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The Florida Gator soccer team (5-1, 1-0 SEC) is currently ranked fourth in the country after their first six games of the season. The schedule has been tough so far, having already faced Stanford and UCLA, with both matches going into overtime. The match against Arkansas on Friday will be the fifth road game in a row until they take on UCF at home on Sunday. Head coach Becky Burleigh said that her team has learned a lot from the tough schedule they have played so far this season.
Most recently, Florida faced Kentucky in Lexington where they defeated the Wildcats after two overtimes. It wasn’t until there were seven minutes left in regulation when the first goal of the game was scored. The final score was 2-1 after Meggie Dougherty Howard scored the golden goal in the 103rd minute.
Friday, the Gators will go on the road again to face Arkansas, who have started the season 7-1 and hold a victory over No. 2 Duke. The Razorbacks are averaging just below three goals per game this season. Kristen Cardano, a red-shirt junior and starting defender, said the key to beating Arkansas is to be in the right positions to defend the set piece opportunities Arkansas will get.
The Gators are led by senior Savannah Jordan who leads the nation with seven assists and leads the team with 19 points. Altogether, Florida averages 3.5 goals a game, which ranks third in the country. Burleigh said that Jordan has done a great job recognizing the attention she gets from other teams and has used that to gain an advantage for Florida.
After the Friday night game in Fayetteville, Florida will have a quick turnaround when they face UCF at home on Sunday night. This will be the first home game for the Gators in a month.
Florida will play at Arkansas Friday at 8 p.m. On Sunday, they will play UCF starting at 7 p.m. You can listen to coverage of the UCF-Florida game on ESPN Gainesville 95.3 FM.
