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Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer

American college soccer team


American college soccer team

FieldValue
nameKentucky Wildcats men's soccer
logoKentucky Wildcats logo.svg
logo_size100
universityUniversity of Kentucky
athletic_directorMitch Barnhart
conferenceSun Belt Conference
conference_shortSun Belt
founded
cityLexington
stateabbKY
stateKentucky
coachJohan Cedergren
tenure12th
stadiumWendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex
capacity3,368
nicknameWildcats
pattern_b1_blackstripes
leftarm1000000
body10000ff
rightarm1000000
shorts1000000
socks10000ff
pattern_b2_thinnavystripes
body2ffffff
rightarm2ffffff
shorts2ffffff
socks2ffffff
NCAAeliteeight2018
NCAAsweetsixteen2000, 2018, 2020, 2022
NCAAtourneys1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2025
conference_tournamentMAC: 1999, 2000, 2001
C-USA: 2018, 2021
SBC: 2022
conference_seasonMAC: 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004
C-USA: 2015, 2018
SBC: 2022

C-USA: 2018, 2021 SBC: 2022 C-USA: 2015, 2018 SBC: 2022

The Kentucky Wildcats men's soccer team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of the University of Kentucky (UK).

Since the Southeastern Conference (SEC) does not sponsor men's soccer (minimum four schools needed to sponsor a sport, only two offer it), the team has been associate members of other conferences. From 1995 to 2004, it was a member of the Mid-American Conference. In 2005, UK moved men's soccer to Conference USA, creating a rivalry with fellow SEC member South Carolina, which had rejoined the reunified conference that season. Both UK and South Carolina remained in C-USA men's soccer through the 2021 season, after which both programs left for the newly reinstated men's soccer league of the Sun Belt Conference.

In 2018, Kentucky went 17–1–1 with wins against #6 Louisville and #2 Indiana, both by a score of 3–0 at home. They finished 7–1 overall in conference play with their only lose coming on the road at FIU 2–3. The Wildcats won the C-USA Regular Season and Tournament Titles. They were the #3 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, their highest until 2022.

In 2022, Kentucky finished the regular season at 14–0–5 with wins against #10 Louisville and #21 Lipscomb at home, both by scores of 3–2. They also tied against #20 Tulsa in Tulsa 1–1 and #7 Marshall in Lexington 1–1. All four of these games took place in a two-week span from September 6 to September 20. They finished 5–0–3 and Sun Belt Regular Season and Tournament Champions. They were awarded the #1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, the first time in school history.

The school has two major derbies, one in-state and one in their primary conference.

  • Governor's Cup: Against in-state rival Louisville, the traditional all-sports rivalry between Louisville (ACC) and Kentucky (SBC).
  • Big 12/SEC Challenge: A four-way Sun Belt Conference rivalry among the four associate members whose conferences do not sponsor the sport. West Virginia and Central Florida, members of the Big 12 Conference in other sports, form the "Big 12" half of the four-way derby.
    • SEC Derby: The Southeastern Conference side of the four-way derby, Kentucky's game against South Carolina, while neither are regarded as major SEC rivals in other sports, the two schools are the only SEC members that sponsor varsity men's soccer teams, which forms a conference derby. UK left the Mid-American Conference after the 2004 season when South Carolina rejoined the reunified Conference USA, in which it had last been a member in 1994 (when it was the Metro). The two schools moved men's soccer together to the Sun Belt Conference for 2022. Both schools have referred to the rivalry as the Southeastern Conference Men's Championship.

Notable former players

  • Indonesia Cyrus Margono
  • Finland Ilkka Jäntti
  • United States Andy Gruenebaum
  • Canada Riley O'Neill
  • Canada Michael D'Agostino
  • United States Barry Rice
  • Hong Kong Leon Jones
  • England Jason Griffiths
  • Canada Callum Irving
  • Lesotho Napo Matsoso
  • United States JJ Williams
  • United StatesZambia Aimé Mabika
  • United States Brett Smith
  • United States Jansen Wilson

Honours

  • Mid-American Conference tournament
    • Winners (3): 1999, 2000, 2001
    • Runners-up (1): 1996

References

References

  1. "Annual Standings". Mid-American Conference.
  2. (April 6, 2022). "Sun Belt Conference Announces Return of Men's Soccer This Fall". Sun Belt Conference.
  3. (2 November 2016). "#13/12 Kentucky to Conclude Regular Season at South Carolina".
Info: Wikipedia Source

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