No. 6 Florida Soccer Wins 4-0 at New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico – The University of Florida soccer team finished non-conference play with a 4-0 win at New Mexico Sunday afternoon in front of a UNM Soccer Complex crowd of 1,006.

The first goal of the match was also the first of the season for junior Lauren Smith. A shot by Savannah Jordan was deflected in the box and UNM defender couldn't get a good touch to clear it to safety. From the top of the box, Lauren Smith placed the ball in the far upper corner at 13:36. Then at 35:20, Jordan got her first goal of the match. Jordan intercepted a pass between UNM's backline about 17 yards from goal. She closed in on the goal, scoring from six-yards to the far post.

The first shot of the second half was a Gator goal. Senior Annie Speese found sophomore Brooke Sharp just above the box. Sharp began her run through the box, evaded UNM Cassie Ulrich who had come out to make the stop, and continued her run to score at 47:00. It was Sharp's second goal of the season.

Jordan recorded her first double-goal match of the season when she put in the through ball from Sharp in during 83rd minute.

Gator Stars:

· Lauren Smith has scored four goals in the last two seasons from her holding midfield position. Sunday's goal was her first since Lauren Smith scored a pair in 2013 versus then No. 23 Kentucky.

· Jordan leads the Gators in 2014 with five goals. Today's double-goal match was her first of the season and the eighth multiple goal match of her Gator career.

· Sharp's goal today was her second of the season, as she scored the final goal in Florida's 4-0 win at Oklahoma State on Aug. 31.

· Gator goalkeepers Taylor Burke and Valerie Tysinger combined to give Florida the shutout today. Tysinger recorded a career-high six saves in the second half.

2014 Records:

Florida: 5-2, 0-0 SEC

New Mexico: 1-3, 0-0 MWC

The Series:

Florida leads the series 2-0.

This is the second meeting between the two programs. Florida won the initial meeting 3-2 in Gainesville in 2012.

What Becky Burleigh Said:

On this afternoon's match:

“I thought we showed good resilience [after overtime loss Friday]. We got on the board early and kept scoring, which was great to see. We used a lot of players today. That was necessary because of the physical demands of Friday's game, the travel and the altitude here so it was a really good team effort.

“I think there were some really nice goals today. We saw some combinations that we haven't seen before. We played a little bit different system than we normally play. It is just showing our versatility as a team.

“I think we learned a lot from the Stanford game. I think we saw some stuff today we can build on and now we are looking forward to starting league play.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh

On the return of Karina Gutsche to the lineup:

“I think it was great for her to get back on the field today. It has been awhile. She was the same Karina, which was really good to see.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh

On the play of goalkeeper Valerie Tysinger:

“Val has been really consistent in practice so I think it is good for her to get in the game. Our plan was to play her in this game regardless of the score. It was good for her to face the action that she did.” – Florida Head Coach Becky Burleigh

Worth Noting
The number four was the connection for Florida Sunday in its 4-0 win. For Lauren Smith and Brooke Sharp, their goals were the fourth of their Gator careers. For Jordan, it was her team-leading fourth and fifth goals of the season. It was also the fourth shutout for Florida in 2014.

This was Florida's first trip to New Mexico. Today's match was No. 5 of a six-match road stretch for the Gators. This weekend was the longest trip during the stretch, as they played at Stanford on Friday. When the Gators return to Gainesville tonight, they will have logged 6,621 miles since Thursday.

Preseason Conference Votes:

Florida shared the 2013 Southeastern Conference title with Texas A&M as each team posted 9-2 league records. UNM took third in the Mountain West Conference with its 6-3-1 league record.

Florida – The Gators are picked to win the Southeastern Conference.

UNM – The Lobos are picked to take fourth in the MWC. San Diego State is the preseason choice to win the MWC.

Rankings:

Florida is ranked No. 6 on the third National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.

Next up:

Florida begins defense of its 2013 Southeastern Conference title when it travels to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to face Alabama (4-2-1, 0-0 SEC) on Sept. 19 for the league opener for both programs. Match time is set for 8 p.m. ET at the Alabama Soccer Stadium. The Tide finished non-conference play on Friday with a 2-0 home win over the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

Friday's match is streamed on SECNetwork+. Hear Adam Schick's call of the match live Friday at GatorZone.com.

#6 Florida vs New Mexico (9/14/2014 11:00 a.m. at Albuquerque, N.M.)

Florida (5-2-0) vs New Mexico (1-3-0

Attendance: 1006

Stadium: UNM Soccer Complex

Weather: 70 degrees, mostly sunny, w

Goals by Period	1	2	Total
Florida	2	2	4
New Mexico	0	0	0

Scoring Summary:
No	Time	Team	Goal Scorer	Assist	Description
1.	13:3	UF	Lauren Smith(1)	unassisted	*Picked up loose ball near penalty spot
2.	25:2	UF	Savannah Jordan (4)	unassisted	*Stole ball inside UNM box
3.	47:0	UF	Brooke Sharp(2)	Annie Speese	*Breakaway from pass midfield
4.	82:3	UF	Savannah Jordan (5)	Brooke Sharp	*Through ball slipped passed defense, shot 4 yards right side