Facing one of the nation's highest-powered offenses on Sunday, Katie Fraine delivered a stifling performance and propelled the UF soccer team to a 1-0 upset win against No. 4 Florida State.
The redshirt sophomore goalkeeper made multiple one-on-one stops and recorded a career-best seven saves, all under relentless pressure from the Seminoles attack.
"I was just trying to focus on staying big, staying set," Fraine said. "Our defense did a great job, and the shots that I did get I was able to handle."
UF (3-1-1) was outshot 16-5, but it didn't take much for the Gators to get on the board.
Midfielder Tahnai Annis converted on UF's first shot of the game in the 19th minute.
That was all No. 23 UF had to do to secure the victory.
"It got our team going, and it was just what we needed," Annis said.
Junior midfielder Ashlee Elliott fired a shot into the box that deflected off a Seminole defender and went right to Annis. That's when the freshman drilled the ball into the bottom left corner of the net, collecting the third goal of her young career.
"(Annis) has a knack for being in the right place at the right time and being able to finish," coach Becky Burleigh said.
FSU (4-1-0) dominated possession in the second half, but the Gators defense snuffed out many of the Seminoles' chances.
With just under six minutes to play, FSU had one of its best opportunities to score when a Seminole shooter got by UF's defense.
Fraine ran straight at the striker to cut off the angle of the shot and forced the ball to go about a foot wide of the goal, preserving the shutout.
"I thought it was a tough game, but sometimes it's easier to stay focused when there's a lot of action down there," Fraine said. "Every time we play FSU, they are coming at us because they want to win just as much as we do."
This was the first of six straight games where the Gators will face a ranked opponent, so Burleigh knows how important the road win was for her squad.
"It's a really big win for this young team," Burleigh said. "For us to come to Tallahassee to win, we haven't done that in a long time. Beating them at home last year was sweet, but beating them up there is even sweeter."
