Men’s Soccer Welcomes Kentucky, Travels To SIUE This Weekend

Saturday, September 2

Memphis, Tenn.

2:00 PM

University of Memphis

Kentucky

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Men’s Soccer Welcomes Kentucky, Travels To SIUE This Weekend

Sep 01, 2017 | Men's Soccer

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Saturday’s match against Kentucky has moved to 2 p.m. at the Park Avenue pitch

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis men's soccer team will welcome the Kentucky Wildcats Saturday afternoon before hitting the road for a match against SIUE Monday evening. Kick-off against the Wildcats is set for 2 p.m. on the Park Avenue pitch and at 7 p.m. against SIUE in Edwardsville, Ill.

MATCH INFORMATION:

Saturday, September 2
Memphis vs. Kentucky
Location/Time: Memphis, Tenn. – 2 p.m.
Venue: Billy J. Murphy Track & Soccer Complex
Twitter Updates: @MemphisMSoccer
Live Stats | Watch $

Monday, September 4
Memphis at SIUE
Location: Edwardsville, Ill. – 7 p.m.
Venue: Ralph Korte Stadium
Twitter Updates: @MemphisMSoccer
Live Stats | Watch

"After not reaching the goals we set for ourselves last week, we are really excited about getting back on the field with two tough games this weekend," said head coach Richard Mulrooney. "It's a great opportunity to right the ship and get us ready for conference starting in a few weeks."

The Tigers have opened the 2017 season with an 0-1-1 record with a double-overtime tie against Belmont and a setback to UAB in the home opener. Against the Bruins, redshirt-senior goalkeeper Jake Leeker recorded a career-high nine saves including one in the final minute of regulation to force the match into overtime.

In addition to Leeker, two players in Ben Roberts and Justyn Thomas have played in every minute of action. Roberts and Thomas are newcomers for Mulrooney's squad and help solidify the back line.

The match against SIUE begins a streak of five straight matches on the road for the Tigers. In that span Memphis will play UMKC, Missouri State, Cincinnati, and Northern Kentucky. Memphis returns hom on Sept. 30 to take on Temple in the first of three conference matches at home.

A Look At Kentucky
Kentucky has started the season off with back-to-back overtime victories against Marquette and East Tennessee State. The Wildcats have combined to score three goals in the first two matches, led by Stefan Stojkovic's two goals on just four shots taken.

Ten players for the Wildcats have started in both matches and goalkeeper Enrique Facusse has played in every minute thus far. Facusse is responsible for nine saves and a 0.44 goals against average.

Against Kentucky, Memphis is 4-5-4 all-time with ties in two of the last three matches. The last time Memphis played Kentucky was in 2015 when the Tigers forced a tie with the No. 15 team in the nation.

Johan Cedergren is the head coach of the Wildcats and enters into his sixth season at the helm of the program. In 2015, he led Kentucky to a Conference USA Regular Season Championship and followed that up with the program's first NCAA Tournament national top-16 seed in 2016.

A Look At SIUE
With Michigan State and Syracuse on the schedule to open the year, SIUE is off to a 0-2 start. Against Syracuse, the Orange scored late in the match to break a 1-1 tie.

The goal scored in the setback to Syracuse was the first score of the season for SIUE. Lachlan McLean was credited with the goal while Jorge Gonzalez tallied the assist. Kyle Dal Santo has seen all 180 minutes in goal so far this year and has recorded two saves.

Memphis is 6-5-1 all-time against SIUE. The Tigers have won two of the last three matches, but are 0-5 on the road against the Cougars.

In its first season in the MAC, SIUE was picked to finish second in the preseason poll. The Cougars finished last year with a 10-5-7 overall record including a setback to Memphis early in the year.

Follow the Tigers
For more information on the Memphis men's soccer team, follow the Tigers on Facebook at /MemphisMSoccer and on Twitter and Instagram at @MemphisMSoccer. Admission is free for all home matches.