Women's Soccer

On a night that was supposed to be celebrating Vanderbilt seniors, it was UK senior Megan Jones that was doing the celebrating as she scored the match?s lone goal in UK?s (10-6-3, 4-6-1 SEC) 1-0 win at Vanderbilt (6-9-3, 3-5-2).

Kentucky drew first blood in the 23rd minute when Megan Jones scored her first goal of the season. Jones turned and took a shot at the top of the 18-yard box that was blocked by a Vanderbilt defender. Jones collected the ball and fired off another shot from about 22 yards out that arched over the outstretched arms of Vandy goalie Rachel Bachtel. It marked the fifth straight match that UK has scored the game?s first goal.

?It was a tale of two halves,? said head coach Warren Lipka. ?We played well in the first half with a lot of constant attacking and pressure. I thought Vanderbilt took it to us in the second half but we withstood their efforts. I have to compliment the defense and the backs and (Sydney Hiance) and Vanderbilt for their efforts in the second half.?

For the freshman goalie and the Kentucky defense, it was their second consecutive shutout but it wasn?t without a struggle. The Commodores outshot the Wildcats 19-1 in the second half and 22-9 for the entire match. However, while the shot margin was one-sided, the Commodores managed only one more shot-on-goal than the Wildcats, edging UK 4-3 in the category.

Kentucky has now gone 4-0-1 in their last five matches to play themselves into a position to make the 2007 SEC Tournament. Kentucky must now sit and await its fate with regards to the conference tournament as Vanderbilt travels to Florida to take on the Gators Sunday in a make-up match. Should the Commodores lose, the Wildcats are in the SEC Tournament for the 15th consecutive season. A Commodore win would end UK?s season.

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