Sept. 4, 2010
Box Score |
UK-Virginia Tech Boxscore (.pdf)
WINSTON-SALEM, NC – It was a tale of two halves for the UK women’s soccer team (3-0-0) as they scored two second half goals en route to a 2-1 upset of No. 15 Virginia Tech (2-3-0) in the ACC/SEC Challenge.
After being outplayed in the first half and falling behind 1-0, UK head coach Jon Lipsitz didn’t talk to his team about soccer at halftime, but about being better teammates.
“We didn’t talk about soccer too much at halftime. Of the 15-minute halftime, 14 minutes and 30 seconds was about who we were as teammates. In athletics, you’re going to win and you’re going to lose games, but the type of teammate you are and how hard you fight for one another and the way you support one another on and off the field is what it’s really all about for us at Kentucky women’s soccer; that’s what we care about the most.
“I just felt that we weren’t fighting in the first half. I felt like we were getting pushed around, nothing dirty, just physically man handled. I felt like we weren’t giving great effort for one another and if you’re not giving your best effort, you’re not a great teammate. I’m really proud of them, because in the second half, not only did we play incredibly hard and we were amazing teammates, but our bench was so loud that people on the field could not hear me. I’ve never been involved in a game like that. Every player, on the field, off the field was an amazing teammate and did everything they could to help this team in the second half and that’s what it’s all about with us.”
UK senior goalie Sydney Hiance was put to the test immediately in the third minute of the match. Virginia Tech took a corner kick that was placed perfectly in front of the goal where the Hokies got a shot off, but Hiance was there for a deflection.
Tech kept the pressure on nearly a minute later when Marika Gray got a solid head on the ball, but bounced it off the near post. Kentucky countered in the eighth minute when Caitlin Landis controlled a loose ball, dribbled towards the top center of the 18-yard box and fired a shot that Hokie goalie Dayle Colpitts was able to pull in.
The Hokies broke through in the 17th minute on a goal from Kelsey Billups. Billups took a pass from Katie Cramp near the top right of the 18-yard box and fired a shot into the left upper 90 of the goal for a 1-0 Tech lead.
The goal was the first surrendered by the Wildcats this season, ending their shutout streak at 196:33 minutes, the longest scoreless streak to open a season in program history.
Kentucky evened the scoring in the 50th minute off Jenna Goblirsch’s first goal of the season. Virginia Tech was whistled for a foul just outside the 18-yard box. Natalie Horner took the kick and chipped a soft ball into the middle of the box where Taylor Parker knocked it over to Goblirsch, who put it in the back of the net for the equalizer.
The Wildcats took a 2-1 lead in the 61st minute on transition goal by Landis. Alyssa Telang stole the ball at midfield and took off, sending a ball through to Landis who dribbled and put a shot to the right of a diving Colpitts for the score.
The Cats played lock down defense for the remainder of the match in getting off to their best start since the 2002 season when Kentucky started off 3-0 as well. UK’s best start was the 2001 season when the Cats won their first seven games.
The Wildcats close out weekend action on Sunday, taking on host team and 14th ranked Wake Forest at 2:00 p.m. Live stats will be available at UKathletics.com. Live streaming will also be available on Wake Forest’s premium site, http://wakeforestsports.cstv.com/allaccess/.
UK Game Notes
— While UK’s defensive scoreless streak ended at 196:33, it was the longest such streak to open season in program history.
— Jenna Goblirsch’s goal was the first by a UK returnee this season.
— Senior goalie Sydney Hiance recorded her 200th career save.
— Hiance lowered her career GAA to 1.22.
— The Wildcats have won their last two games against ranked opponents. UK defeated No. 13 LSU last season 1-0.
— At 3-0 Kentucky is off to its best start since opening the 2002 season 3-0.
