ORLANDO – The UCF women’s soccer team will continue its current trip with a Big 12 Conference match at Kansas State on Sunday afternoon.
Sunday’s matinee is set for a 1 p.m. ET/noon CT start at K-State’s Buser Family Park. The game will air live on ESPN+ and live stats will be available by visiting UCF.Statbroadcast.com.
The Knights will enter the match with a 3-2-3 overall record and a 1-1-1 Big 12 clip. After opening conference play with a 5-0 victory over Houston, UCF then recorded a 1-1 draw at home over Arizona State last weekend before suffering a 4-0 setback at Kansas on Thursday night in the first contest of a current three-match road swing.
In Thursday’s game at KU, the Jayhawks jumped out to an early lead with a goal in the fifth minute. Kansas added goals in the 21st and 25th minutes to take a 3-0 lead into the break. KU sealed the victory by finding the back of the net again in the 77th minute.
UCF had a couple of offensive chances from leading scorer Chloe Netzel in the contest, as she got off shots in the 42nd, 62nd and 73rd minutes, but she couldn’t find the back of the net. She had her best chance in the 73rd minute when Mia Asenjo fed the senior forward on the left side of the box, but Netzel’s strike was blocked via a team save to keep the Black and Gold off the board.
Freshman Edidiong Etim also had a late chance for the Black and Gold following a collision at the top of the box in the 86th minute, but her shot sailed just high.
In all, a total of 21 players saw action for UCF against KU. Genesis Perez Watson and Sami Lipcon shared time in goal and Perez Watson recorded six first-half saves, while Lipcon picked up a pair of saves in the second half.
NETZEL’S HOT START
Senior Chloe Netzel will look to continue her hot start to the season. Netzel leads the Knights in goals (8), points (17), game-winning goals (2), shots (41), and shots on goal (24). She has also recorded a trio of braces on the season. Against Kansas, she recorded a team-leading three shots. Her eight goals have her tied for the 11th most goals in the country. Nationally, Netzel is also tied for the nation’s lead in shots on goal per game average (3.0), ranks fourth in goals per game average (1.0), fifth in shots per game (5.13), eighth in points per game (2.13), and 32nd in total points (17). Teammate Honoka Hamano, who shares the team lead in assists with three, ranks 37th nationally in assists per game (0.50).
ABOUT K-STATE
Kansas State will enter Sunday with a 3-7-1 overall record and an 0-4-0 start in Big 12 play. After previously falling to No. 19 Colorado (1-0), West Virginia (2-0) and Cincinnati (2-1), K-State dropped a hard fought 2-1 match to No. 25 Texas Tech at home on Thursday night. The Wildcats will enter Sunday having dropped five straight, with three of those matches coming to nationally ranked foes.
K-State, who is coached by ninth-year head man Mike Dibbini, went 3-12-3 a season ago and finished 14th in Big 12 play with a 1-8-1 conference clip. The Wildcats were picked to finish 16th in this season’s Preseason Big 12 Conference Coaches’ Poll.
Ryann Reynolds paces the Wildcats offensively, as she leads the way with four goals. She is also tops on the team in points (9), shots (18) and shots on goal (13). Four players are tied for the team lead in assists with two apiece, and Murphy Sheaff leads the way in goal as she’s played and started all 11 matches and recorded 59 saves on the season.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. K-STATE
Sunday’s contest will mark the first all-time meeting on the pitch between the Knights and Wildcats.
FRANKE AND PEREZ WATSON RECENTLY RETURNED FROM 2024 FIFA U20 WOMEN’S WORLD CUP
UCF had a pair of players represent their home nations at the 2024 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup that ran Aug. 31-Sept. 22 in Colombia. Freshman defender Guta Franke played for her home country of Brazil, while redshirt freshman goalkeeper Genesis Perez Watson participated for Costa Rica. Franke started all five games for Brazil and helped her home nation go 4-1 and advance to the quarterfinal round, while Perez Watson started all three matches in goal and was a captain for Costa Rica.
UP NEXT FOR UCF
The Knights will close a three-game road swing at West Virginia on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. ET. Following the match, the Black and Gold will return to Orlando to welcome Arizona to town for their annual Space Game on Thursday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. ET at the UCF Soccer Complex.