Sept. 4, 2002

This week, the University of Kentucky men’s soccer team moved up in the national polls – all of them. The Wildcats are currently ranked as high as 17th in the nation and no lower than 25th in any of the four polls, released by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), Soccer Times, Soccer America and College Soccer News.

In the two coaches’ polls, run by the NSCAA and Soccer Times, the Wildcats are ranked 19th and 17th, respectively. Soccer America and College Soccer News each release media polls, and have UK ranked 23rd and 25th. This marks the first time in the history of Kentucky men’s soccer that the Cats have been ranked in the Top 25 of all four polls.

Kentucky began the year ranked between 20th and 27th. In the Cats’ first action of 2002, they faced a pair of top-10 teams in the Virginia Soccer Classic. UK dropped its first match to fifth-ranked Virginia in heartbreaking fashion, with the Cavaliers’ game-winning goal coming in the 89th minute. Later that weekend, the Cats bounced back, defeating the 10th-ranked Maryland Terrapins, 2-1.

The Wildcats will test their mettle again this weekend when they travel to Furman in Greenville, S.C., to face Creighton and Butler. The Creighton Bluejays, runners-up in the 2000 NCAA College Cup, are currently ranked 19th by Soccer America. The Butler Bulldogs cannot be found in the polls, but last weekend they found the goal three times in a shutout of seventh-ranked Rutgers.