MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Nov. 14, 2024) – The West Virginia University women’s soccer team prepares to open NCAA Tournament play in the First Round against No. 5-seed Kentucky on Friday, Nov. 15. Kickoff at UK’s Wendell & Vickie Bell Soccer Complex in Lexington, Kentucky, is set for 7 p.m. ET.
Friday’s match will be streamed live on ESPN+, with Josh Braun and Gavin Colton on the call. Live stats also are available at NCAA.com.
West Virginia is set to make its 23rd NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 25 seasons in 2024. WVU earned an at-large bid for the first time since 2020 and will make its 23rd appearance all time. The Mountaineers are 23-20-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament action. Additionally, WVU has earned an NCAA Tournament bid seven times since 2015, which includes four trips to the Third Round during that span.
The Mountaineers’ most recent trip to the NCAA Tournament was in 2022, when they earned the Big 12 Conference’s automatic bid. West Virginia won its 18th conference championship, as well as its fifth Big 12 Tournament title, to claim the automatic bid. As the No. 7 seed, WVU hosted Virginia Tech in the First Round on Nov. 13, earning a 2-0 win over the Hokies. In the Second Round, WVU traveled to University Park, Pa., on Nov. 18 to take on No. 2-seed Penn State, but ultimately fell 4-0 to the Nittany Lions.
Friday’s contest marks just the fourth meeting all time between West Virginia and Kentucky, while it also is the first matchup between the two teams since 2013. WVU holds a 2-1 lead in the series, as well as a 1-0 lead in games played in Lexington. The two teams first met on Aug. 27, 2004, with the Mountaineers securing a season-opening, 3-2 win in double overtime in Lexington. Most recently, West Virginia suffered its first loss in the series on Sept. 15, 2013, falling 2-4 to the Wildcats in Morgantown.
Last time out, West Virginia dropped a double-overtime match in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Big 12 Championship, falling 1-0 to eventual Big 12 Champion Kansas inside CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Nov. 2. After the match was scoreless through the first 100 minutes of play, Kansas found the back of the net for the golden goal in the 101st minute. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Mackenzie Smith tallied eight saves in the loss, marking a new single-match career high for the Apex, North Carolina, native.
Troy Fabiano is in his third season as the head coach of the Wildcats, leading Kentucky to its best season in nearly a decade in 2024. Kentucky enters Friday’s First Round matchup with an 11-4-4 overall record, including a 3-3-4 mark in SEC play. The squad is coming off a 1-0 loss to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament Quarterfinals on Nov. 3. Makala Woods paces the Wildcat offense with 11 goals and 23 points, while Maddie Kemp leads UK with five assists. In goal, Marz Josephson has notched 33 saves and a 0.733 save percentage.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Friday’s match will be streamed live on ESPN+, with Josh Braun and Gavin Colton on the call. Live stats also are available at NCAA.com.
West Virginia is set to make its 23rd NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 25 seasons in 2024. WVU earned an at-large bid for the first time since 2020 and will make its 23rd appearance all time. The Mountaineers are 23-20-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament action. Additionally, WVU has earned an NCAA Tournament bid seven times since 2015, which includes four trips to the Third Round during that span.
The Mountaineers’ most recent trip to the NCAA Tournament was in 2022, when they earned the Big 12 Conference’s automatic bid. West Virginia won its 18th conference championship, as well as its fifth Big 12 Tournament title, to claim the automatic bid. As the No. 7 seed, WVU hosted Virginia Tech in the First Round on Nov. 13, earning a 2-0 win over the Hokies. In the Second Round, WVU traveled to University Park, Pa., on Nov. 18 to take on No. 2-seed Penn State, but ultimately fell 4-0 to the Nittany Lions.
Friday’s contest marks just the fourth meeting all time between West Virginia and Kentucky, while it also is the first matchup between the two teams since 2013. WVU holds a 2-1 lead in the series, as well as a 1-0 lead in games played in Lexington. The two teams first met on Aug. 27, 2004, with the Mountaineers securing a season-opening, 3-2 win in double overtime in Lexington. Most recently, West Virginia suffered its first loss in the series on Sept. 15, 2013, falling 2-4 to the Wildcats in Morgantown.
Last time out, West Virginia dropped a double-overtime match in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Big 12 Championship, falling 1-0 to eventual Big 12 Champion Kansas inside CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on Nov. 2. After the match was scoreless through the first 100 minutes of play, Kansas found the back of the net for the golden goal in the 101st minute. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Mackenzie Smith tallied eight saves in the loss, marking a new single-match career high for the Apex, North Carolina, native.
Troy Fabiano is in his third season as the head coach of the Wildcats, leading Kentucky to its best season in nearly a decade in 2024. Kentucky enters Friday’s First Round matchup with an 11-4-4 overall record, including a 3-3-4 mark in SEC play. The squad is coming off a 1-0 loss to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament Quarterfinals on Nov. 3. Makala Woods paces the Wildcat offense with 11 goals and 23 points, while Maddie Kemp leads UK with five assists. In goal, Marz Josephson has notched 33 saves and a 0.733 save percentage.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUWomensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
