Kentucky Men’s Soccer to Conclude Regular Season Saturday at Charlotte
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Kentucky will look to finish its regular season schedule with a bang when it travels to play the Charlotte 49ers on Saturday.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, and the match will be broadcast on the UNC Charlotte TV subscription streaming service.
The setup
Kentucky will enter Saturday’s match with a 2017 record of won 8, lost 5, drew 3 (4-2-1 Conference USA – 13 points).
Charlotte heads into the month of November with a record of W6, L4, D5 (2-1-4 C-USA – 10 points)
Florida International, which Kentucky drew 2-2 last Sunday, has already clinched the C-USA regular season title with 20 points.
This weekend marks the final Conference USA match day before the Conference Tournament, which is in Norfolk, Virginia, this year.
On 13 points, Kentucky can finish the league season anywhere from second to fifth in the league. With ODU (15 points), New Mexico (11 points) and aforementioned Charlotte (10 points) also jostling for position.
Seven teams qualify for the C-USA Tournament. FIU will have a first-round bye, while the other six teams will begin the Tournament in three quarterfinal matches next Wednesday.
The history
Kentucky is 2-4 against Charlotte all-time, but the Wildcats have won the last two matches in the series.
UK won 2-1 in a classic at Charlotte two years ago with Noah Hutchins scoring the winner from distance late in double overtime to clinch Kentucky’s first C-USA regular season title.
UK won in double overtime last season as well, that time at The Bell.
Kentucky outlook
Following a three-match losing streak, Kentucky hope to have found more stable form last week.
The Wildcats defeated B1G side Ohio State midweek via a late Hutchins winner, and then battled back from a goal down playing with 10 men to draw No. 8 FIU, 2-2, on Sunday.
Freshman goalkeeper Enrique Facusse is second in Conference USA in goals-against average (0.88). He’s the C-USA leader in GAA in conference games only (0.69).
JJ Williams has the team lead in points with 10 (three goals, four assists). Four Wildcats (Williams, Hutchins, Mikkel Pedersen and Stefan Stojkovic) are tied for the team lead with three goals apiece.
Kentucky has allowed 15 goals this season. UK allowed 16 goals in the whole of 2016, and 13 all of 2015.
Thirteen of Kentucky’s 19 goals this year were scored at home, where UK went 5-2-2.
Kentucky is 3-3-1 in road matches this year. That record includes a draw at a top-6 Louisville side and a loss at now No. 2/then-No. 1 Indiana.
Charlotte outlook
The hosts have scored 20 and conceded 19 goals this season.
The 49ers are 5-2-2 at Transamerica Field this year, and 1-1-1 in league games at home.
Daniel Bruce leads the team with five goals, four assists (14 points).
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