Fresh off its second victory over a top-five opponent this season, Florida soccer faces another daunting test. The Gators must quickly shift their focus from an emotional late winner to No. 2 Vanderbilt (12-0-1, 5-0-1 SEC).
“Obviously, excited for the last performance,” head coach Nick Zimmerman said. “Really excited about this opportunity. We know we’re playing a very, very good team that’s well coached, so we’re excited for the challenge.”
The Commodores have excelled all season, building on a successful 2025 campaign in which they captured the SEC Tournament title with an 8-7 penalty shootout victory over Louisiana State.
Vanderbilt earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and advanced further than any other SEC team before falling to TCU 2-1 in the quarterfinals.
The Commodores have carried that momentum into 2026 and are one of four unbeaten teams in Division I. Head coach Darren Ambrose is in his 11th season, and the 2018 SEC Coach of the Year has transformed Vanderbilt into one of the conference’s top programs.
A native of Sheffield, England, Ambrose played in Sheffield United’s youth academy before moving to the United States to play for Division II power USC-Spartanburg (now USC Upstate). As a goalkeeper, he earned the 1992 ISAA/Adidas Division II National Player of the Year award.
Now, Ambrose has a reliable goalkeeper of his own in graduate student Alexa Gianoplus. She has allowed six goals in 990 minutes while recording 29 saves. Her four shutouts in SEC play are tied for the second most in the conference.
Senior Sydney Watts, the reigning SEC Forward of the Year, leads Vanderbilt’s attack. Watts paces the SEC in goals (five) and points (11), and she is one of two Commodores on the 2026 MAC Hermann Trophy midseason watch list.
Joining Watts on the list is senior midfielder Courtney Jones. The Orlando native has recorded three assists and remains a valuable attacking option. She recorded a brace in Vanderbilt’s 5-0 victory over Texas A&M on Sept. 18.
Freshman forward Mia Hebert has also emerged as a threat. Since making her season debut against Georgia on Sept. 10, Hebert has recorded four goals and two assists in six matches. The Kansas City, Missouri, native delivered the winner in Vanderbilt’s 1-0 victory at Missouri on Friday.
Freshman defender Lael Hill, the reigning TopDrawerSoccer Freshman of the Week, will be looking to slow Vanderbilt’s attack. With veteran center back Skye Barnes sidelined by an injury, Hill has helped anchor Florida’s defense. She also assisted on senior forward Lena Bailey’s goal in UF’s 1-0 victory over then-No. 5 Alabama on Thursday.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Thursday at Vanderbilt Soccer Complex.
Contact Zach Moore at zmoore@alligator.org. Follow him on X @zach_moore27.
Zach is a junior sports journalism student in his third semester at The Alligator. He currently covers soccer for the Fall 2026 season after previously serving as the softball reporter. Zach also has experience as a play-by-play broadcaster in the Florida Collegiate Summer League for the Winter Garden Squeeze. In his free time, Zach enjoys going to the gym and watching sports, especially his favorite teams: the Minnesota Vikings, Arsenal FC, Houston Astros, Orlando Magic and Orlando City SC. A fun fact about Zach is that he is also an avid WWE fan.
