Thursday, August 20
Gainesville, FL
6:30 p.m.
Florida Gators
vs
Coastal Carolina
Gator soccer opens home action Thursday evening versus Coastal Carolina and then longtime rival and No. T3 Florida State comes to Dizney Stadium Sunday afternoon. [Photo: John Chapman]
Gators Start 2026 Home Action versus Coastal Carolina and No. T3 Florida State
Tuesday, August 18, 2026 | Soccer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida soccer opens its 2026 home slate with three consecutive matches at Donald R. Dizney Stadium, beginning Thursday at 6:30 p.m. against Coastal Carolina. The Gators then welcome defending NCAA champion and current No. T3 Florida State on Sunday at 2 p.m..
Thursday, Aug. 20 versus Coastal Carolina
Time/Site: 6:30 p.m. at Donald R. Dizney Stadium
Streaming Video: SEC Network + Announcers: Ryan Urquhart and Matthew Stubbington
ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF Announcers: Sky Lebron and Nevada Cullen calling the action
Live Stats
Admission: Free
Promotions: Let the Gators Hear You: The first 150 fans receive a FREE vuvuzela. Rep The Gators All Season: Grab your 2026 Gators schedule poster at The Diz.
Sunday, Aug. 23 vs No. T3 Florida State
Time/Site: 2 p.m. at Donald R. Dizney Stadium
TV: SEC Network Announcers: AJ Ricketts and Paddy Foss
Radio: ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF Announcers: Ryan Urquhart and Matthew Stubbington.
Live Stats
Promotions: Blue Out: It's a sea of blue at Dizney! The first 250 fans receive a FREE Blue Rally Towel—grab yours and wave it high!; Free Pizza For Students: Students, come hungry—the first 100 students get FREE pizza! Kid's Zone Fun: Get the fun started before the match with a face painter & balloon artist on the Dizney Stadium concourse!
Admission is free for all Gator soccer regular-season home matches.
The Gators are 25-3-3 all-time in home openers, including wins in the last four season starts at The Diz.
2026 Gator Soccer Home Promotions Schedule
Match 700:
Thursday's match versus Coastal Carolina is the 700th in the 32 season history of Florida soccer.
Florida soccer began play in 1995. The SEC first sponsored soccer in 1993 with four programs — Auburn, Arkansas, Kentucky and Vanderbilt — before Alabama joined in 1994. Six additional teams, including Florida, began play in 1995.
Florida is the fourth SEC program to reach 700 matches. Texas A&M reached 700 the fastest among SEC programs, doing so in its 31st season. Florida is second, reaching the milestone in its 32nd season. Arkansas and Vanderbilt also have reached the 700-match mark, both doing so in their 37th seasons.
Florida's Season Opener:
It didn't take long for the Gators to get on the board after the Aug. 13 delayed start at UCF. Zoe Main took advantage of a low UCF goal kick, knocking the ball down eight yards from the box to score on an angled shot to the far post. It ranks as the second fastest season opening goal in the program's 32 seasons. The quickest? All-American Sarah Yohe's goal in 56 seconds versus Florida State in the 1999 season opener at Pressly Stadium.
Florida's second corner kick of the season ended with a goal by sophomore Adia Symmonds. Katie Johnston sent in the corner kick, which was headed out of the box by a Knight. The ball fell at the top of the box where Symmonds stepped up for a left-footed shot at scored in the 19th minute.
UCF cut the lead in half in the 25th minute when Gabi Berchon touched the ball out in the box to Naomi Clark for a goal from bottom left.
The Knights opened the second half with a pair of quick goals to take a 3-2 lead. The tying goal came in the 49th minute when Kalena Bellini tapped the ball into open space at the top corner of the box. Ella Holloran stepped in to score on a left-footed shot. Naomi Clark's goal at 51:06 gave the Knights the lead. She won the ball above the Gator box and drove in for a 16-yard angled shot to far post. A Gator foul on the upper edge of the box gave the Knights a penalty kick in the 84th minute. Gabi Berchon successfully converted the kick.
The Knights were whistled with a handball in the box in the final minute. Senior Hannah Jibril successfully converted the kick for the final goal of the match.
About Upcoming Opponents:
Coastal Carolina (1-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
The Chanticleers posted a 3-5-8 record in 2025 and tied for 10th in the Sun Belt Conference with a 0-2-8 league mark. The Chants are picked 11th in the Sun Belt preseason coaches' poll. The Chants opened 2026 on Aug. 13 with a 3-0 home win versus Charleston Southern with a different player scoring each goal – Kamden Pierce, Sammy Schulze and Lauryn Barringer.
Redshirt senior Tamlyn Parkes is back after leading the Chants in 2025 with four goals. Junior goalkeeper Aris Lamanna's 18 goals allowed in her sophomore season is the sixth lowest in Coastal's history and her 1.13 goals against average is the program's seventh lowest for a season.
Thursday's match brings together two coaches in their first seasons with their programs. Coastal's Pete Cuadrado was hired April 7, 2026.
No. T3 Florida State (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
Florida State's 1-0 win in 2025 over Stanford earned the Seminoles their fifth NCAA College Cup title since 2014. The Seminoles posted a record of 16-2-4 in 2025 and tied for fourth in the ACC at 6-2-2.
Sunday's match closes a season opening four-match stretch versus in-state rivals for the Seminoles – 4-0 win at Stetson (Aug. 13), 2-0 win at Florida International (Aug. 16), vs Florida Atlantic (Aug. 20) and at Florida (Aug. 23).
