No. 3 Florida State soccer won its home opener against FAU 3-0 to extend its unbeaten streak to 12 games and remain undefeated this season at 3-0-0.
Florida State is now 5-0-0 all-time against FAU and has shut them out in four out of five matches.
Florida State has now won 36 regular-season non-conference games in a row. They also extend their shutout streak to five games.
Former ACC Coach of the Year Brian Pensky has brought in 16 new players following their 2025 national championship win over Stanford. In the first three games of the season, Pensky has seen his newest players make a major impact.
Senior Kentucky transfer Tanner Strickland scored the first goal in the 11th minute of the first half. Strickland scored on a header after being assisted by Xavier transfer Sam Erbach. Strickland has now scored goals in back-to-back games. Florida State had not scored a first-half goal in either of their two games this season.
Freshman Ryder Ajeto put Florida State up 2-0 with a goal at the 64th minute. Ajeto was also assisted by Erbach with her goal. Ajeto is one of five prized freshmen brought in by Pensky in 2026. Florida State only returned four starters from the 2025 team.
Florida State recorded its third goal when an FAU defender accidentally scored an own goal when they accidentally deflected the ball into the net coming off of a corner kick at the 82:48 mark.
Adding to the impact of Pensky’s transfers, Ashley Henderson, a transfer from Memphis, and Anaiyah Robinson, a transfer from Arkansas, also recorded assists in the win.
True sophomore goalie Kate Ockene is currently on a four-game shutout streak dating back to the 2025 national championship against Stanford. Ockene took over the starting job in her freshman season. Florida State played tough defense all game as Ockene did not need to make a save at any point. To compare, FAU’s goalie had five saves against Florida State’s aggressive offense.
Florida State outshot FAU 18-2, including 7-1 in shots on goal. So far this season Florida State has outshot its opponents 44-7 including 22-3 with shots on goal. Florida State has forced 19 saves this season and has only allowed 2.3 shots per game.
Florida State will travel to Gainesville to play against their arch-rival Florida on August 23. Florida is 1-1-0 after losing to UCF and beating Coastal Carolina.
Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.
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