No. 5 Kentucky Falls 2-1 in Overtime at Charlotte
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Despite leading for over 62 minutes of action, No. 5 Kentucky (10-1-4, 2-1-4 Conference USA) suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of Charlotte (9-5, 4-3 C-USA) in the final seconds of overtime on Saturday at Transamerica Field.
Saturday’s loss snapped a program-best 14-game unbeaten streak to open the season.
The Wildcats got off to an aggressive start, scoring in the 24th minute off a counterattack by Luke Andrews that blew through two Charlotte defenders. Kentucky entered halftime with a 1-0 lead, as well as a 6-1 shot advantage that included a 3-0 edge on goal.
The 49ers regrouped after the break, outshooting the Cats 7-4 in the second half. Charlotte’s Joe Brito equalized the match in the 86th minute, sending the contest to overtime shortly after. Brito assisted Preston Popp’s golden goal with only seven seconds to go in the first period of extra time.
C-USA Defensive Player of the Week Jan Hoffelner allowed just his third and fourth goals of the season in his first loss in a Kentucky uniform.
Saturday’s slugfest was the fifth matchup in the last seven between Kentucky and Charlotte to be decided in overtime.
Kentucky is set to return home for senior night in its regular season finale against Florida Atlantic (8-5-2, 2-3-2 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.
