Wildcats Outlast UCF in 3-2 Thriller in Sun Belt Opener
LEXINGTON, Ky. – In the opening match of 2025 Sun Belt Conference play, the Kentucky Wildcats (4-0-2, 1-0-0 SBC) outlasted the UCF Knights (2-4-1, 0-1-0 SBC) in a thrilling, back-and-forth 3-2 win at The Bell on Friday night.
The Wildcats’ home unbeaten streak extends to 10 games with the win tonight over UCF, a team that was picked to finish one spot ahead of Kentucky in the SBC Preseason Coaches’ Poll prior to the start of the season, with the Wildcats picked fourth and UCF third.
Despite the final scoreline, the first half of play featured minimal scoring opportunities for both sides, with just five shots recorded by the Wildcats and three for the Knights. Forward Gustav Renman recorded the lone scoring opportunity for Kentucky in the opening half, a shot that forced UCF goalkeeper Juanvi Munoz into his first save of the night. After the first 45 minutes, a 0-0 scoreline would remain on the scoreboard heading into the halftime break.
After the intermission, the Wildcats broke the scoreless deadlock with 55th minute goal from Isaiah Chisolm, his first of the season, on a curling strike just beyond the 18-yard box, beating Munoz to the far-right corner of the goal to give Kentucky the 1-0 advantage.
Less than four minutes later, the Knights would draw level in the 58th minute with a goal by forward Lilian Ricol, coming off an impressive assist from midfielder Clarence Awoudor, evening the score at 1-1.
The back-and-forth affair would continue in the final half hour of play following a 60th-minute goal from Sinan Solmaz from his center-back position, blasting a Bains Smith cross and shot directly in front of goal into the top corner of the net, reclaiming a 2-1 lead for the Wildcats.
A scoreless 15 minutes passed before the third and final Wildcat goal of the night, scored by midfielder Bertil Alban, his third consecutive outing featuring on the scoresheet, in the 76th minute to extend the Kentucky lead to 3-1 with less than 15 minutes remaining.
UCF would later pull one back in the 85th minute Claudel N’goubou’s second goal of the season, applying some late pressure to the Wildcats’ defense with only minutes left on the scoreboard. Despite the one goal difference, the Wildcats wer able to see out a 3-2 win in front of the home crowd to close out the homestand and open Sun Belt Conference play with three points earned.
Both teams were able to control possession throughout the match, as well as the pace of play, in multiple areas of the pitch, resulting in 50-50% split in the possession department on the stat sheet. Kentucky outshot UCF 14-8, including a 7-5 advantage in shots on target. Tonight’s match also featured as the most physical battle of the Wildcats’ season thus far with 11 yellow cards being issued between the two sides.
Chisolm, Solmaz and Alban were the goalscorers tonight for the Cats, with Ruiz, Smith and Shreiner providing the assists, improving the team’s season goal tally to 11 to just four goals allowed on the defensive end. Goalkeepers Sebastian Conlon and Munoz both turned in impressive performances in goal, with Conlon recording three saves, improving his season total to 13, to Munoz’s four.
With the win over UCF tonight, Johan Cedergren, in his 14th season in Lexington, earns his 150th career win as the head coach of the Wildcats, boasting an overall record of 150-71-49.
With the five-match homestand now in the rearview mirror, the Wildcats will face a two-game road trip next week, starting with a matchup against the 12th-ranked Louisville Cardinals on Tuesday, Sept. 23 at Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium at 7 p.m. in Louisville, Ky.
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