Kentucky men’s soccer returned to its winning ways in a thrilling 3-2 victory against Lipscomb in an encounter that looked almost unsalvageable for the home team early on.
Three days removed from a 4-2 defeat at the hands of in-state rivals Louisville, Kentucky looked to avenge what was only the program’s third regular season defeat in over two years.
The Wildcats were caught off-guard to begin proceedings as they found themselves 2-0 down in what, at the time, was a well-earned lead for the visitors.
Kentucky struggled to deal with the speed of opposition forward Malachi Jones, who found himself running through and behind the Wildcat defense with relative ease for most of the opening half.
Lipscomb only needed four minutes to open the scoring as Jones brushed past Kentucky’s defense before setting up teammate Tyrese Spicer for a straightforward finish.
The pair combined to add a second in similar fashion around the twenty-four-minute mark as the Wildcats continued to struggle with the visitor’s speed out wide.
Kentucky finally hit its stride in the opening stages of the second half as first half substitute—and the Wildcats’ brightest player on the night—Logan Dorsey chipped into the visitors’ lead with a quick snapshot that snuck between the legs of Lipscomb goalkeeper Juan Carlos Rodriguez.
Head Coach Johan Cedergren spoke postgame on his halftime team talk that ultimately sparked the comeback.
“‘Don’t worry about 45, let’s just get five minutes into the second half and we’ll take it in five-minute increments from there,’” he said.
A quick second shortly followed as the hosts equalized through a penalty won by Kentucky forward Isaiah Chisolm, which was neatly dispatched by teammate Aboubacar Camara.
Both sides threatened equally towards the closing stages before Chisolm went on to score what would be the winning goal after a smart cushioned header across goal from full-back Max Miller.
With the winner scored with only four minutes of normal time to spare, the home team was able to rally itself to a much-needed victory.
Cedergren attributed his team’s rough start to a lack of execution.
“Their three best players are their three attacking players,” he said. “We knew that, we game planned it and we didn’t execute in the first half.”
He also hinted that his team may be lacking confidence in certain areas due to recent results not going in its favor. He, however, was proud of the fight it showed to flip the game on its head and ultimately come away victorious.
“I think the guys are a little timid right now,” he said. “Hopefully this can be a step in the right direction with how we played in the second half.”
With the win the Wildcats now sit with a record of 3-2-0 as they prepare to host the South Carolina Gamecocks on Friday, Sept. 15, at The Bell Soccer Complex. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST.
