In the 2025-26 UK-U of L sports rivalry, Wildcats’ men’s teams let Kentucky down
Kentucky softball’s 12-8 comeback victory over Louisville in 10 innings Wednesday night was the last regular-season meeting scheduled between the intrastate rivals in the 2025-26 school year.
Barring an NCAA Tournament meeting between Cats and Cards in a spring sport, the competitive tally between the Wildcats and Cardinals for the current sports year is in the books: For the fourth time in the past five years, U of L has claimed the upper hand over UK in head-to-head meetings between the two.
Louisville men’s teams stand 4-2-1 against Kentucky in 2025-26.
The Cardinals’ men defeated the Wildcats in football, basketball and swimming and took one of two games vs. UK in baseball.
In addition to their baseball victory, the Kentucky men also won in tennis. This year’s UK-U of L men’s soccer match ended in a 2-2 tie.
On the women’s side, the Cats and Cards fought to a 3-3 draw overall. Kentucky won in basketball and volleyball, and UK and U of L split two softball games.
Along with their softball win, the Louisville women also won in swimming and in soccer. The latter was an especially consequential outcome because it came on penalty kicks in the NCAA Tournament.
For 2025-26, Louisville teams are 7-5-1 overall vs. Kentucky.
Over the past nine years, UK holds a 45-43-2 edge in head-to-head meetings with U of L.
Rivalry MVPs
The players and coaches who made the most dramatic impact on our state’s marquee college sports rivalry in 2025-26 were:
• Kentucky men’s sports rivalry MVP: Scott Campbell Jr., baseball. The senior outfielder, a transfer from South Carolina Upstate, had two hits, drove in a run and scored once to lead UK to a 4-2 win over U of L in Lexington on April 7.
• Louisville men’s sports rivalry co-MVP: Mikel Brown Jr., men’s basketball. The U of L freshman point guard electrified a sold out KFC Yum Center crowd of 22,586 with 29 points and five assists to lead the Cardinals to a 96-88 win over Kentucky on Nov. 11.
• Louisville men’s sports rivalry co-MVP: Braxton Jennings, football. With Jeff Brohm’s Cardinals without any available scholarship running backs due to injuries, walk-on Jennings, a true freshman from Ashland, carried the football 20 times for 113 yards to lead U of L to a 41-0 pasting of UK on Nov. 29.
• Kentucky women’s sports rivalry MVP: Eva Hudson, volleyball. The senior outside hitter, a transfer from Purdue, went for 17 kills and a then-career-best 21 digs to help No. 6 UK rally past No. 3 U of L 21-25, 25-21, 24-26, 25-11, 15-7 on Sept. 18.
• Louisville women’s sports rivalry MVP: Amelia Swinarski, soccer. In the NCAA Tournament opener between U of L and UK, the sophomore midfielder scored the equalizer in the 79th minute that ultimately sent the match to extra time tied at 1. Louisville went on to win via penalty kicks.
• Kentucky rivalry coach of the year: Craig Skinner, women’s volleyball. Skinner’s Cats went on the road and snapped a four-match losing streak vs. Louisville.
• Louisville rivalry coach of the year: Pat Kelsey, men’s basketball. The second-year U of L head man got on the board with his first victory in our state’s most-galvanizing rivalry by leading his team to a 96-88 win over UK on Nov. 11.
Tracking the trends in men’s sports
• Baseball: Louisville has won 15 of the past 21 meetings vs. Kentucky, although the Cardinals’ advantage is only 5-4 over the past six seasons.
• Basketball: Even with this season’s loss at U of L, Kentucky has won 14 of 18.
• Football: Louisville has won two straight by a combined score of 82-14.
• Soccer: After this season’s tie, the most competitively-balanced series in all the UK-U of L rivalry is 6-6-2 over the past 14 meetings.
• Swimming: Louisville has won 17 of the past 18 head-to-head meets with Kentucky.
• Tennis: Kentucky is 31-0 all-time against Louisville.
Tracking the trends in women’s sports
• Basketball: Since the arrival of Kenny Brooks as UK coach, the Cats have gone 2-0. Prior to Brooks, U of L had beaten Kentucky seven straight.
• Soccer: With this year’s NCAA Tournament win, U of L has won the past three meetings with UK. Inexplicably, the teams have now gone seven years without playing in the regular season.
• Softball: With this year’s split, Kentucky has won 13 of the past 16.
• Swimming: Louisville has won three straight.
• Volleyball: Kentucky’s victory snapped a four-match U of L win streak.
Rivalry questions for 2026-27
• In what will be the first Governor’s Cup head coaching matchup of former Trinity High School quarterbacks, can new Kentucky coach Will Stein flip the script on Louisville head man Jeff Brohm?
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• Can Mark Pope and UK men’s basketball prevent Louisville from winning at Rupp Arena for the first time since Jan. 5, 2008?
• Will Kenny Brooks and Kentucky women’s basketball seize full control of the rivalry with Jeff Walz and U of L by recording a third straight win?
• After snapping the four-match losing streak, can Craig Skinner and UK women’s volleyball back up this year’s win at Louisville with another victory over Dan Meske’s Cardinals?
