No. 3 FSU Begins Season against UF on ACC Network
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The No. 3 Florida State soccer team will open the 2025 season against in-state rival Florida on Thursday, August 14, at 7 p.m. ET, at the Seminole Soccer Complex in a nationally-televised game on ACC Network.
Thursday’s season opener is a whiteout, and fans are encouraged to wear white to the game to cheer on the Seminoles. For fans without reserved midfield season tickets, general admission single-game seating is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis for each regular-season home game in 2025.
The game will be broadcast live on ACC Network, with Jenn Hildreth and Kacey White on the call. Live stats can be found at FSU.Statbroadcast.com. Direct links to watch and follow along can be found on the schedule page at Seminoles.com/Soccer and on social media on Twitter/X and Facebook (@FSUSoccer) & Instagram (@NoleSoccer).
Florida State went 15-2-4 in 2024 and played in the NCAA Tournament for the 25th consecutive season, advancing to the second round. The Seminoles finished 7-2-1 in the ACC regular season to place second in the league and won the ACC Tournament for the 11th time and fifth in a row.
Eight of FSU’s 11 starters return from a year ago, and 11 newcomers join the team to make up the 27-player roster. The list of returners include four who were named Players to Watch by United Soccer Coaches and two that garnered Preseason All-ACC honors.
Head Coach Brian Pensky enters his fourth season at the helm and boasts a 54-5-8 record in Tallahassee. His tenure has featured a national title in 2023, another NCAA College Cup berth in 2022 and five ACC titles, two regular season and three tournament.
The Seminoles are unbeaten in four consecutive years in regular-season non-conference play. After a 5-0-1 mark in 2024, Florida State is 25-0-3 since the middle of the 2019 non-conference regular season. FSU was 5-0-0 in 2023, 4-0-2 in 2022 and 7-0-0 in 2021. The team did not play non-conference games in the regular season during the 2020 campaign.
FSU also enters the 2025 season on a 28-game unbeaten streak at home, having gone 26-0-2 at the Seminole Soccer Complex since its last home defeat in the middle of the 2022 season. Florida State was 10-0-2 in 2024 and 11-0-0 in 2023 in Tallahassee.
NATIONALLY-RANKED SEMINOLES
FSU was voted No. 3 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Top-25. FSU is one of six ACC teams in the top 10 and one of eight in the top 15. The Seminoles are joined by No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 4 Duke in the top four. USC was No. 5. Another two ACC clubs are receiving votes for a total of 10 ranked or garnering votes.
Six of Florida State’s 10 ACC games are against preseason top-25 or receiving-votes teams, three at home and three on the road.
PRESEASON HONORS
The Seminoles have earned numerous conference and national preseason accolades. In the ACC, junior forward Jordynn Dudley and senior defender Heather Gilchrist were recognized on the 2025 Preseason All-ACC Team, both for the second consecutive season.
Three players were selected as Players to Watch by United Soccer Coaches. Gilchrist and junior defender Mimi Van Zanten were named to the Defenders to Watch list, sophomore midfielder/forward Taylor Suarez is on the Midfielders list and Dudley was selected as a Forward to Watch.
Top Drawer Soccer recognized four players with preseason accolades. On the organization’s Top 100 Preseason Players list, Dudley is ranked No. 2, junior midfielder Yuna McCormack is No. 17, Gilchrist is No. 23 and Van Zanten No. 36. Additionally, Dudley is bestowed with Preseason Best XI First Team honors, McCormack is on the Preseason Best XI Second Team and Gilchrist is on the Third Team.
SERIES HISTORY VS. FLORIDA
Florida State is 17-13-0 all-time against Florida, including 8-6-0 at home and 9-7-0 on the road. The two teams have met every year since 1995, FSU’s first season, except for 2016 (weather cancellation) and 2020 (ACC-only season). This will be the fourth time the two sides open the season against each other. The 2000 and 2003 campaigns featured two matchups, the second meetings coming in the NCAA Tournament and marking the only two times the rivalry has been played in the postseason. The Seminoles won both NCAA affairs by 2-1 margins.
With the longest unbeaten streak by either team in the rivalry, FSU has won seven in a row since 2017 and four consecutive at home. Five of the seven wins have been shutouts, including the last three. A year ago, on September 8, 2024, then-No. 3 Florida State bested Florida 3-0 in Gainesville. Taylor Huff scored the first goal in the 15th minute, and the Seminoles made it 2-0 in the 58th minute thanks to Wrianna Hudson. With less than 10 minutes to go, in the 81st minute, Kameron Simmonds sealed the victory to make it 3-0. Hudson also notched an assist for a game-high three points. In goal, Addie Todd stopped all two shots she faced to earn the clean sheet. A complete recap can be found here.
