Kentucky, Vanderbilt Set to Face Off on Thursday at the Bell
LEXINGTON, Ky. – After a week away from the pitch, the University of Kentucky women’s soccer team resumes game action against defending Southeastern Conference champion Vanderbilt on Thursday, Oct. 7. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET at the Wendell and Vickie Bell Soccer Complex.
Admission to all matches at the Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex will be free to the public for the 2021 season. For those unable to attend in person, the game will be carried on SEC Network+ with Dave Baker and Payton Atkins on the call.
Those in attendance are encouraged to wear pink in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Fans and community members are also encouraged to donate school supplies for a back-to-school drive organized by UK men’s soccer captain Bailey Rouse. Donation bins will be located at the stadium for all remaining men’s and women’s matches.
Seeking its first conference victory of the season, Kentucky enters Thursday’s contest with a 6-5-2 record on the year and are 0-4 in league play. The Wildcats are coming off a 1-0 loss at Mississippi State on Sept. 30 after dropping a 2-1 decision to South Carolina on Sept. 26 despite Jordyn Rhodes’ ninth goal of the year.
Rhodes continues to lead the Wildcats in several categories: goals (9), assists (5), points (23), shots (43), and shots on goal (21). Her nine goals and 23 points thus far both rank second in the conference while her 43 shots sit in fourth. She is also tied for the fifth-most goals scored in the NCAA so far this year.
Hannah Richardson is right behind Rhodes with eight goals — good enough to be tied for third in the league and sixth in the nation — and paves the way for UK with a trio of two-goal games on the year. The dynamic duo of Rhodes and Richardson have combined for 17 goals so far this season, which ranks fourth nationally for top scoring duos.
Between the posts, Laura Nielsen has recorded 51 saves and owns a .797 save percentage to rank second and fourth, respectively, in league standings. Kentucky is tied for fifth in the SEC with 13 goals allowed, with Julia Grosso, Sara Makoben-Blessing, Marie Lynge Olesen, and Peyton Rimko starting every match as staples on the Wildcats’ back line.
Vanderbilt will arrive in Lexington at 5-5-2 on the season, including a 2-1-1 mark in conference action. The Commodores are coming off back-to-back SEC shutout wins against Alabama, 3-0, and Missouri, 5-0. The program is led by Darren Ambrose who has amassed a 75-44-13 record in his seven years as the head coach.
Leading the Commodores is Raegan Kelley with a team-high seven goals, 15 points, 32 shots, and 17 shots on goal. Madison Elwell has dished out five assists and tallied two goals for nine points while goalkeeper Kate Devine has recorded 39 saves for a .750 save percentage.
Vanderbilt is the defending conference champion, having bested Arkansas, 3-1, in the SEC title game a season ago.
Thursday will be the 36th meeting between the Wildcats and Commodores in program history. Although Vanderbilt holds a slight 18-15-2 edge in the all-time series record, Kentucky leads with a 8-7-1 mark for matches played in Lexington.
The last meeting between the two teams was last year’s season opener on Sept. 20, 2020, in Nashville where Kentucky suffered a 3-2 loss. Rhodes scored both of UK’s goals less than 60 seconds apart in the 33rd and 34th minutes while Marissa Bosco tallied one assist.
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.
