Shikuku’s Late Strike Sends UOE Into KUSF Quarterfinals

A last-minute goal by Sheila Shikuku secured a crucial 2-1 victory for the University of Eldoret (UOE) over Meru University, sealing their place in the quarterfinals of the ongoing Kenya Universities Sports Federation (KUSF) National Ball Games playoffs at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA).

UOE, who had suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat to Zetech University in their opening match, needed nothing short of victory to keep their qualification hopes alive—and they delivered under pressure.

Lina Kimuma gave UOE an early lead in the 10th minute of the first half. However, Meru University responded after the break, with Sarah Odhiambo leveling the score at 1-1. Just when the match seemed headed for a draw, Shikuku stepped up with a powerful right-footed strike into the left corner in the dying minutes to hand UOE a dramatic win.

Head coach Josphat Pilishi praised his squad’s resilience, noting steady improvement since their performances at the regional level.

“My young squad has been improving steadily since the Rift Conference and the Taita Taveta playoffs. After losing the opening match, this was a must-win game. Now that we are in the quarterfinals, we are ready for the next challenge,” said Pilishi.

UOE will now face the winners of Pool A, which includes JOOUST, JKUAT, Multimedia University (MMU), and Taita Taveta University (TTU).

Defending champions Maasai Mara University were held to a 1-1 draw by DeKUT.

Rugby 15s Finals Set

Attention now shifts to the rugby 15s category on Saturday following the conclusion of league matches. Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT) will face the University of Nairobi (UoN) in the 5th-place playoff.

Hosts CUEA will take on UOE in the 3rd-place match, while Maseno University will clash with Moi University in the final to determine the gold medal winners.

Cooperative University women was impressed on their national debut, beating Rongo 14-10 before falling 25-21 to Pwani. Captain Eljireha Zanita expressed confidence in their title ambitions.

In men results, Rongo 17-14 Cooperative, Kenyatta University (KU) 29-09 Pwani, Meru 13-10 JKUAT, JKUAT 19-11 UoN, Meru 15-13 Kabarak.

In other men netball results, Egerton 22-12 Machakos, UOE beat Meru 16-11 and Pwani 22-8, KU 22-10 Meru, Kisii 32-02 AIU; lost 12-17 to JKUAT, Tharaka 15-12 KAFU; 13-08 UoN.

In women netball results, UOE were 24-13 winners over Chuka, KU beat Chuka 31-09, TTU 20-06 win over Africa International University (AIU), Meru 19-12 Egerton and MMUST 29-09 UoN

Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) maintained an unbeaten run in both men’s and women’s categories.

Cooperative University staged a remarkable comeback in women’s volleyball, recovering from two sets down to defeat Moi University 3-2 in a thrilling match that lasted 1 hour and 50 minutes (14-25, 18-25, 25-15, 25-23, 15-09).

In other matches, UoN beat UOE in straight sets (25-17, 25-16, 25-15), defending champions MMUST defeated Kirinyaga University 3-1