Four of 11 Seminole starters return in 2026 and their 16 newcomers (five freshmen, 11 transfers) is ranked No. 1 by TopDrawerSoccer. Four were named Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Players to Watch by the IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches – junior forward Wrianna Hudson, sophomore midfielder Nyanya Touray, senior midfielder Ashley Henderson and junior midfielder Sam Erbach.
Thursday, Aug. 20 versus Coastal Carolina
Time/Site: 6:30 p.m. at Donald R. Dizney Stadium
Streaming Video: SEC Network + Announcers: Ryan Urquhart and Matthew Stubbington
ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF Announcers: Sky Lebron and Nevada Cullen calling the action
Live Stats
Admission: Free
Promotions: Let the Gators Hear You: The first 150 fans receive a FREE vuvuzela. Rep The Gators All Season: Grab your 2026 Gators schedule poster at The Diz.
Sunday, Aug. 23 vs No. T3 Florida State
Time/Site: 2 p.m. at Donald R. Dizney Stadium
TV: SEC Network Announcers: AJ Ricketts and Paddy Foss
Radio: ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF Announcers: Ryan Urquhart and Matthew Stubbington.
Live Stats
Promotions: Blue Out: It's a sea of blue at Dizney! The first 250 fans receive a FREE Blue Rally Towel—grab yours and wave it high!; Free Pizza For Students: Students, come hungry—the first 100 students get FREE pizza! Kid's Zone Fun: Get the fun started before the match with a face painter & balloon artist on the Dizney Stadium concourse!
Admission is free for all Gator soccer regular-season home matches.
The Gators are 25-3-3 all-time in home openers, including wins in the last four season starts at The Diz.
2026 Gator Soccer Home Promotions Schedule
Match 700:
Thursday's match versus Coastal Carolina is the 700th in the 32 season history of Florida soccer.
Florida soccer began play in 1995. The SEC first sponsored soccer in 1993 with four programs — Auburn, Arkansas, Kentucky and Vanderbilt — before Alabama joined in 1994. Six additional teams, including Florida, began play in 1995.
Florida is the fourth SEC program to reach 700 matches. Texas A&M reached 700 the fastest among SEC programs, doing so in its 31st season. Florida is second, reaching the milestone in its 32nd season. Arkansas and Vanderbilt also have reached the 700-match mark, both doing so in their 37th seasons.
Florida's Season Opener:
It didn't take long for the Gators to get on the board after the Aug. 13 delayed start at UCF. Zoe Main took advantage of a low UCF goal kick, knocking the ball down eight yards from the box to score on an angled shot to the far post. It ranks as the second fastest season opening goal in the program's 32 seasons. The quickest? All-American Sarah Yohe's goal in 56 seconds versus Florida State in the 1999 season opener at Pressly Stadium.
Florida's second corner kick of the season ended with a goal by sophomore Adia Symmonds. Katie Johnston sent in the corner kick, which was headed out of the box by a Knight. The ball fell at the top of the box where Symmonds stepped up for a left-footed shot at scored in the 19th minute.
UCF cut the lead in half in the 25th minute when Gabi Berchon touched the ball out in the box to Naomi Clark for a goal from bottom left.
The Knights opened the second half with a pair of quick goals to take a 3-2 lead. The tying goal came in the 49th minute when Kalena Bellini tapped the ball into open space at the top corner of the box. Ella Holloran stepped in to score on a left-footed shot. Naomi Clark's goal at 51:06 gave the Knights the lead. She won the ball above the Gator box and drove in for a 16-yard angled shot to far post. A Gator foul on the upper edge of the box gave the Knights a penalty kick in the 84th minute. Gabi Berchon successfully converted the kick.
The Knights were whistled with a handball in the box in the final minute. Senior Hannah Jibril successfully converted the kick for the final goal of the match.
About Upcoming Opponents:
Coastal Carolina (1-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
The Chanticleers posted a 3-5-8 record in 2025 and tied for 10th in the Sun Belt Conference with a 0-2-8 league mark. The Chants are picked 11th in the Sun Belt preseason coaches' poll. The Chants opened 2026 on Aug. 13 with a 3-0 home win versus Charleston Southern with a different player scoring each goal – Kamden Pierce, Sammy Schulze and Lauryn Barringer.
Redshirt senior Tamlyn Parkes is back after leading the Chants in 2025 with four goals. Junior goalkeeper Aris Lamanna's 18 goals allowed in her sophomore season is the sixth lowest in Coastal's history and her 1.13 goals against average is the program's seventh lowest for a season.
Thursday's match brings together two coaches in their first seasons with their programs. Coastal's Pete Cuadrado was hired April 7, 2026.
No. T3 Florida State (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
Florida State's 1-0 win in 2025 over Stanford earned the Seminoles their fifth NCAA College Cup title since 2014. The Seminoles posted a record of 16-2-4 in 2025 and tied for fourth in the ACC at 6-2-2.
Sunday's match closes a season opening four-match stretch versus in-state rivals for the Seminoles – 4-0 win at Stetson (Aug. 13), 2-0 win at Florida International (Aug. 16), vs Florida Atlantic (Aug. 20) and at Florida (Aug. 23).
Four of 11 Seminole starters return in 2026 and their 16 newcomers (five freshmen, 11 transfers) is ranked No. 1 by TopDrawerSoccer. Four were named Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Players to Watch by the IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches – junior forward Wrianna Hudson, sophomore midfielder Nyanya Touray, senior midfielder Ashley Henderson and junior midfielder Sam Erbach.
Players Mentioned
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