No. 7 Kentucky Women’s Soccer (9-3-5, 3-3-4 SEC) took down the No. 10 LSU Tigers (8-7-3, 3-5-2 SEC) in the first round of the SEC tournament on Sunday, Oct. 29.
The match marked the first time the Wildcats had made it to the SEC tournament since 2020 after tallying 13 points during league play, the most since 2014, to secure their No. 7 seed in the bracket.
The game ended with a scoreless tie after two overtime periods, but the Cats took care of business in penalty kicks, winning 4-2.
Goalkeeper Marz Josephen stopped two of the Tigers’ penalty kicks while four Wildcats were able to find the net in order to secure the win.
The Wildcats led the attacking during the first half with six shots (two on goal) and four corner kicks.
The Cats went down a player early in the second half following center-back Maggy Henschler’s second yellow card, forcing them to adapt with only ten players on the field. Josephson carried
the team with six stops during the second half.
Defender Grace Phillpotts, recently named to the All-SEC Second Team, set up a near goal during the 86th minute where Úlfa Úlfarsdóttir headed the ball to Tanner Strickland, who nearly hit the back of the net, but the ball instead sailed over the frame.
Úlfarsdóttir was also named to an All-SEC team, making the first team, while Strickland was named an All-SEC Freshman herself.
Following two periods of scoreless overtime, the Wildcats and Tigers faced off in penalties. Úlfarsdóttir secured her goal, followed by a booming shot from Phillpotts. Josephson then made her first stop on the Tigers, putting Kentucky ahead 2-1.
Both keepers were successful during round three, but UK’s Maddie Eastman found the back of the net with her shot to secure the go-ahead goal.
LSU fought back with a successful goal, but the All-SEC honoree Jordyn Rhodes found her shot in the net to lock in Kentucky’s victory in its first overtime contest since Oct. 2021.
The Wildcats advance to the SEC Quarterfinals and look to continue their historic run against the No. 2 seeded Georgia Bulldogs on Tuesday, Oct. 31, at 1 p.m. ET, returning to play at the Ashton Brosnaham Soccer Complex in Pensacola, Florida.
