Florida State Punches Ticket to NCAA College Cup

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The No. 3-seed Florida State soccer team advanced to the NCAA College Cup with a 4-1 win over Ohio State in front of a sold-out crowd at the Seminole Soccer Complex on Friday night.

With the win, FSU will make its 15th College Cup appearance, second-most all-time, and fifth in the last six years. The Seminoles improved to 87-19-6 in the NCAA Tournament and 13-4-2 in the Quarterfinals, with a five game unbeaten streak in the round of eight. The Seminoles will now travel to Kansas City, Missouri, for the National Semifinal on December 5 against the winner of Saturday's matchup between No. 1-seed Vanderbilt and No. 2-seed TCU.

The Seminoles (14-2-4) extended their unbeaten streak to eight consecutive games, with a 19-5 scoring margin in their last six contests. As FSU improves to 4-0-0 in the NCAA Tournament, it closes out its home slate with an 8-1-2 mark at the Seminole Soccer Complex. Florida State beat a Buckeyes (11-5-6) side that had upset three consecutive seeded opponents away from home to reach the Quarterfinal.

Junior forward Jordynn Dudley netted her eighth career brace on Friday night, scoring the first two goals of the contest just 4:10 apart, including the game-winner. It's her second career postseason brace and third of the season. The National Player of the Year finalist also had an assist for her second five-point game of the year and fifth game with at least three points. Dudley led the offense with a career-high 11 shots in the win, five on goal.

After Dudley's goals in the 36th and 40th minutes, junior midfielder Yuna McCormack got the Seminoles' third goal in the 51st minute just 78 seconds after OSU scored to make it a 2-1 game. Sophomore forward Wrianna Hudson netted the final score in the 85th minute to put the game away at 4-1.

Freshman midfielder Nawreen Ahmad assisted on Dudley's first goal and senior defender Sophia Nguyen got the assist on Dudley's eventual game winner. Freshman forward Nyanya Touray and Dudley were credited with assists on McCormack's score, while sophomore midfielder Taylor Suarez and senior defender Heather Gilchrist assisted on Hudson's. Suarez's assist was her team-best fourth of the postseason and Ahmad got her first collegiate assist.

Florida State outshot Ohio State 25-14 with a 13-4 advantage in shots on goal. The Seminoles took five corner kicks while holding the Buckeyes to two. Freshman goalkeeper Kate Ockene posted three saves to her OSU counterpart's eight.

Ohio State had the first chance of the night, forcing a save by Ockene within the first three minutes of play. Momentum quickly flipped to the Seminoles, who had five different players force saves out of the Buckeye keeper. FSU forced a total of six saves in the first 35 minutes before Dudley found the back of the net at 35:40. A long pass sent feet away from the OSU bench from Ahmad landed at Dudley's feet near the penalty spot, and she tapped it in through pressure from a defender and the keeper.

Dudley extended the lead less than five minutes later at 39:50. A pass in from Nguyen saw Dudley rush by two defenders and place a left-footed shot past the goalkeeper to the far post to put the Seminoles up 2-0. The goal was Dudley's 11th of the season, second-most on the team, and Nguyen got her second assist.

Florida State outshot Ohio State 16-5 in the first half with a 9-1 edge in shots on goal. FSU took three corners while holding OSU without one. Ockene made one save to the Buckeye keeper's seven. Dudley led the effort with a season high seven shots in the first half.

Ohio State would cut the lead in half shortly after halftime in the 50th minute, but McCormack quickly answered just 82 seconds later at 50:40. A string of passes from Dudley to Touray found a rushing McCormack in the penalty box, who fired from the right of the penalty spot to the near post. She slotted it home past the sliding Buckeye keeper, who was off her line at the edge of the six. The score is McCormack's sixth of the season and her second of the postseason. Dudley's assist gives her a team-best 14, while Touray earns her second of the year.

Ockene made two more saves in the 57th and 84th minutes to hold off the Buckeyes while the Seminoles kept up the offensive pressure. It would pay off in the 85th minute as a lofty pass from Gilchrist into the goal box found Suarez by the endline, who kept the play alive with a centering pass to Hudson. With the keeper drawn away, Hudson had no trouble burying the ball into the center of the net for the fourth and final goal of the game. The goal is her team-best 13th of the season as Gilchrist collected her first assist and Suarez's eighth.

Through the second half, both teams posted an even nine shots, though FSU held a 4-3 edge on target. Florida State and Ohio State each took two corner kicks and both goalkeepers made two saves.

Florida State advances to the NCAA College Cup in Kansas City, where the Seminoles will play the Vanderbilt-TCU winner. The other side of the bracket will see No. 1 seed Stanford take on No. 2 seed Duke. The Semifinal round will take place on Dec. 5 while the Final is set for Dec. 8. The ACC will have multiple teams in the College Cup for the fourth consecutive year, with FSU featuring in three of those four events.

For more information on Florida State soccer, check Seminoles.com for the latest news and scheduling information, and keep up with the team on social media through Twitter/X and Facebook (@FSUSoccer) & Instagram (@NoleSoccer).

Florida State Punches Ticket to NCAA College Cup

Team Stats

Jordynn Dudley

Wrianna Hudson

Yuna McCormack

Nyanya Touray

Players Mentioned

Nawreen Ahmad

Jordynn Dudley

Heather Gilchrist

Wrianna Hudson

Yuna McCormack

Sophia Nguyen

Kate Ockene

Taylor Suarez

Nyanya Touray

Florida State University Athletics