It goes without saying that year in and year out the women’s soccer team at UCF remains a consistent threat in conference play. But they’ve also proven to be worthy of playing on the same field with the best teams in the country.

Over the weekend the Knights (2-1) competed in the Carolina Nike Classic in Chapel Hill, N.C. and on Sunday rallied from a 1-0 hole to defeat No. 10 Duke, 3-2, thanks to two goals by senior Courtney Whidden and the game-winner in the 87th minute off the head of sophomore Stacie Hubbard.

The final goal of the game, which bounced off the crossbar before going in, was the first of Hubbard’s collegiate career and came by way of corner kick from senior Becca Thomas. That effort spoiled the momentum of the Blue Devils, who had knotted the score at 2-2 with just five minutes left to play.

Senior Aline Reis recorded two saves in the first half while senior Lynzee Lee made six saves in the second half to earn her first victory in the net for the Black and Gold.

The big win for the Knights (just their second in eight tries against Duke) came two days after suffering a tough 4-0 loss to No. 1 North Carolina.

UCF returns to action Sept. 4 at the USF Tournament in Tampa before hosting No. 5 Florida State on Thursday, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. and USF on Sunday, Sept. 13 at 1 p.m.

Last season the Knights ranked as high as No. 18 in the polls. They suffered regular season losses to No. 4 FSU and No. 21 Kansas while earning wins over No. 17 Illinois and No. 19 Florida. Their run in the NCAA Tournament ended at the hands of the Gators though following a first-round win over Miami.

The Knights, led by head coach Amanda Cromwell, closed out 2008 with a 14-6-3 mark, having made their 13th appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 1982 and finishing with at least 10 wins for the 22nd time in 28 seasons of play.