Aug 23, 2013
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The No. 15/10 Wake Forest Demon Deacons came from behind to capture a 3-1 season-opening win over the University of Kentucky women’s soccer team on Friday Night at Spry Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C.
“First of all, you have to give a lot of credit to Wake Forest,” UK head coach Jon Lipsitzsaid. “We knew when we scheduled this game, we were coming down here to play one of the best teams in the country on opening night. I thought we played okay at times, but had mental lapses in other moments of the game.
“After we took the lead, we gave up a goal in the last five minutes of the first half, and in the first five minutes of the second half. We also gave up a lot of set pieces, which we know makes them so dangerous, and that was the difference in the game. It takes incredible focus for 90 minutes to beat a team like Wake Forest, and tonight, we didn’t have that.”
Kentucky took the lead in the game, when freshman Jade Klump collected her first-career goal in the 37th minute. Klump played a ball in from the left side when defender Stuart Popebroke through the Wake Forest defense from the left flank. Pope beat two defenders and slipped a through ball into the waiting boots of Klump who took an advancing touch before firing it past Aubrey Bledsoe.
The goal was Klump’s first-career strike, while Pope tallied her first point in over a year. The assist was the second in Pope’s career after striking for an assist in her freshman campaign in 2011.
Wake Forest responded just five minutes later, as Caroline Wootten netted a goal past Kayla Kingin the 43rd minute of the game. A through ball was played through the Kentucky defense into the top of the 18, and Wooten buried it near post to square the match.
No sooner had the teams emerged from the locker room in the second half, Wake Forest added another goal, as Riley Ridgik struck gold from 10 yards out in the 47th minute after receiving a cross from Katie Stengel. Stengel worked the ball down the left side before cutting back towards the net and sending a cross across the box to the feet of Ridgik who finished.
After a two-hour plus rain and lightning delay that halted play, the game continued shortly after 9:30 p.m. ET with Wake extending their lead in the 70th minute on a Jackie McSally goal off a corner kick from Katie Stengel. Stengel had a career-high three assists in the game.
The loss is the first for Kentucky under head coach Jon Lipsitzin a season-opening game, as UK was 4-0-0 in his previous four opening matches.
Kentucky will complete the opening weekend of play on Sunday afternoon, as the Wildcats welcome the Utah Utes to the UK Soccer Complex for a 1:00 p.m. ET match. The Utes come in 1-0-0, with a 2-0 win over the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers in the first game of the NCAA season on Friday afternoon.
For continuing coverage of UK women’s soccer, log on to UKathletics.com.
