Women’s Soccer Opens 2015 with No. 20 Washington, SDSU
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of
Kentucky women’s soccer team will open the 2015 UK Athletics calendar year on
Friday night with one of just three top-20 matchups in the country on opening
night, followed by a match with the San Diego State Aztecs on Sunday at the Bell
Soccer Complex. Kentucky will open with Washington at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday
before a weekend capper on Sunday slated for a 7 p.m. ET first touch.
Both Friday and Sunday night’s matches will be
shown live on the SEC Network+, WatchESPN, the WatchESPN app and ESPN3 with
Neil Price calling the action from The Bell. The University of Kentucky women’s
soccer team will see unprecedented media coverage in the 2015 season, as the
Wildcats will see all of their games featured on SEC Network+, as well as
WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app. In addition to all 13 home matches being
available on SECN+, Kentucky’s entire SEC slate of matches, home and away, will
also be featured on SECN+. The 15 SECN+ matches are in addition to the three
already scheduled televised matches, which will remain the same, as the
Wildcats will face Ole?Miss, Wisconsin and Tennessee on the SEC Network.
Both matches this weekend are also “Back 2
School” matches, where fans who bring a school supply at the gate will be
admitted free of charge into the Bell Soccer Complex. All of the school
supplies donated will go towards the Lexington area’s Fayette County Family
Resource Center.
Kentucky
was picked to finish third in the 2015 Southeastern Conference season,
the league’s head coaches predicted in the annual coaches poll that was
released last week. Kentucky finished third a season ago in the SEC, matching
its program-best finish. With 140 points, Kentucky also received one
first-place vote. This year marked the first time under head coach Jon Lipsitz
that Kentucky has received a first-place vote.
The Wildcats lose Arin?Gilliland and?Stuart
Pope as starters from its Sweet 16 team a year ago due to graduation. Gilliland
was drafted?No. 8 overall in the 2015 NWSL?Draft by the Chicago Red?Stars, and
has already tallied two points (2A) on the season. Pope is entering her first
season in?pharmacy school.
UK lost to Washington 4-1 to open the 2014
season last August in the schools’ only other prior meeting. This will be the
first meeting for UK and SDSU since 1999.
Washington enters the 2015 season fresh off a
Sweet 16 appearance from 2014. The Huskies went 16-9-2 overall last season, and
finished with a 5-4-2 record in the PAC-12. UW went 7-4-2 last season away from
Seattle, and went 8-4-0 at home. Washington is under the direction of?Lesle
Gallimore, now in her 21st season with the Huskies – the longest tenure of any
coach in the PAC-12.
SDSU?enters Sunday’s game with a 15-5-2 record from a season ago, in
which they made the NCAA Tournament before falling to the California Golden
Bears 1-0 in overtime to end the season. The Aztecs finished 9-2-0 in
the?Mountain West Conference, and won the league with that mark before doing
the double and winning the conference tournament championship 1-0 in OT over
Wyoming.
2015 UK Women’s Soccer Opening
Weekend
Schedule:
Friday, Aug. 21 – Washington
vs. Kentucky – 7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+
Sunday, Aug. 23 – SDSU vs.
Kentucky – 7:00 p.m. ET, SEC Network+
Live Stats:
No. 16 Kentucky vs. No. 20 Washington
No. 16 Kentucky vs. San Diego State
Promotions:
Friday, Aug. 21 and Sunday,
Aug. 23 – “Back 2 School”, free posters, post-match autographs
Live Video:
Kentucky
vs. Washington
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s soccer team, follow @UKWomensSoccer on Twitter,
Instagram and Facebook, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
