The University of Kentucky’s men soccer team (3-4-1) will face one of the toughest teams on its schedule Wednesday night, and it happens to be a team that’s only 70 miles away. The University of Louisville is coming to Lexington not only as an archrival but also as a top-ten team carrying an undefeated record.

UK will be playing a familiar role in the rivalry: underdog. Last season UK played the underdog role to no avail. The Cats lost at Louisville 1-0 last season.

The Cards (5-0-2) have been using a blend of solid defense and offense to climb up to No.8 in the NSCAA Men’s Top 25 poll. The Cards rank in the top third in nearly all offensive and defensive categories in the 16-team Big East.

The Cats however, rank in the bottom half of most offensive and defensive categories in Conference USA. UK has yet to score more than three goals in a game, but working in the Cats’ favor is momentum. UK just beat one of the best offensive teams in the NCAA  when it took down Evansville 2-1 in overtime.

UK’s offensive attack has been led by some of the younger members of the team. Freshman forward Tyler Riggs has been one of the most outstanding freshmen in C-USA while junior defender Sam Brooks connected on his first career goal to win the game versus Evansville.

Louisville, on the other hand, has an exciting rookie of their own. Freshman midfielder Dylan Mares was named Big East Rookie of the Week after his game-winning goal against Providence Saturday.

While the Cats and the Cards seems to be relatively close in distance, the teams have gone in different directions so far this season, but with a top-ten team coming to town, the Cats can turn it around quickly with a win.