Kentucky men's soccer star Max Miller makes Sun Belt Second Team All-Conference

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Kentucky men’s soccer is playing at its very best at the right time of the season. Lexington native Max Miller is a major reason why.

On Friday, it was announced by the Sun Belt Conference that Miller was named Second Team All-Conference by the league. The sophomore defender out of Bryan Station, who started all 16 games, leads Kentucky in assists this season with six, doubling his output from his freshman campaign.

“Max has stepped up as a leader and taken charge this season,” Head coach Johan Cedergren said in UK’s press release. “His maturity on the ball and with his teammates has been instrumental in our defensive success. I’m looking forward to his continued development and am very pleased with this conference recognition.”

Miller, who was tabbed to the Preseason All-Conference team ahead of the 2023 season, lived up to the hype in year two as a Wildcat. Earlier this week, he was also named to Top Drawer Soccer’s Men’s Team of the Week after posting an assist in Kentucky’s 1-0 upset win over No. 2 West Virginia last Friday.

S/o to the Lexington kid! 😸🏆

Max Miller has been named @SunBelt Second Team All-Conference, his first career postseason award! 🎉#WeAreUK | #GBED pic.twitter.com/tPFd0GppE8
— Kentucky Men’s Soccer (@UKMensSoccer) November 3, 2023

Miller has been a vital piece of Kentucky’s impressive late-season resurgence. After being named a top-10 preseason squad in the country, a rough start to the schedule saw the Wildcats sitting on a poor 3-6-1 record.

But something finally clicked over the last few weeks. It started with three consecutive draws before an upset win over No. 1 Marshall immediately turned into another upset over No. 2 West Virginia. Kentucky closed out the regular season with a 1-0 road win over Georgia Southern on Tuesday to win its third match in a row.

Looking ahead, Kentucky has plenty of momentum heading into this weekend’s Sun Belt Conference Tournament. The Wildcats’ strong push down the stretch moved them into the tournament’s fifth-seed where they’ll take on fourth-seeded James Madison on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. EST in Huntington, WV.