UK Women’s Soccer Tops Louisiana Lafayette, 5-0

LEXINGTON, Ky. – In dominant fashion, the University of Kentucky women’s soccer team posted a convincing 5-0 victory over Louisiana Lafayette on Thursday night at the Wendell and Vickie Bell Soccer Complex. 

With the win, the Wildcats improve to 2-0-1 on the season while the Ragin’ Cajuns fall to 1-2.

UK’s five goals is the most goals scored in a regular season game under head coach Ian Carry, besting the previous mark of four set on Aug. 29, 2019, at George Mason.

Kentucky jumped out to an early lead in the ninth minute when a clean pass from Miranda Jimenez slipped behind a Ragin’ Cajun defender to Marissa Bosco. Bosco found herself inside a one-versus-one situation with Louisiana keeper Libby Harper, but tucked it away with a shot to the lower right corner. 

UK struck again in the 33rd minute after a through ball from Maria Olsen connected with Hannah Richardson, leaving UK once again face-to-face with Harper. Richardson then fired a shot into the lower left corner of the net to double Kentucky’s lead.

The Wildcats benefited from an own goal in the 57th minute before extending their lead to four just over 10 minutes later. Holding off a pair of Ragin’ Cajun defenders, Ulfa Ulfarsdottir sent a cross from the right side to Jordyn Rhodes, who tapped it into the lower right side. 

In the 88th minute, Gretchen Mills’ long ball from midfield found Richardson, setting her up for her second goal of the day. With no defenders in sight, Richardson’s shot slipped past Harper to put Kentucky up 5-0 in the game’s final minutes. It was the first multi-goal game of Richardson’s career. 

Just as it was on offense, Kentucky was a force on the defensive side. UK’s backline limited Louisiana to nine shots throughout the entire match, including just three in the first frame. The Wildcats tallied 21 shots in total and held a 2-0 advantage in corner kicks. 

Richardson paced the Wildcats with five shots, including four on goal, while Olsen and Rhodes both recorded four shots. In net, Laura Nielsen made two saves with Harper concluding the match with nine.  

The Wildcats will look to continue their momentum heading into a matchup with No. 15 South Florida on Sunday, Aug. 29. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET at the Corbett Soccer Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

For the latest on the Kentucky women’s soccer program, follow @UKWomensSoccer on Twitter and on Instagram, on Facebook, and on the web at UKathletics.com.