ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The third edition of the War on I-4 rivalry series is set to take place at Corbett Stadium in Tampa Friday, as both UCF and No. 23 USF look for a second American Conference win.
While several UCF home matches have been rescheduled due to the projected path of Hurricane Matthew, the battle with the Bulls remains set for 7:00 p.m. as weather officials do not project the storm will affect the great Tampa area.
"We have a lot of respect for South Florida it's exciting for our team," head coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak said. "We always know that it is going to be an emotional, hard-fought match because both teams will bring their very best. Our goal is to get better each week, so although we're excited for the War on I-4, we've been careful to find that balance and make sure this week was about focusing on ourselves as well as our opponent."
The 9-1-0 Bulls recently tallied wins against Georgia Southern, Old Dominion and Houston before dropping a 1-0 decision to SMU. The 6-5-0 Knights also defeated Houston and fell to SMU last week.
In addition to the rivalry, the match will be important as both squads try to keep pace with UConn and SMU who are each 2-0 in conference play.
Gameday Notables
• Four of the Knights losses this season came against ranked opponents including then No. 3 Duke, No. 4 Florida and No. 7 UNC.
• Both UCF and USF are 1-1 in American Athletic Conference play.
• UCF is currently No. 20 in the NCAA in scoring offense, averaging 2.45 goals per game.
• Through 11 games, 12 different players have scored 27 total goals for the Black and Gold.
• Senior striker Cortney O'Connell and junior midfielder Morgan Ferrara have each scored three goals both notching one game winner.
• Junior Hannah DeBose and sophomore Carrie Lawrence lead the Knights in assists with four a piece and each have one goal on the season.
• Sophomore goalkeeper Vera Varis has started and finished all 11 games in net for the Knights. She has logged 991 minutes, made 31 saves, posted three shutouts and has a goals-against average of 1.72.
Carol is Key
• Senior Carol Rodrigues is currently No. 11 among the NCAA individuals for goals scored and No. 12 for goals-per-game average. The Brazilian striker netted nine total goals this season averaging .82 goals-per-game and is on pace to surpass her 2015 season total of 11.
• UCF is 13-1-1 when Rodrigues scores and just 4-8-1 when opponents keep her off the board.
• Rodrigues leads the Knights with 20 points on the season and is one of just three players to start every match this season.
War on I-4
• The War on I-4 represents a long-standing and passionate rivalry between the fan bases of two of the nation's largest and fastest growing universities UCF and USF.
• Each sport where the two schools meet head-to-head in the regular season is worth six points, to be divided up per contest when teams meet more than once. Should a tie exist at the end of the year, the NCAA Graduation Success Rate will serve as a tie-breaker.
• USF currently leads the season-long series 6-3 after UCF Volleyball swept the Bulls in its first meeting earning three points and USF men's soccer defeated the Knights 2-1 in the only meeting, taking six points.
• Six points are on the line Friday as this will be the only regular season meeting of the year between the women's soccer squads.