By Jocelyn Kronoveter —
Louisville men’s soccer came out with a 3-0 victory against No. 9 Kentucky, marking the Cardinal’s first win under head coach John Michael Hayden.
After tying Cleveland State last weekend 2-2, Louisville was looking to put a win on the board against the rival Cats.
Junior Emil Elveroth scored the opening goal just two minutes into the game, giving Louisville a head start.
A goal by Louka Masset off of a penalty kick helped jump start the Card’s 2-0 lead against the Cats.
Coming out with a lead at half-time, Louisville headed into half-time with confidence.
“We were confident, some of the things we had discussed came off, application was there, the guys applied it. There was an urgency and intensity about what we were doing and it led to goals early,” Hayden said.
“It’s all about mentality. When you’re up 2-0 after a match against Cleveland State, there’s a drop. We took our foot off the pedal, there was a lack of just overall mentality. It was clear we were not going to let that happen again tonight.”
Louisville started the second half with a red card on junior Elijah Amo. Despite this, the Cardinals were able to shut out Kentucky for the rest of the game man-down.
Senior Cherif Dieye then scored his first goal of the season with four shots on goal.
“From this perspective, it’s awesome. It’s what we need. This group is special, the win against Kentucky is just the beginning for this group,” Hayden said.
Dieye shared his opinion on the win against Kentucky with humor.
“This was just karma,” Dieye said. “The team was more aware this time around of what we had to do, we showed a great mentality, especially in the second half after we had a player down.”
Louisville’s strong start at the beginning was a way for the team to make a bold statement against a team they lost 3-0 against last year.
Louisville men’s soccer will play against Virginia Tech at Lynn Stadium Sept. 20 at 7:30 p.m.
Photos by Anna Claire Will / The Louisville Cardinal