SCOUTING THE GATORS
Florida went 4-8-6 in 2024 and 1-7-2 in the SEC. That included a 1-3-1 mark vs. top-25 teams, with a 2-1 win over No. 22 Texas to go along with defeats at No. 6 Auburn and No. 23 South Carolina and a draw at No. 20 Kentucky in addition to the contest against No. 3 FSU. In exhibition games this season, UF defeated FAU 1-0 and won at USF 4-1.
The Gators have 11 newcomers, six freshmen and five transfers, on their 28-player 2025 roster. Five players return that made eight or more starts in 2024. Ten Florida players were named on the 2025 SEC Preseason Watch List.
UP NEXT: WEEKEND CONCLUDES ON SUNDAY NIGHT
FSU’s season-opening weekend wraps up vs. FIU on Sunday, August 17, at 7 p.m. ET. The contest at the Seminole Soccer Complex is Kids Club Game and Youth Day.
Additionally, the team will host its annual Kickoff Party on Friday, August 15, from 5:30-7 p.m., at the Dunlap Champions Club. Tickets to the event can be purchased here.
LEADING THE U.S. YOUTH NATIONAL TEAM
Freshman Nyanya Touray and Ashlyn Anderson, along with 2026 freshman Sydney Schmidt, helped the United States U-17 Women’s National Team to a 4 Nations Tournament title from July 26-August 1 in Mexico City. Touray led the team with three goals, scoring the game winner in a 1-0 win over Mexico in the title game and the winning PK against Canada. Schmidt scored one goal, as all three players saw action in each of the team’s three games. A complete recap of Anderson, Schmidt and Touray’s performances at the 4 Nations Tournament is available here.
QUICK KICKS: NOTES TO KNOW
Thursday’s season opener is a whiteout, and fans are encouraged to wear white to the game to cheer on the Seminoles. For fans without reserved midfield season tickets, general admission single-game seating is free and available on a first-come, first-served basis for each regular-season home game in 2025.
The game will be broadcast live on ACC Network, with Jenn Hildreth and Kacey White on the call. Live stats can be found at FSU.Statbroadcast.com. Direct links to watch and follow along can be found on the schedule page at Seminoles.com/Soccer and on social media on Twitter/X and Facebook (@FSUSoccer) & Instagram (@NoleSoccer).
Florida State went 15-2-4 in 2024 and played in the NCAA Tournament for the 25th consecutive season, advancing to the second round. The Seminoles finished 7-2-1 in the ACC regular season to place second in the league and won the ACC Tournament for the 11th time and fifth in a row.
Eight of FSU’s 11 starters return from a year ago, and 11 newcomers join the team to make up the 27-player roster. The list of returners include four who were named Players to Watch by United Soccer Coaches and two that garnered Preseason All-ACC honors.
Head Coach Brian Pensky enters his fourth season at the helm and boasts a 54-5-8 record in Tallahassee. His tenure has featured a national title in 2023, another NCAA College Cup berth in 2022 and five ACC titles, two regular season and three tournament.
The Seminoles are unbeaten in four consecutive years in regular-season non-conference play. After a 5-0-1 mark in 2024, Florida State is 25-0-3 since the middle of the 2019 non-conference regular season. FSU was 5-0-0 in 2023, 4-0-2 in 2022 and 7-0-0 in 2021. The team did not play non-conference games in the regular season during the 2020 campaign.
FSU also enters the 2025 season on a 28-game unbeaten streak at home, having gone 26-0-2 at the Seminole Soccer Complex since its last home defeat in the middle of the 2022 season. Florida State was 10-0-2 in 2024 and 11-0-0 in 2023 in Tallahassee.
NATIONALLY-RANKED SEMINOLES
FSU was voted No. 3 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Top-25. FSU is one of six ACC teams in the top 10 and one of eight in the top 15. The Seminoles are joined by No. 1 North Carolina, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 4 Duke in the top four. USC was No. 5. Another two ACC clubs are receiving votes for a total of 10 ranked or garnering votes.
Six of Florida State’s 10 ACC games are against preseason top-25 or receiving-votes teams, three at home and three on the road.
PRESEASON HONORS
The Seminoles have earned numerous conference and national preseason accolades. In the ACC, junior forward Jordynn Dudley and senior defender Heather Gilchrist were recognized on the 2025 Preseason All-ACC Team, both for the second consecutive season.
