GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There were plenty of firsts in No. 20 Florida soccer’s third win of the season.
The Gators defeated Jacksonville 6-0 Thursday evening at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
Among the firsts in Thursday’s win were:
Thursday’s Scoring
For the second time this season, Zoe Main got the Gators on the board early.
ZOE MAIN PUTS US UP BY 1️⃣
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— Gators Soccer (@GatorsSoccer) August 27, 2026
The play started with Iori Watanabe finding Kyra Taylor in the middle of the field. Taylor played the ball wide to Addy Hess, who sent it forward just before being upended. Main caught up to the ball, carried it into the box and sent a right-footed strike into the far corner at 7:09. It was the first goal allowed by the Dolphins this season.
Jacksonville’s Lina Ballmann was shown a red card at 20:06 after pulling down Main just outside the box, forcing the Dolphins to play with 10 for the remainder of the match.
KATIE JOHNSTON TOP BINS
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— Gators Soccer (@GatorsSoccer) August 27, 2026
The Gators capitalized on the ensuing free kick, as Katie Johnston scored from 20 yards. It marked her second consecutive Thursday with a goal.
Florida added four goals in the second half.
FIRST GATOR GOAL FOR IORI
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— Gators Soccer (@GatorsSoccer) August 27, 2026
The scoring resumed following a Mia Gray corner kick in the 56th minute. The ball came out beyond the top of the box, where Main stepped into a shot from distance. Her attempt deflected off a pair of Dolphins before Watanabe collected the loose ball and scored from eight yards for her first collegiate goal.
The next two Florida goals came just 18 seconds apart.
HEADS UP, LENA BAILEY COMING THROUGH
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Bailey scored on a diving header off Tatum Borman’s centering ball at 64:08.
Dymond is shining tonight 💎
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— Gators Soccer (@GatorsSoccer) August 27, 2026
Bailey then helped create Florida’s fifth goal at 64:26. She carried the ball down the right side before finding Sophia Sindelar, who took a touch deeper along the inside edge of the box. Sindelar’s centering pass found Montelene Dymond, who finished with her left foot from eight yards. It marked Dymond’s second consecutive match with a goal.
What’s better than one Lena goal?
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— Gators Soccer (@GatorsSoccer) August 28, 2026
Bailey completed her first brace with Florida’s final score in the 80th minute. From just inside the Jacksonville half, Charlotte Grim won the ball and played it forward to Emma Duval. Duval sent a ball into the box that Bailey ran down before scoring on an angled, right-footed shot from 10 yards.
Did You Know?
The 18 second margin between Lena Bailey’s first goal and Montelene Dymond’s goal equals the third-quickest margin between Gators goals in program history.
Katie Johnston scored her second goal of the season directly off a free kick just outside the box. It marked the third Florida goal scored directly off a free kick in the last six seasons:
Kai Tsakiris vs. North Florida (Aug. 24, 2025)
Nicole Vernis at Georgia (Oct. 21, 2021)
Thursday marked Florida’s first match since returning to the United Soccer Coaches Top 25. The Gators moved to No. 20 following Sunday’s 3-1 win over defending NCAA champion Florida State.
Coach Zimmerman Said
“Really proud of the team in the second half. We challenged them about our standards. Obviously, the red card changes everything. Credit to Jacksonville. Extremely well coached, very, very good team, some very, very good individual players, but really proud of the way we came out in the second half.
“We were on the front foot. We were more intentional with our actions, and then so many players stepped up in the second half. It was great to see so many firsts for a lot of them. Really proud of them to finish it the way that they did.” — Florida head coach Nick Zimmerman
Records:
Florida: 3-1, 0-0-0 SEC
Jacksonville: 1-1-1, 0-0-0 ASUN
Series Record:
Florida leads 6-0
Next Up:
Florida travels to Boca Raton, Fla., to face Florida Atlantic (1-2-1, 0-0 American) on Sunday. The Owls shutout Howard 7-0 tonight in home action.
at Florida Atlantic
Date: Sunday, Aug. 30
Time: 1 p.m. ET
Site: FAU Soccer Stadium
Stream: ESPN + with Michael Wottreng calling the action
StatBroadcast
Admission: Free
Jacksonville (1-1-1, 0-0 ASUN) at Florida (3-1, 0-0 SEC)
Stadium: Donald R. Dizney Stadium (575)
Weather: Cloudy, temperatures in 80s, 87% humidity
Goals by Period
1
2
Total
Jacksonville
0
0
0
Florida
2
4
6
Scoring Summary:
Shots: JU 1, Florida 16
Saves: JU 3 (Taylor Gardner 3), Florida 0 (Jayden Emmanuel 0)
Cautions:
Paula Herranz-JU – yellow (6:44); Lina Ballmann-JU – red (20:06); Hannah Jirbril-UF – yellow (33:51); Nylah Norris-UF – yellow (68:05); Conamore Ndana-UF – yellow (88:19)