ORLANDO – Trailing by a goal in each half, No. 25 UCF women’s soccer responded with equalizers from Naomi Clark and Katsi Bengoa to earn a 2-2 draw with No. 19 Texas Tech in a wet Big 12 opener Thursday evening at the UCF Soccer Complex.
The Knights moved to 5-1-1 overall and 0-0-1 in Big 12 play to earn a point in the league standings with the result, while the Red Raiders are now 4-0-4 and 0-0-1.
“I’m OK with tonight’s result. When you go down twice and your team responds and equalizes both times, that’s a hard thing to do, especially against the 19th-ranked team in the country,” head UCF coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak said. “I would’ve loved three points, but I also would’ve hated to come away with zero. We went toe-to-toe, earned a point, and I’m really proud of our team.”
Texas Tech was the aggressor early in the match, recording several shots in the opening stages. The Red Raiders broke through in the 16th minute on a goal from leading scorer Taylor Zdrojewski to jump out to a 1-0 advantage.
The Knights later got their first shot of the match off in the 35th minute and senior Naomi Clark followed with her team-leading seventh goal of the season in the 40th minute to deadlock the score at 1-1. Gabi Berchon and Alysiah Lockette were credited with assists on the play as Berchon fed a pass ahead to Lockette on the left side who slotted a pass across the box to a streaking Clark for the score.
40' | Naomi Clark ties it up 🤩@GetSpectrum First Goal of the Match pic.twitter.com/T1dHi0D36X
— UCF Women's Soccer (@UCF_WSoccer) September 17, 2026
All knotted up a 1-1 at the break, Tech again came out strong with five early shots. The fifth one managed to find the back of the net on a goal from Raleigh Greason to give the Red Raiders a 2-1 advantage in the 58th minute.
Texas Tech again got four more shots off over the next few minutes, but the Knights responded with a game-tying goal from Katsi Bengoa on just their third shot of the game in the 72nd minute. Ainsley Moy slotted a pass ahead in the box to Bengoa and the junior managed to bury home her first collegiate goal to tie things up.
72' | Katsi Bengoa scores the equalizer for her first career goal ⭐ pic.twitter.com/UPX3Dyza8G
— UCF Women's Soccer (@UCF_WSoccer) September 18, 2026
The momentum shifted UCF’s way the rest of the way, as the team got off a shot from Edidiong Etim in the 81st minute but it was off target as the match went on to end in a draw.
In all, the Red Raiders outshot the Knights 19-4 and 8-2 on goal but UCF managed to put away two of its four shots to earn the draw.
UCF goalkeeper Kaïna Cesar recorded a season-high six saves to move to 2-0-1 in goal on the season and help the Black and Gold come away with the tie.
The Knights remain unbeaten in the all-time history against Texas Tech, as they now hold a 1-0-3 record versus the Red Raiders.
The contest moved UCF to 1-0-1 on the season against ranked opponents and marked the team’s first ranked vs. ranked matchup since Nov. 18, 2022, in the NCAA Tournament at No. 1 UCLA. The Knights are also 81-32-20 all-time when nationally ranked and 43-14-10 while ranked at home.
UP NEXT
The Black and Gold will next embark on their farthest road trip of the season for a pair of Big 12 matches in the Beehive State. UCF will first face No. 23 BYU on Thursday, Sept. 24, in Provo before heading to Salt Lake City to face Utah on Sunday, Sept. 27.
TICKETS
UCF women’s soccer season and single-game tickets are on sale now! Please visit ucfknights.com/tickets for more information or call the ticket office at (407) 823-1000.
ABOUT UCF ATHLETICS
UCF is a proud member of the Big 12 Conference. Our mission is to positively transform the lives of our students academically, athletically, and personally through a nationally competitive intercollegiate athletics program that enhances the reputation and visibility of the University. We strive to be Florida's preeminent athletic program representing UCF and our community with distinction on the national stage as "Orlando's Hometown Team". To learn more about UCF and Athletics, please visit our websites at www.ucf.edu and www.ucfknights.com.