Nov. 13, 1999
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The 13th-ranked University of Kentucky women’s soccer team will play hostto No. 11 Texas A&M on Sunday, Nov. 14, at 1 p.m. in the second round ofthe 1999 NCAA Tournament.
UK (16-2-2) is making its fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament sincethe program began in 1992. The Cats, who own a 16-game unbeaten streakcoming into Sunday’s showdown with the Aggies, are 0-3 in three previousNCAA Tournament appearances with all three losses coming in the first round.
The Cats tied Georgia 1-1 in the first-round of the SEC Tournament on Nov.4, but the Bulldogs advanced 2-1 on sudden death penalty kicks after twoscoreless overtime periods.
“We have worked very hard to get to this point and this is what it is allabout,” UK coach Warren Lipka said. “Texas A&M is one of the top teams inthe nation, and it is very important that we dictate the temp early in thematch. If we can get an early goal on them, it will help our confidencegrow as the match progresses.”
Texas A&M (16-4-1) is led by junior forward Nicky Thrasher, who has scored19 goals, including six game-winners, and tallied 10 assists for the Aggiesthis season, both team-highs. The El Paso, Texas, native has also recordeda team-high 126 shots. Thrasher led the Big 12 Conference this year ingoals, points, and shots.
Senior goalkeeper Melanie Wilson has a goals-against average of 0.58,while posting eight shutouts this season. During Wilson’s four-year careerin College Station, Texas A&M is 63-2 when the Aggies score more than onegoal when she starts in goal. The Aggies are also 104-5-1 in school historywhen they score more than one goal.
UK and A&M have two common opponents this season, Vanderbilt and Nebraska.The Cats defeated Vanderbilt 5-2 in Nashville on Oct. 10, while UK fell toNebraska 5-1 on Sept. 5 in Lexington. The Aggies defeated the Commodores5-1 on Sept. 19 in the adidas College Classic. Nebraska clipped A&M 1-0 inCollege Station on Oct. 1.
Tickets are available at the UK Soccer Complex. Admission is $5 for seniorcitizens (65), children under 12, and college students with an ID. Adulttickets are $7.
The winner of the UK-Texas A&M match will advance to the third round ofthe NCAA Tournament to face the winner of the Nebraska-Minnesota match nextweekend.
