Oct. 29, 2012

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Already honored on the College Soccer News National Team of the Week, Kentucky men’s soccer junior defender Steven Perinovic has been tabbed as the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week, it was announced by the league office on Monday afternoon.

Perinovic led UK to a 2-0 win at No. 23 Tulsa, with UK getting a shutout against a team that entered the game leading the league in nearly every offensive category and ranking No. 2 in the NCAA in goals scored. A native of Delafield, Wis., Perinovic has anchored the UK defensive unit throughout the year at center back, and has led UK to a 0.97 goals-against average in conference play.

In his career, Perinovic has played in 54 games with 48 starts, totaling one goal and two assists. His first career goal came as the game-winning tally in a win over East Tennessee State in 2012.

Kentucky (9-6-1, 4-1-1 C-USA) continued its blistering pace over the last 11 games with the win at the Golden Hurricane, with UK owning an 8-2-1 record during that stretch. The Wildcats entered the game with Tulsa sporting the top strength of schedule in the circuit (No. 13), the second-best NCAA RPI in the league (No. 18) and the second-most road wins in college soccer.

The Wildcats will return to action on Wednesday with a crucial conference matchup with Central Florida, set for 7 p.m. ET at the UK Soccer Complex.