The ‘Wednesday wrap up’ series gives readers a broad look at the weekly activities of all UK Athletics programs, many of which do not often have their results put in print.

The series starts with a broad recap of all events, highlights three athletes who performed particularly well or notably and wraps up with a look at the week ahead and what’s to come.
The series runs weekly from Wednesday to Wednesday when the Kentucky Kernel goes to print.

This week in results:

The past week of results had ups and downs for Kentucky programs.

Basketball:

Most anticipated of all events was the annual Big Blue Madness event, which introduced fans to the new mens and womens basketball programs as they prepare for the 2022-2023 season.

Football:

Moving into results, and not far behind the Madness in anticipation, Kentucky football bounced back after two-straight losses to defeat No. 16 Mississippi State 27-17 at home. The win marked the second victory over a ranked opponent this season for Kentucky.

Cross Country:

Kentucky mens and womens cross country also finished tenth and third respectively in the Panorama Farms Invitational in Virginia. The event concluded the regular season for both teams as they now seek to claim victory in the postseason.

Golf:

Kentucky womens golf had a week to remember, winning the Ruth’s Chris Tarheel Invitational in North Carolina, marking back-to-back tournament victories for the program. The Invitational marked the final fall event of the season, with the team not returning to competition until February.

Soccer:

Kentucky mens soccer had a week to forget, needing two consecutive late-game equalizers to remain undefeated on the season after entering the week ranked No. 2 overall and No. 1 in RPI. The men first drew No. 22 Dayton 2-2 at home before reaching a 3-3 draw on the road against West Virginia after allowing three-straight Mountaineer goals.

Kentucky womens soccer, on the other hand, reached a much more meaningful draw on Sunday, tying Florida 1-1 for the first point in conference play under first year head coach Troy Fabiano.

Rifle:

The reigning national championship winning rifle team also found itself victorious on Saturday, defeating NC State 4693-4617 to remain undefeated on the young season.

Volleyball:

Finally, Kentucky volleyball defeated Ole Miss 3-1 on Wednesday, improving to 6-1 in SEC play after starting out 0-1.

Three stars for UK:

With so many wins and positive results, picking just three standouts was not the easiest of feats to accomplish, but three athletes stood out for their impacts on their respective teams.

1. Will Levis, football

While maybe low hanging fruit, it was impossible to not include Levis as a standout from the week.

Seeing how the program seemed to slow down to a halt against South Carolina in his absence, his return seemed to help the program against No. 16 Mississippi State.

Beyond just that, his triumphant re-return after being injured against the Bulldogs sent Kroger Field into a frenzy and sparked a huge surge for Kentucky to overcome a 10-6 deficit and ultimately beat a top 20 team by two scores.

His willingness to make his team successful regardless of the circumstances just goes to show why he is such an important piece for this Kentucky football team.

2. Madison Jones, womens soccer

While it could be argued that other stars such as Hannah Richardson played an overall better game against Florida, it’s undeniable that Jones recorded one of the most important goals of the season for this Kentucky womens soccer team.

UK has struggled in conference play for years, having not won more than one SEC game in a season since 2017 (3-7).

With former head coach Ian Carry let go after a disappointing 1-0 loss to LSU on ‘senior day’ last season, current head coach Fabiano was brought in to steer the ship in the right direction.

While Kentucky is unlikely to secure two or more conference wins this season, earning a point in his first year at the helm is a notable accomplishment, and that all comes back to Jones’ goal on Sunday afternoon.

3. Kentucky womens golf team

Breaking the rules a bit, the entire womens golf team earn the final star for UK Athletics.

The team made history last week, winning the Illini Women’s Invitational, marking the first time in two years that the team has won any golf tournament.

Now, one week later, the Cats swept the Ruth’s Chris Tarheel Invitational, finishing first after day one and holding the position to win the event.

The wins mark a potentially historic turnaround after the womens golf team finished 14th and ninth, positions many had gotten used to seeing in the years prior, to start the season, making the two wins even more impressive.

The Tarheel Invitational wrapped up the fall schedule for the women, meaning fans will have to wait until February to see if the winning ways can be maintained.

The week to come:

With another week in the books, the next week looks to provide even more opportunities for success for Kentucky’s programs.

Starting today, the mens soccer program takes on Coastal Carolina at home, seeking a fourth conference victory and an end to the streak of draws.

Womens soccer plays just one day later on Thursday, Oct. 20, traveling to Columbia to battle Missouri, who was the only team the Wildcats managed to beat in conference play last season.

On Friday, the swimming and dive teams return to action after a week off, taking on NC State in Raleigh.

Saturday sees four competitions, with football on a bye week, as the volleyball team starts a two-game series at Texas A&M, the mens and womens basketball teams host their respective blue-white games, with the mens version taking place in Pikeville, and the mens soccer team returning to action on the road in a highly anticipated matchup against No. 20 Indiana.

Sunday sees two more events with the volleyball team wrapping up its series against Texas A&M and the womens soccer team hosting Georgia.

With Monday and Tuesday being the fall break for the University of Kentucky, the events on Sunday will be the last to count for the next Wednesday Wrap Up as no other competitions take place prior to Thursday, Oct. 27.