LEXINGTON ? When the Kentucky men?s soccer team hosts Mid-America Conference foe Marshall on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the UK Soccer Complex, the Wildcats will be putting a trio of impressive streaks on the line.
Since dropping its first two games of the season to top 20 teams, Kentucky (4-2-1, 1-0 MAC) has gone unbeaten in its last five and has not given up more than one goal in that span. The run has come mostly at home, where the Wildcats have stretched their unbeaten streak to eight, which is one short of the school record.
?On a Friday night, our fans have been great to us and that always helps. It?s just a fun place to play,? said coach Ian Collins. ?We?ve got a great complex and I think that helps. I?d like to keep the streak going. I think everybody in the MAC wants to knock us off and be the one to dethrone us. But there?s no doubt that its fun to play at home.?
Kentucky is also riding a seven-game win streak in MAC play dating back to the beginning of last season. In that span, no team has managed to score a goal on the Wildcats, who have a 633 minute, 10 second shutout streak in conference action.
?We go into every game with the mentality that we want to shut the team out and Friday will be no different,? said Collins. ?But, we didn?t shut out anybody over the weekend, so it?s important that we get back on track. We?ve got to settle down and defend better to play our best.?
Marshall (3-3) has won three of its last four outings, including a 3-2 victory over Cleveland State this past weekend. The Herd is also the last MAC team to win in Lexington, scoring a 2-1, double-overtime victory over Kentucky in 2002.
?Marshall is very well coached and very passionate. It?s going to be tough — every conference game is a battle,? noted Collins. ?They have a couple special players up front and some guys that are very dangerous. We?ve had squeaky games with Marshall over the years and this will be no different. We?re going to have to be prepared to play and have the right mentality to play.?
Kentucky owns a 9-4-1 record all-time in the series and has won three of the last four, including last year?s 1-0 overtime win in Huntington, W.V.
The first 200 students in attendance will receive a free UK koozie.
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