No. 17 Colorado heads to Orlando on Friday with a chance to reset its Big 12 road trip and answer a tough loss with a clean result against UCF.
The Buffaloes are in unfamiliar territory in more ways than one. This will be their first-ever match in Orlando, and it comes at a tricky point in the schedule after Sunday’s 3-1 defeat at Texas Tech ended a five-match winning streak. Colorado is 8-2-1 overall and 2-1-0 in Big 12 play, with six points through its first three conference matches after wins over Iowa State and West Virginia.
Road work has been part of the story all season, and Friday adds another layer. Colorado is 2-2-1 away from Prentup Field, with both losses coming against ranked opponents in Michigan State and Texas Tech.
"We're excited to get out to Florida," head coach Danny Sanchez said. "It's the first time that we'll be playing there.
As we know, it's tough to get results on the road any time of the year, but especially in Big 12 play. We know that we're going to have to be on top of our game."
Even in the loss to Texas Tech, Colorado kept creating. The Buffs finished with 18 shots and nine on target, and Emma Thielbahr put them on the board in the 37th minute to send the match into halftime level before the Red Raiders pulled away after the break.
The attack has been a group effort all season. Reagan Kotschau and Hope Leyba share the team lead with seven goals apiece, while Kotschau’s six assists give her a team-high 20 points. Michaela McGowan has chipped in five goals, helping Colorado reach 28 goals in 11 matches.
Leyba’s next finish would also move her deeper into the program’s record book. She enters Friday with 39 career goals, tied with Taylor Kornieck for third in Colorado history. Another goal would put her alone in third, behind only Nikki Marshall and Shyra James.
UCF brings its own challenges back home after back-to-back road losses at BYU and Utah. The Knights are 5-3-1 overall and 0-2-1 in Big 12 play, with their conference start including a 2-2 draw against Texas Tech before the defeats to the Cougars and Utes. At the UCF Soccer Complex, though, they have been strong, going 3-0-1 so far this season.
"UCF is very well coached," Sanchez added. "They have some really dangerous attacking players. They play really good soccer, so we're going to have to really stick to our game plan to get a result on Friday."
Naomi Clark has been the centerpiece of the Knights’ attack. The senior from Parker, Colo., leads UCF with eight goals and 18 points and scored the team’s only goal at BYU.
That effort made her the Big 12’s leading goal scorer entering this week. Ainsley Moy has been a key distributor with six assists, including the setup on Clark’s goal against the Cougars.
UCF is guided by Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak, who is in her 14th season and has led the program to six NCAA Tournament appearances. Last year, the Knights went 12-4-5 and reached the NCAA Tournament’s second round.
Friday will be the third meeting between the teams and Colorado’s first trip to Orlando. The teams played to a scoreless draw at Prentup Field in 2024, then met again in the Big 12 Tournament last season.
That postseason game turned into one of Colorado’s most dramatic comebacks of 2025. The Buffs trailed 2-0 at halftime before scoring three times in 12 minutes to win 3-2 in the quarterfinals. Hope Leyba scored twice, including the winner, and Jace Holley tied it up.
The trip also gives Colorado another reminder of how wide the Big 12 footprint really is, with Boulder’s altitude giving way to Florida heat and humidity.
"The great part of the Big 12 is you get a little bit of everything," Sanchez said when asked about the change in environment. "We basically cover the whole country, so everybody gets the benefit of playing in all different environments. Like I said, we're just excited to get out there."
Friday’s match is UCF’s annual Space Game, and it comes after the Knights spent their previous two matches in Utah while Colorado arrives from Lubbock.
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