Aug. 28, 2008
LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky men’s soccer team will open its 2008 season with the annual University of Kentucky Invitational, beginning Friday with a 7:30 p.m. ET matchup with Central Arkansas, at the UK Soccer Complex.
The Wildcats will kick off the 2008 season following the tournament-opening game that pits Detroit vs. Evansville at 5:00 p.m. ET.
UK had a pair of solid showings in its two exhibition games, playing a total of 24 players and getting two goals at Dayton in the first preseason tune-up. On Saturday, Kentucky dominated No. 15 West Virginia at the UK Soccer Complex, firing a total of 16 shots to the Mountaineers two. Several times during the game, UK narrowly missed taking the lead, including a Marco dos Santos shot that teetered on the edge of the goal-line before a defender cleared it away from the net.
The Wildcats are led by its trio of captains, including preseason All-America defender Barry Rice, junior midfielder Jason Griffiths and junior goalkeeper Dan Williams. Rice, the preseason Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year, returns after leading UK in nearly every statistical category in 2007, including goals (7) and points (15). Rice’s three game-winning goals ranked tops in the conference. Masumi Turnbull, a senior midfielder from Richmond, British Columbia, joined Rice as a coaches preseason All-C-USA team.
Several newcomers have made a significant impression in the preseason, including dos Santos, a freshman forward from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Dos Santos finished with a total of three shots in the performance vs. WVU. Fellow freshman forward Taylor White led UK with four shots on goal, while newcomer junior Sam Vernalls totaled thee shots.
In addition to a talented group of newcomers, UK returns several experienced veterans including junior defender Reid Baker, senior midfielder Bingy Lara, sophomore defender Stephen Beiro, senior midfielder Chad Hagerty, senior forward Tim Crone, junior midfielder Issam Sawtarie, senior forward Michael Strong, sophomore midfielder C.J. Tappel, sophomore midfielder Jirijoonas Kanth, sophomore midfielder Tyler Burns, sophomore Lucas Carden and senior goalkeeper Grant Ward.
Kicking off the season will also be a wide variety of promotions, including the Kids Zone, featuring inflatbles, 3 v. 3 field games and face painting. In addition, the game will serve as UK Student Night, where all Kentucky students receive free admission.
The UK Invitational will continue on Sunday, when Evansville and Central Arkansas play at Noon, and the Wildcats face Detroit at 2:30 p.m. ET.
