Jayhawk Soccer Drops No. 7 Clemson to Remain Unbeaten

LAWRENCE, Kan. – For the first time in program history, Kansas soccer defeated a top 10 opponent as the Jayhawks dropped No. 7 Clemson, 3-1, on Saturday at the Selected Kickoff Classic in Greenville, S. C. With the win, the Jayhawks improve their best start in school history to 6-0.

No. 21 Kansas took the lead in the match’s first period, as senior midfielder Lauren Williams converted a free kick at the 31:43 mark to give the Jayhawks a 1-0 lead. KU doubled its advantage just over five minutes later, as junior Nicole Braman took a pass from Monica Brothers and put a shot past the goalkeeper for her first goal of the year. Clemson (5-1) battled back to get on the scoreboard late in the opening period, as midfielder Lydia

Vandenbergh was able to slip a shot past KU netminder Meghan Miller to cut the Jayhawk lead to 2-1. The goal was the first allowed by Miller this season and breaks her scoreless streak of 544:36 minutes, which dated back to the final game of 2003. In the match, Miller tied her season-high with six saves in the match.

In the second half, Kansas was able to get an insurance goal from Rachel Gilfillan to take a 3-1 lead. Gilfillan received a pass from Jessica Smith and fired a shot from the right side of the box for her second goal of the season.

“I thought that we played pretty well today,” said head coach Mark Francis. “We had a good game plan coming into the match and we were able to follow through on it. We had some really good challenges in the match and our girls did a good job of battling out there. I feel like overall this was a really good game for us.”

Kansas is back in action on Tuesday, Sept. 14, when it travels to Champaign, Ill., to take on No. 14 Illinois.