Kentucky to Welcome Akron on Thursday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Following wins both at home and on the road to kick off its spring 2021 slate, Kentucky (7-1) is set to return to Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex for a non-conference matchup with Akron on Thursday at 4 p.m. ET.
Dick Gabriel will be on the call for ESPN+ in the Zips’ official season opener.
In their last outing, the revamped Wildcats escaped with a golden-goal finish on their first road trip of the calendar year and second overall since November 2019. Kentucky defeated Duke 1-0 in overtime last Friday, clinched at the 96-minute mark by Daniel Evans off assists from team captains Bailey Rouse and Marcel Meinzer.
Kentucky’s first of consecutive overtime matches was its 2-1 win over Xavier to open spring competition on Feb. 9, won by Eythor Bjorgolfsson with his first career penalty kick in the 97th minute.
Akron finished the fall 2019 season with a 6-10-2 record, ending a run of seven consecutive Mid-American Conference Tournament titles.
Kentucky and Akron spent a full 10 seasons as MAC rivals from 1995-2004, winning three conference tournament crowns apiece during the span. Kentucky’s last of three in a row came 20 years ago with a 1-0 win over Akron in double overtime, just two weeks after clinching the regular-season title with a 2-1 victory over the Zips in Lexington.
Akron went on to win 12 more MAC Championships since Kentucky left the league for its current Conference USA affiliation.
Admission is free to all spring 2021 soccer matches. To purchase a fan cutout of a person or pet, visit UKAthletics.com/FanCutouts. 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.
