Women’s Soccer Hosts No. 25 Alabama For Friday Night Showdown
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Winners of two of its first three Southeastern Conference matches for the first time since 2014, Kentucky (8-3-0, 2-1-0 SEC) will host No. 25 Alabama (8-2-1, 2-1-0 SEC) for its lone match of the weekend on Friday, September 26. Kickoff from the Bell Soccer Complex is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and the match will be streamed live on SEC Network +.
The Wildcats enter their fourth match of conference play in waters unchartered for over a decade, already holding six points in the conference table. After claiming victory over No. 20 Oklahoma in the SEC Opener—a feat not done by the Wildcats since 2015—Kentucky bounced back from a 1-0 loss at No. 21 Georgia by knocking off Missouri at home last Sunday. A win on Friday would match the highest conference win total by a Troy Fabiano-led Wildcat squad, equaling the three won in both 2023 and 2024.
The match against Alabama also marks the fourth time in the last five matches in which Kentucky has faced a ranked opponent. The Wildcats are 1-2 in those matches, with a win over No. 20 Oklahoma and defeats to No. 20 Ohio State and No. 21 Georgia.
In the Cats’ most recent match, Kentucky escaped a match against Missouri with a win after an 89th-minute penalty kick from freshman Gabi Poretto, her second goal of the year. Tanner Strickland drew the decisive foul with a little over 90 seconds to play, her fifth penalty drawn this season. Freshman goalkeeper Khadijah Cissé picked up her first career SEC shutout in the win.
The Wildcats and Crimson Tide are set to meet for the third consecutive season, with Kentucky claiming victories in each of the last two meetings. The Wildcats won 2-1 against a top ten Alabama side at home in 2023 and earned a 2-0 win in Tuscaloosa a season ago.
The Wildcats will play two matches next week, traveling to Gainesville to play Florida on Thursday, October 2 at 7 p.m. ET before returning home to host No. 13 Vanderbilt on Sunday, October 5 at 1 p.m. ET. Admission to all 2025 Kentucky Soccer regular season home matches will be free to the public.
For the latest on UK Women’s Soccer, follow the Wildcats on Facebook, Instagram, X and at UKathletics.com.
