Three Second Half Goals Springs No. 11 Buffs into Semifinals

Monday, November 3

Fort Worth, Texas

7 p.m.

Colorado

15-2-3, 8-1-2

UCF

11-3-5, 5-1-5

UCF

Colorado

Photo by: CUBuffs.com

Three Second Half Goals Springs No. 11 Buffs into Semifinals

November 03, 2025 | Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Buffs complete comeback to face Kansas on Wednesday

By: Seth Pringle, Athletic Communications

FORT WORTH, Texas — No. 11 Colorado used three second-half goals to secure a 3-2 comeback victory over UCF on Monday at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium.

Colorado (15-2-3), the No. 3 seed, after a series of first-round upsets on Monday, now advances as the highest remaining seed in the Big 12 Tournament.

The kickoff was delayed by 1 hour and 20 minutes due to the earlier games running long in the lead-up. The Buffs' start was also seemingly delayed, as TCU (11-3-5) got two goals from Rajanah Reed and Ella Holloran to jump out to the 2-0 advantage in the first 30 minutes of the night.

"Coaches always look for excuses, but they [UCF] had the same thing that we did, and it's two hours later because they're on eastern time," head coach Danny Sanchez said of the slow start. "I don't think it [the pushed back start] was [a factor]. Both teams came out ready to play. They just came out more ready at the start."

After trailing 2-0 in the first half, the Buffaloes responded with three second-half unanswered goals to complete the comeback. The come-from-behind win marked the first time CU has won after trailing by two since Nov. 3, 2023, at Utah.

Hope Leyba scored two goals, the first and the game-winner, and led the team with nine shots, six of which were on goal. Leyba's performance brought her season total to 21 goals.

"We definitely didn't start well at all," Leyba reiterated. "But we never gave up, and we knew that we had this game. We just had to play our best."

Jace Holley added the equalizing goal to her tally and had three shots, two on target. Jordan Nytes made five saves across the 90 minutes to secure the victory. Emerson Layne, Reagan Kotschau and Ava Priest each contributed with an assist.

Colorado outshot UCF 12-4 in the second half, with six shots on goal in the final 45 minutes. The Buffs totaled 19 shots on the night with 10 on goal.

How It Happened
The first half began with the Buffaloes facing early pressure from UCF, as goalkeeper Nytes made two saves in the first five minutes to keep the scoreline blank. The Knights continued to control the attack and broke through in the 11th minute with a goal by Reed.

The Buffs didn't register their first shot of the night until a Kotschau attempt in the 17th minute. Leyba had CU's best look in the opening half with a header from close in that was tipped over the crossbar by UCF keeper Genesis Perez Watson to maintain the 1-0 lead for the Knights.

As the half progressed, UCF extended its lead with a goal from Holloran in the 30th minute, putting the Buffs two goals down for just the second time this season.

"At halftime, we were just saying that we were going to work as hard as we could," Leyba explained. "We're going to press every single time. We won't stop trying until the whistle blows. We all worked so hard, and that's what happened."

The second half began with Colorado turning the momentum. An early corner kick and a free kick awarded to the Buffs helped the CU attack get back on track, and a ball from Caley Swierenga bounced around in the final third, finding Emerson Layne for a high volley that sprung Leyba into the 18-yard box. Leyba's shot, CU's first of the half, found the back of the net for her 20th goal of the season, cutting the UCF lead to 2-1.

"We were calm at halftime," Sanchez noted. "We knew that we were going to get some chances. I told them we had to find a goal in the first 15 minutes, and we did. I think that really shifted the momentum."

Two shots and four minutes later, Holley got the equalizer in the 57th minute, with Kotschau providing the assist. Leyba struck again in the 65th minute, scoring her 21st goal of the season with a header on a corner kick, assisted by Priest, to give Colorado the lead, 3-2.

Colorado continued to control the tempo and the lead for the remainder of the night, outshooting UCF 8-1 after Leyba's go-ahead score.

"We had to have something positive happen for us," Sanchez expressed. "Hope giving us that goal just gave us a ton of energy. It was a great second goal from Jace. Then you could kind of see the momentum shift. I thought the whole second half, we really had the whole run of play. Then, when they [UCF] got forward with a couple of their really dangerous players, our back four was fantastic. A special shoutout to all of them, Jo [Whiteaker], Caley [Swierenga], Greer [Maguire] and Faith [Leyba] were fantastic tonight."

Up Next
Colorado will take on No. 7-seeded Kansas in a rematch from last week. Wednesday's kickoff is set for 6 p.m. MT.

Notes
Colorado improves to 8-10-5 all-time in the Big 12 Tournament…Leyba built on her school single-season school records in goals and points (43)… Holley's goal was her 12th of the season… Layne's assist was her ninth of the year, tying Swierenga for the team lead and the second-most in single-season history for the Buffs…CU now has 56 assists on the season…The win was Nytes' 40th at CU…She now has 93 saves this season…CU is now 2-0-0 this year in Fort Worth, having previously beaten TCU earlier in the year.

For more information on Colorado Soccer, please visit cubuffs.com/soccer. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffssoccer on Instagram, X, TikTok and Facebook.