Three players were selected as Players to Watch by United Soccer Coaches. Gilchrist and junior defender Mimi Van Zanten were named to the Defenders to Watch list, sophomore midfielder/forward Taylor Suarez is on the Midfielders list and Dudley was selected as a Forward to Watch.
Top Drawer Soccer recognized four players with preseason accolades. On the organization’s Top 100 Preseason Players list, Dudley is ranked No. 2, junior midfielder Yuna McCormack is No. 17, Gilchrist is No. 23 and Van Zanten No. 36. Additionally, Dudley is bestowed with Preseason Best XI First Team honors, McCormack is on the Preseason Best XI Second Team and Gilchrist is on the Third Team.
SERIES HISTORY VS. FLORIDA
Florida State is 17-13-0 all-time against Florida, including 8-6-0 at home and 9-7-0 on the road. The two teams have met every year since 1995, FSU’s first season, except for 2016 (weather cancellation) and 2020 (ACC-only season). This will be the fourth time the two sides open the season against each other. The 2000 and 2003 campaigns featured two matchups, the second meetings coming in the NCAA Tournament and marking the only two times the rivalry has been played in the postseason. The Seminoles won both NCAA affairs by 2-1 margins.
With the longest unbeaten streak by either team in the rivalry, FSU has won seven in a row since 2017 and four consecutive at home. Five of the seven wins have been shutouts, including the last three. A year ago, on September 8, 2024, then-No. 3 Florida State bested Florida 3-0 in Gainesville. Taylor Huff scored the first goal in the 15th minute, and the Seminoles made it 2-0 in the 58th minute thanks to Wrianna Hudson. With less than 10 minutes to go, in the 81st minute, Kameron Simmonds sealed the victory to make it 3-0. Hudson also notched an assist for a game-high three points. In goal, Addie Todd stopped all two shots she faced to earn the clean sheet. A complete recap can be found here.
SCOUTING THE GATORS
Florida went 4-8-6 in 2024 and 1-7-2 in the SEC. That included a 1-3-1 mark vs. top-25 teams, with a 2-1 win over No. 22 Texas to go along with defeats at No. 6 Auburn and No. 23 South Carolina and a draw at No. 20 Kentucky in addition to the contest against No. 3 FSU. In exhibition games this season, UF defeated FAU 1-0 and won at USF 4-1.
The Gators have 11 newcomers, six freshmen and five transfers, on their 28-player 2025 roster. Five players return that made eight or more starts in 2024. Ten Florida players were named on the 2025 SEC Preseason Watch List.
UP NEXT: WEEKEND CONCLUDES ON SUNDAY NIGHT
FSU’s season-opening weekend wraps up vs. FIU on Sunday, August 17, at 7 p.m. ET. The contest at the Seminole Soccer Complex is Kids Club Game and Youth Day.
Additionally, the team will host its annual Kickoff Party on Friday, August 15, from 5:30-7 p.m., at the Dunlap Champions Club. Tickets to the event can be purchased here.
LEADING THE U.S. YOUTH NATIONAL TEAM
Freshman Nyanya Touray and Ashlyn Anderson, along with 2026 freshman Sydney Schmidt, helped the United States U-17 Women’s National Team to a 4 Nations Tournament title from July 26-August 1 in Mexico City. Touray led the team with three goals, scoring the game winner in a 1-0 win over Mexico in the title game and the winning PK against Canada. Schmidt scored one goal, as all three players saw action in each of the team’s three games. A complete recap of Anderson, Schmidt and Touray’s performances at the 4 Nations Tournament is available here.
QUICK KICKS: NOTES TO KNOW
- Florida State is in its 31st season in 2025 and owns a 475-163-58 (.724) overall record since the team’s first season in 1995
- FSU is unbeaten in four consecutive years in regular-season non-conference play, going 25-0-3 since the middle of the 2019 non-conference regular season after a 5-0-1 mark in 2024
- The Seminoles are on a 28-game unbeaten streak at home, having gone 26-0-2 at the Seminole Soccer Complex since their last home defeat in the middle of the 2022 season, which includes a 10-0-2 record in 2024
- 8 of 11 starters are returning in 2025, with all three departing players having graduated FSU and two currently playing professionally in the NWSL
- 154 of 231 (66.6%) starts from 2024 return in 2025
- The Seminoles’ 11 newcomers feature 8 freshmen and three transfers
- FSU has won five consecutive ACC Tournament championships and 11 overall, along with six regular season titles (most recently 2022 and 2023)
- Florida State has made 25 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, every year since 2000, and is coming off a second-round berth in 2024 after winning its fourth NCAA championship in 2023
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).
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