Coming into its first SEC match of the 2024 season, Florida faced an uphill battle against No. 20 Kentucky. Nevertheless, Florida put together a strong defensive performance to keep the Wildcats At bay, albeit at the cost of a limited amount of offensive momentum.
The Gators (3-1-5, 0-0-1 SEC) came away with a 0-0 draw against the Wildcats (8-0-1, 0-0-1 SEC) on Thursday night, snapping the latter squad’s eight-match win streak. In a match that proved to be a defensive stalemate, Florida ended up with its second consecutive tie and fifth on the season.
Thursday’s match proved to be a physical one, with Florida racking up 16 fouls on the night to Kentucky’s eight. UF senior midfielder Lauren Donovan was hit with a yellow card for unsporting behavior in the first period, but otherwise, the Gators avoided any major flare-ups.
Neither squad managed to get themselves into much of an offensive rhythm on the night. Florida failed to land a shot on goal at any point in the match. Meanwhile Kentucky recorded just two shots on goal, both of which were saved by UF graduate student goalkeeper Alexa Goldberg.
Kentucky did have its fair share of opportunities to strike throughout the evening, tallying nine corner kicks and seven total shots. Nevertheless, the Gators managed to keep the opposition at bay, limiting Kentucky to just two total shots and one shot on goal in the second period.
With its SEC schedule slate now in full effect, Florida will remain on the road this coming weekend for a match with No. 6 Auburn at 3 p.m.
Contact Jack Meyer at jmeyer@alligator.org. Follow him on X @jackmeyerUF.
Jack Meyer is a fourth-year journalism major and the Assistant Sports Editor for The Alligator. In his free time, he enjoys reviewing music, spending time with friends, playing video games and going to the gym.
