ago, including junior forward Lindsay Thompson who registered 10 goals.
-Redshirt senior Katie Fraine is also back in net after racking up 10 shutouts and a 0.73 goals-against average.
The Series
-Florida does own a 10-2-1 record over the Knights, however the two teams are 2-2-1 in their last five outings.
-Both programs were ranked in the top 10 a year ago as they were national seeds in the NCAA Tournament. However UCF and UF were sent up north in November to Wisconsin and Ohio, respectively, and were bounced in the Second Round.
Building UCF's 2010 Roster
-There are a total of 12 true freshmen on this year's roster and 14 newcomers overall.
-The Knights return three starting defenders in Bianca Joswiak, Lauren Halbert and Christina Petrucco. However freshman Ashley Nicol enrolled at UCF in the spring and competed in Black and Gold during its spring schedule.
-This year's senior class consists of seven student-athletes: Brianna Schooley, Amanda Martorana, Lauren Halbert, Kim Newsome, Jaclyn Meade, Kacie Horner, Christina Petrucco.
-Several Knights have already shown potential to step up at forward and midfield since the end of 2009. Along with key returners Stacie Hubbard, Kim Newsome, Nicolette Radovcic and Andrea Rodrigues, Amanda Martorana and Tishia Jewell each netted a goal in UCF's 4-0 scrimmage vs. FIU Aug. 13.
-Also netting goals vs. the Golden Panthers were sophomore transfer Katie Bolinsky and freshman Katy Ling who came off the bench during the match. Meanwhile, Nicol and freshman Sokhara Goodall were two newcomers who received starts against FIU.
-In net, junior Aline Reis saw the majority of the action in the scrimmage, stopping all six shots she faced on goal. Senior Jaclyn Meade returns to the roster after spending time with the Knights in 2007, and is slated to be Reis' backup to start the year.
C-USA Preseason Honors
-Junior GK Aline Reis was named the C-USA Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and joined sophomore back Bianca Joswiak as members of the C-USA Preseason Team.
UCF - A Staple in the NCAA Tournament
-UCF earned an at-large berth in its last four appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including in 2004 as a member of the Atlantic Sun.
-The Knights have made 14 trips to the dance all-time, which ranks first of all schools in the state of Florida and tied for 15th nationally.
Proving Themselves
-Without much respect entering 2009 as UCF was unranked in all three polls, the Knights not only went 5-2-1 outside the league but followed that up with a 10-1-0 mark in Conference USA, tying for the most conference wins in school history (2002).
-With a consistent regular-season, UCF was ranked every week since Sept. 14, and climbed to No. 8 at one point. Its highest ranking in program history was No. 2 when the Black and Gold was the national runner-up in 1982.
C-USA Regular Season Champs
-UCF claimed its first outright C-USA regular-season title last year, and its first outright championship since winning the Atlantic Sun Tournament in 2003. But overall, it was the Knights' third regular-season crown in five seasons.
Just Moving Along
-The Knights won 10-straight games at one point in 2009 before suffering a loss in the C-USA Championship title match, marking the second time in school history they posted a winning streak of at least 10 matches. The record was set in 1987 when UCF won 12-straight en route to the NCAA Final Four.
The Non-Conference Schedule
-Ranked as the second-toughest non-conference schedule in the country last season, the Knights faced a total of four teams ranked in the top-12 in the nation before C-USA play began, and went 2-2-0 vs. those schools. After falling to No. 1 North Carolina Aug. 28, the Black and Gold bounced back to upend No. 10 Duke two days later.
-When No. 4 Florida State came to town Sept. 10, the Knights stunned the Seminoles with a 1-0 overtime victory. To close the non-conference portion of the schedule, UCF suffered a 1-0 loss at then-undefeated No. 12 South Carolina Sept. 18.
Breaking Down UCF's Record
-The Knights went 17-5-1 on the year, and all six of those losses or ties were against teams which made the NCAA Tournament field:
UW-Milwaukee - 11/13 - W, 3-0, Neutral
Florida State - 9/10 - W, 1-0, Home
Duke - 8/30 - W, 3-2, Neutral
LSU - 9/4 - T, 0-0, Neutral
North Carolina - 8/28 - L, 4-0, Away
South Carolina - 9/18 - L, 1-0, Away
Memphis - 9/27 - L, 1-0, Home
Memphis - 11/8 - L, 3-0, Neutral
Wisconsin - 11/15 - L, 1-0, Away
Setting Attendance Records
-A total of 4,601 fans attended home matches last year, setting a school record. That included a single-game mark of 1,142 fans that came out to watch the Black and Gold upset No. 4 Florida State in overtime Sept. 10. That attendance broke the record set at the 1982 NCAA title match between UCF and North Carolina in Orlando.