Kentucky women’s soccer (7-2-0, 1-0-0 SEC) pulled off an upset at the Bell Soccer Complex against No. 20 Oklahoma (7-1-1, 0-1-0 SEC) by a score of 2-1.
Kentucky started slowly on offense, which allowed Oklahoma to control possessions for the first 20 minutes.
The Cats then took control of the match, creating several scoring chances and taking two shots on goal before the end of the first half.
The first half culminated in a hand ball penalty on the Sooners near the goal, leading to a penalty kick. This led to a goal in the 42nd minute, shot by sophomore Anna Sikorski to give Kentucky a 1-0 lead.
Kentucky wouldn’t look back for the remainder of the match.
The Wildcats continued their dominance into the second half with the offense immediately challenging the Sooners’ defense.
A perfect through pass from midfielder Catherine Rapp in the 51st minute allowed Tanner Strickland to score a one-on-one goal against the Oklahoma goalkeeper, extending the Wildcats’ lead to 2-0.
The Sooners struggled to fight back early in the second half, managing just two shots on goal that goalkeeper Khadijah Cissé saved.
Cissé was the lone goalkeeper for Kentucky in the match, marking the first instance of this since the 2-0 win against Detroit Mercy on Aug. 24.
Oklahoma had two more chances with a pair of corner-kicks but would be unable to turn them into scoring opportunities.
The Sooners’ offense ultimately scored its first and only goal of the match in the 82nd minute, moving the score to 2-1 with midfielder Juliette Rayo finding the back of the net.
However, with only eight minutes left in regulation, it was too late to mount a comeback.
The Cats held onto the 2-1 lead to win the match, securing their first win in conference play and first win against a ranked opponent this season.
“I think it was just a team effort. We all came together. I think we moved the ball well. We found what their weakness was out in the wide, playing in, and so we just took it and we scored,” Strickland said after the win. “We came in knowing what we needed to do. After our two losses, we knew, like, that wasn’t us, and we knew coming into this game, like, we’re gonna put our all.”
Kentucky will return to action on Thursday, Sept. 17, at 6:30 p.m. EST. The Cats will travel to Athens to face off against the No. 24 Georgia Bulldogs (5-2-2, 1-0-0 SEC). The game will be streamed live on SEC Network+.
