DAYTON, Ohio — Playing in a Kentucky uniform for the first time in their careers, Kentucky men’s soccer freshmen Ellis Vienne and Tyler Riggs netted goals, with Vienne’s goal in the 85th-minute lifting the Wildcats to a 2-1 comeback win over Dayton in the first preseason exhibition game of the year, on Monday night at Baujan Field.
“We had a good opportunity to come out and play against someone else and get a game under our belt,” UK head coach Ian Collins said. “We played 25 guys against a tough Dayton team, which gave lots of guys a chance to play. Dayton exposed some weaknesses and we are going to use this game as a starting point. We have the opportunity to continue to get better every day. It was good to get two goals and to see two freshmen score. The game was something to build on throughout the preseason and we are looking forward to getting better on the practice field and throughout the preseason.”
Kentucky opened its 2010 season with the first of three preseason exhibition matches at Dayton on Monday night. The Wildcats fell behind after Dayton netted the first goal of the game in the 20th minute, as Jordan Beckett found Evan McCreary in the box.
The Wildcats answered the early Dayton goal behind its freshmen, as Riggs found the goal in the 50th frame, hooking up with senior defender David Harrison. Riggs, a native of Louisville, Ky., got a pass from Harrison inside the box, setting up UK’s game-tying goal.
Vienne, a native of Cornelius, N.C., played 20 minutes off the bench, finishing off the UK win in the 85th minute of the game played under modified time rules. Vienne, a 6-foot-3, 183-pounder, found the right corner of the goal from 25 yards out.
Kentucky got strong goalkeeper play from the four players contending to replace four-year starter Dan Williams. Tyler Beadle got the start, allowing one goal and saving a team-best two shots in club-high 30 minutes. Joey Peglow and Kevin Corby each played, with Corby saving one shot in his 14 minutes and Peglow logging 24 minutes. Junior Jonathan Guadarrama, a native of Santa Ana, Calif., saved one shot, playing the final 22 minutes in goal.
Matt Lodge, UK’s returning leading goal scorer, led UK with four shots, including one on goal. UK defender Jordan Rose charted three shots, with a team-best two coming on target.
As a team, UK totaled 15 shots to Dayton’s 17, with the Flyers registering seven corner kicks and the Wildcats four. UD goalkeeper Tyler Picard saved three shots while playing every minute in goal.
The Wildcats will return to exhibition action on Wednesday, traveling to Memphis, Tenn., for an international friendly against storied Brazilian Club Botofogo’s under-19 squad at 8 p.m. ET at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex. On Friday, UK will open its home schedule with the final exhibition game before the home opening-weekend invitational tournament, hosting Marquette at 1 p.m. ET at the UK Soccer Complex. Kentucky will open its regular-season on Friday, Sept. 3 with the annual University of Kentucky Invitational, hosting Eastern Illinois at 7:30 p.m. ET.
