KU Beats Baylor Bears, 1-0, to Open Big 12 Play

LAWRENCE, Kan. – University of Kansas freshman Jessica Bush’s first half goal lifted KU past Baylor, 1-0, Friday at Hummer Sports Park in Topeka, Kan. The Jayhawks improved to 5-3-1 on the season and 1-0-0 in the Big 12.

Junior Holly Gault set up Kansas’ only goal when she intercepted a Baylor pass near midfield. The defender tracked the ball down deep into the left corner of KU’s offensive zone and found senior Caroline Smith streaking into the box. The Edina, Minn., native juked a Baylor defender and slipped the ball over to Bush who one-timed the pass into the back of the net from 10-yards out.

The tally was Bush’s fourth of the season and her third game-winning goal. Caroline Smith and Gault were credited with the assist marking the third of the season for each.

“I thought we played fairly well but were a little inconsistent at times,” commented head coach Mark Francis. “The girls made a big improvement from last weekend’s performance. We are going to look to continue that momentum against Texas A&M on Sunday.”

Baylor had a chance to tie the match six minutes into the second half. KU’s freshman defender Jenny Murtaugh stopped a Baylor goal when she cleared a BU shot away from the open net.

Sophomore Colleen Quinn recorded her fourth shutout of the season. She made six saves to improve her record to 4-2-1.
KU out-shot Baylor 21-14 during the match The Jayhawks put 12 shots on goal led by Caroline Smith with four.

Kansas will face fellow 2004 Big 12 co-champion Texas A&M, Sunday at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex. The match will start at 1 p.m. The first 500 fans to enter will receive a free KU t-shirt.

Match Notes: The match was moved to Topeka Friday morning due to heavy rains in the Lawrence area … The match was originally scheduled to be played in Waco, Texas, but was moved to Kansas due to the threat of Hurricane Rita … Sara Rogers made her first career start, Rogers was one of five KU freshmen to start the match … The Jayhawks are now 1-1-1 in matches played at Hummer Sports Park this season … KU improves to 4-0-0 when leading at the half … All five KU victories this season have been shutouts … Bush tied Caroline Smith for the team lead with four goals … In the first half, Baylor had a sequence of five consecutive corner kicks.

For more post-match comments from Mark Francis, call the Kansas Soccer Hotline at (785) 864-7700.