For the second consecutive year, the University of Kentucky men’s soccer team ended the season ranked No. 23 in the nation by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, the organization announced this week.

“This is a great testament to how much work our players and coaches put into this season,” Coach Ian Collins said. “The season didn’t really end the way we would have liked, but it is great to know that we are considered one of the top-25 teams in the country.”

Unranked heading into the postseason, the Cats toppled Mercer in the first round and took then-No. 5 Clemson to double-overtime before succumbing 1-0. The win in NCAA play was the first in school history and repeated UK’s second-round appearance from 2000. Last year, UK tied No. 9 Saint Louis in the first round, advancing on penalty kicks, before falling to No. 8 SMU, 3-1.

With a 14-6-1 mark in 2001, the Cats had their best season since 1995 when they finished 16-5-1. They won their first outright Mid-American Conference regular-season title with a perfect 6-0-0 record and captured their third consecutive MAC Tournament title. UK’s 125 points were second only to the 144 scored in ’95, while its 39 goals were third all-time behind 49 in ’95 and 41 in ’91. Kentucky’s 47 assists and 0.67 goals-against average were records, as well.

The Wildcats’ top player was senior Ilkka Jantti, who added to his ever-growing list of honors by being named to the College Soccer News All-America First Team this week. The MAC Player of the Year was also named to the NSCAA All-America Second Team and All-MAC First Team.

The first Finnish player to come to the Bluegrass, Jantti firmly etched his name in the UK record books over his career. His 79 games started ranks second all-time at Kentucky, while his 80 games played is third. He is 10th all-time with 10 goals scored, half of which he tallied this season, and 32 points. In four years, he has assisted 12 goals, good for sixth all-time, while his 89 shots are ranked sixth.