By David Schuh

Soccer is a game of opportunities. It’s a game made up of no more than five legitimate scoring opportunities per game. Take advantage of those moments and you win. Fail to execute, and you lose.

For UK junior forward Kelsey Hunyadi, that’s what drives her to work hard every day.

“I didn’t realize last year how much my injuries held me back,” Hunyadi said. “So, I stayed here this summer for summer conditioning and that helped tremendously. I had to demand more from myself in order to get to the level we play at each and every game.”

After playing at Louisville her freshman season, Hunyadi transferred to UK and had an immediate impact, recording 19 points in last year’s 10-win season.

This season has seen many milestones set by the Cats (10-4-0, RPI No. 10), and Hunyadi has been a big reason.  In 14 games, she has 23 points, which is sixth in the SEC, one of the best conferences in women’s soccer.  To put that in perspective, no UK player has had that many points in a season since 2006.

“The exciting thing in watching her is how dynamic she is,” UK head coach Jon Lipsitz said. “She takes a lot of risks, some good and some bad, and that’s the fun of it. But, the biggest reason for her success is her attention to detail. When we work on something in practice she does a great job of translating that to the playing field.”

All those accomplishments aside, Hunyadi will be the first to give others the credit. While she has scored or assisted on 60 percent of her team’s goals, she knows it takes 11 players to win a game.

“The only reason I’ve had success is the team’s commitment to attacking,” Hunyadi said. “We generate a lot of offensive opportunities.  I think the team’s work ethic together is what has made us so much better this year.”

“This is a new phase of our program’s history,” Lipsitz said. “We’re trying to elevate ourselves to heights that we haven’t seen in many years.  And ever since Kelsey got here, she has been a huge part of that.”

The UK women’s soccer team has reached extraordinary heights this season. Progress like that can only be achieved through a cumulative, team effort.  But, sometimes a game comes down to just one play. Sometimes all it takes is one player to rise to the occasion for their team.  And with Kelsey Hunyadi leading the offense, those moments are beginning fall the Cats’ way.

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