ORLANDO, Fla. – In the first match of the new campaign, the UCF women's soccer team earned a statement victory over Texas in a 4-0 performance at the UCF Soccer Complex on Thursday night.
The Knights jumped out to an early 1-0 lead just 80 seconds into the match, as Kristen Scott collected a long pass from Darya Rajaee and slotted her first shot of the match past the Texas keeper.
The Black and Gold never let up, as Maggie Jenkins earned a penalty kick just past the 40-minute mark in the match. Darya Rajaee stepped up to the spot and buried her shot in the upper right-hand corner of the net to extend the lead to two goals. Just before halftime, Kristen Scott earned a brace after collecting a through ball from Maggie Jenkins and burying it in the back of the net.
Keeping the pressure on in the second half, Mallory Olsson also netted her first goal of the year, cleaning up a saved shot from Anna Henderson, closing the door on the match at 4-0 in the 74th minute.
Knight Notables
- The Knights 4-0 win is the largest margin of victory in a home opener since UCF defeated Massachusetts 4-0 in 2016
- Kristen Scott's two goal performance matches her career high, which was set when she scored a brace against Temple in 2018
- With the victory, the Knights improve to 2-2-0 all-time against Texas
- Darya Rajaee's 41st minute penalty kick goal was the second of her career as a Knight
- Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year Caroline DeLisle earned her first clean sheer of the 2021 campaign, making five saves along the way
Thoughts with Coach Tiff
"I'm just so proud of this team," said Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak after the match. "They've just been plugging away this preseason and we grew with every exhibition match, so our goal tonight was to really focus on the details. When you focus on the details, good things are there in the end. I think everyone is committed to that, so I'm just really proud of this team believing in what we're doing"
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