The FSU women’s soccer team is heading to the semifinal round of the College Cup this week. If the Noles win Friday, they’ll play on Sunday for the National Championship title.
The FSU women’s soccer team aims to make this a season to remember. They’re headed back to the College Cup where they’ll face the Stanford Cardinals in the first round. The two teams have a history together.
In 2014, FSU shutout Stanford 2-0 in the semifinals. FSU advanced to the finals and won, earning the first soccer national championship in school history. Last year, FSU lost to Stanford, who went on to win the championship. Coach Mark Krikorian has led the Seminoles to nine College Cups in his career. He says the team this season is “battle tested” from their challenging schedule.
“The goal is to compete for national championships. When you’re at a place like Florida State, that has to be the goal. The fact that we’re back into the College Cup, and have a chance to go and compete for a national championship, we’re going in the right direction,” he says.
It could be a tough tournament, though. In the semifinals, the number five ranked ‘Noles face the Cardinals, who are looking to continue a 45 game win-streak. Deyna Castellanos is one of FSU’s star players. When she walks out onto the field Friday, she says she won’t even be nervous.
“Like, I can get nervous when I’m about to take an exam, or something. But when I’m about to play a game I don’t get nervous. It’s my comfort zone. Like, I feel very good, I feel very confident,” she says.
If FSU wins, it’ll face the winner between Georgetown and North Carolina for the championship on Sunday
2018 is the 50th anniversary of women’s athletics at FSU. Earlier this year, the women’s softball team brought the school its third national championship title in the sport.
