BOULDER - Colorado’s Big 12 home opener brings a heavyweight test to Prentup Field on Thursday night, with No. 13 Colorado hosting No. 10 West Virginia in a matchup that could tell plenty about where both teams stand early in conference play.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. MT on ESPN+.
The Buffaloes enter at 7-1-1 overall and 1-0-0 in the Big 12, riding a four-match winning streak in which they’ve piled up a 12-0 scoring edge. Colorado handled its conference opener at Iowa State, winning 1-0, and now comes home carrying a perfect 6-0-0 mark at Prentup Field this season.
That surge has pushed the Buffs back up the national ladder. Colorado dropped to No. 24 in the Sept.
1 United Soccer Coaches poll, then climbed to No. 19 and No. 15 before reaching No. 13 this week, matching its preseason ranking. The Buffs are also No. 8 in the latest TopDrawerSoccer poll.
Offensively, Colorado has spread the production around. Ten players have combined for 25 goals through nine matches, with senior captain Reagan Kotschau leading the way at 17 points on six goals and five assists. Hope Leyba has matched her with six goals and sits at 15 points, while Michaela McGowan has added five goals and 11 points.
Kotschau’s most recent goal came from the penalty spot in the 41st minute at Iowa State. Behind her, freshman goalkeeper Brooke Goerish stopped three shots to help deliver Colorado’s fourth straight shutout and sixth clean sheet overall. Goerish has started every game during the current winning streak and owns a 0.33 goals-against average.
The matchup also pits two of last season’s top three Big 12 finishers against each other. Colorado finished third a year ago with an 8-1-2 conference record and was picked second in this year’s preseason coaches’ poll, the highest preseason conference projection in program history. West Virginia was second last season and was picked tied for third heading into 2026.
And the schedule does not ease up after Thursday. Colorado opens a stretch of four straight matches against teams ranked in this week’s United Soccer Coaches poll, with road trips to No.
25 Texas Tech and No. 23 UCF before a home date with No.
11 Baylor.
"When you look at last year, we dropped points opening weekend and it cost us," head coach Danny Sanchez said as the Buffs were one of four teams to win their conference opener. "So, you got to gobble up the points whenever you can get them, and you really got to take advantage of being at home."
West Virginia comes in at 5-0-2 overall and 0-0-1 in Big 12 play, ranked No. 10 by United Soccer Coaches and No. 11 by TopDrawerSoccer. The Mountaineers started the year with five straight wins before settling for 1-1 draws against UConn and Baylor, with the Baylor match serving as their league opener.
Junior forward Sophia Nickel leads West Virginia with three goals and seven points, and each of her goals has been a game-winner. She also earned Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season. Through seven matches, the Mountaineers have allowed only four goals.
"They're well coached, they're organized. They don't give you a lot," Sanchez said. "It's going to be a great match, and I expect a real thriller on Thursday."
This will be West Virginia’s first trip to Prentup Field and just the second meeting between the schools. The Mountaineers won the first one, 2-0, in Morgantown on Oct. 20, 2024.
Thursday’s player walkout will feature green smoke in support of mental health awareness. The first 200 students in attendance will receive free Chick-fil-A. Sanchez said, "The pre-sale has been huge and the fan support this year has been awesome," and added, "Get there early, be loud."
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