No. 8 Kentucky Keeps Sixth Clean Sheet in Draw with No. 20 FIU
LEXINGTON, KY. – No. 8 Kentucky kept its undefeated record intact with its sixth shutout of the season, playing No. 20 FIU to a scoreless draw after two overtime periods in a Conference USA Sunday showdown in Lexington.
With the tie, the Wildcats move to 7-0-3 (1-0-3 C-USA) and the Panthers go to 7-1-2 (2-0-1 C-USA).
First-year Kentucky goalkeeper Jan Hoffelner faced 12 shots on the night, collecting four saves in the process. Robert Screen, Lucca Rodrigues, Luis Grassow and Mason Visconti helped preserve the clean sheet by playing all 110 minutes on the UK backline.
After trailing the shot count 8-6 in the first half, the Cats turned up the pressure following intermission with a 9-4 advantage in the second. Kentucky continued to bring the heat in extra time, outshooting FIU 3-0 over the two overtime periods. Each team finished with four total shots on goal.
Luke Andrews finished what would have been a miraculous game winner in the 89th minute before video replay confirmed the offsides call that negated the goal in real time.
Andrews and Daniel Evans ultimately fired three shots apiece, while fellow starters Screen, Rodrigues and Brock Lindow added two each. Reserve midfielder Casper Grening tried two shots of his own in his collegiate debut, while Grassow, Visconti, Marcel Meinzer and Martin Soereide each attempted one.
Team captains Meinzer and Bailey Rouse also did not miss a minute of action.
The draw was Kentucky’s third of the season, as well as its second consecutive in its head-to-head series with FIU. With six points and a 62.5% winning percentage, the Wildcats ended Sunday in a tie for fourth place in the C-USA standings. The Panthers are tied for second with seven points (.833).
Kentucky is set to hit the road for its next contest, traveling approximately 600 miles eastward to Norfolk, Virginia, for a conference matchup at Old Dominion (2-6-1, 0-3-1 C-USA) on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
Admission to all 2021 UK soccer matches at Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex is free to the public. For the latest on the Kentucky men’s soccer team, follow @UKMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKAthletics.com.
