Holly King likes to use her head.
Two of the senior midfielder’s three goals this year have been headers on set pieces.
In only 10 matches, King has equaled her best single-season goal total at UF.
“She’s pretty relentless,” coach Becky Burleigh said.
“She’s going to try and find that ball and just get after it. … She’s not afraid to get in the trenches and get dirty.
“She’ll find a way to at least get a head on the ball, knock it down and give somebody a second chance if she doesn’t score directly.”
King’s goals on set pieces have sparked the Gators’ offense for three consecutive weekends.
The most recent came in No. 24 Florida’s 4-1 win against Georgia on Sunday.
Off a right-side corner kick from sophomore Annie Speese, King leaned forward and redirected the ball into the net to give UF its first goal of the match in the 55th minute.
The score ignited an offensive onslaught, as the Gators netted three more goals in a 25-minute span.
“Once you get a goal in, it’s a lot easier to keep the goals rolling,” King said.
Against New Mexico and Auburn, King scored off free kicks from senior midfielder Jo Dragotta.
The Gators won both matches by a goal.
“She wins probably 99.9 percent of any ball that comes near her,” Dragotta said. “She’s a beast in the air.”
King did not head a goal in 2011, but three of her four scores during her first two seasons came courtesy of her forehead.
In practice, the 5-foot-9 King works with Dragotta and Speese on executing set pieces.
To improve her precision on headers, King competes against 6-foot redshirt freshman teammate Lindsey Cooper in practice.
“I have someone with height that can jump probably higher than I can to work on my timing,” King said.
She also said playing basketball for her first three years at Ashburn, Va., Broad Run High helped her time her liftoffs.
King is the most dangerous aerial threat in the Southeastern Conference, senior Erika Tymrak said.
“Even in practice, she works her butt off to get every air ball,” Tymrak said. “If you don’t challenge her, she gets mad at you.”
Said King: “When the ball’s in the air, I don’t want anyone else to win it. For me, it’s just a mental thing.
“I don’t like losing as it is, so head balls are something I take personally.”
Senior midfielder Holly King attempts a header in UF's 3-0 win against FIU on Sept. 2 at James G. Pressly Stadium. King has scored twice on headers this season.
