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Not since 1996 has a men’s soccer team swept its Mid-American Conference games, and the feat has only been accomplished three times in the league’s history. When Akron and Kentucky square off at the UK Soccer Complex on Saturday, Nov. 3, each has a chance to become the fourth.

“Obviously, this is a very important match,” Coach Ian Collins said. “We want to win the regular-season title outright. We want to go undefeated. Those were both goals at the beginning of the season and we have the opportunity to achieve them. There is a lot on the line for both teams.”

At 5-0-0 in the league, the Zips (8-4-1 overall) and the Wildcats (10-5-1) are on the verge of making history. After sharing the title a year ago, UA is after its fifth consecutive MAC title, while UK is looking for its second. In the past four years, this matchup has decided the champion, with the Cats finishing second from 1997-99 before splitting the title last season. In 1998 and 1999, Kentucky completed MAC play with just one loss – to Akron.

Now, UK has a chance for its first perfect league season.

Also up for grabs is the MAC Tournament’s No. l seed. Getting the top spot in the league is always important, but this season in the MAC, it is vitally important because it gives the team bearing the coveted title a bye into the semifinals. Taking the No. 1 seed into the title game also means hosting the championship a week later, a scenario the Cats prefer in their quest for a third straight MAC Tournament Championship and NCAA berth.

But what about a tie? If UK and UA are deadlocked at 5-0-1, they will share the regular-season crown, but the Cats will walk away with the No. 1 seed based on goal differential in the league.

Kentucky got off to a solid start this year with a 2-1-1 record that included a narrow defeat at No. 4 Indiana and a tie with No. 13 Ohio State. Disappointing losses to area-rivals Xavier, Louisville and Cincinnati dampened the Cats 2-0-0 MAC start, putting the team at 4-4-1 overall. At the time, many wondered what, if anything, was wrong with this team.

“This is a program that has seen expectations raised the past few years,” Collins said. “We sat down as a team and reevaluated our goals and recommitted ourselves. It takes hard work and commitment. We expect to be, not hope to be, one of the top programs in the country. And that has paid off for us down the stretch.”

UK reeled off six straight wins with four shutouts, including a 1-0 decision over 15th-ranked Furman, to go 6-1-0 in the month of October. With renewed confidence and a strong desire to build on last season’s success, the Cats need just one more win to make history.

Kentucky will have to get that victory without the services of its leading scorer, John Monebrake, whose red card in his last outing requires him to watch from this stands this time out. His eight goals and 19 points are tops on the team. However, the Cats are not without firepower.

Five other players have tallied at least three goals this season, while 11 have scored at least once. Chris Soler came alive against Georgetown College for a school-record four scores and tallied the game-winner against Furman to push his season total to six. Ilkka Jantti and J.D. Stephenson, the core of UK’s strong defensive unit, each have four goals, while Nathan Fleetwood and Antti Peltonen have three apiece.

Enhancing the offensive efforts has been the solid play in goal from Kentucky’s two keepers. Brad Samelko played the first nine games of the season, surrendering just 10 goals for a 1.03 goals-against average. Since entering the lineup on Oct. 5, Greg Raber, a transfer from UNC Greensboro and this week’s MAC Player of the Week, has collected four shutouts while conceding just three goals for a 0.43 GAA. In the nation, only Colin Rogers of IU has a better GAA.

The Zips come to the Bluegrass led by Torbjorn Birkeland’s five goals and 11 points. Orjan Bjaneso and Tim Cooper have contributed four and three goals to UA’s cause this season. In goal, Kyle Milligan has played the last nine contests after missing four games with an injury. With 36 saves, he has given up eight goals for a 0.91 GAA and 8-1-0 record.

When the MAC coaches voted Kentucky the preseason league favorite with Akron in second place, they probably never imagined this regular-season finale would be this important. At 7:30 ET Saturday, the importance will show when those young men take the field and play for the MAC sweep.