Kansas Soccer Kicks Off Border Showdown with Trip to Missouri

Oct. 7, 2004

LAWRENCE, Kan. – The University of Kansas and the University of Missouri will renew their annual rivalry this weekend as the Jayhawk soccer team travels to Columbia, Mo., to battle the Tigers on Friday at 7 p.m. at the Audrey J. Walton Complex.

The Jayhawks (11-2-0; 3-1 Big 12) are coming off a big weekend, which saw them defeat Texas Tech and Baylor by a combined score of 8-0. Junior forward Caroline Smith scored three goals and collected two assists over the weekend. For her efforts, Smith was selected as the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week and named to Soccer America’s Team of the Week. Senior goalkeeper Meghan Miller continued her outstanding play this season as she collected her eighth shutout of the season in Friday’s 3-0 win over Baylor.

Head coach Mark Francis earned his 100th career coaching win on Friday. He now holds a career coaching record of 101-68-7 in nine seasons.

The Tigers enter this weekend with an overall record of 5-6-1 and a 2-2 mark in Big 12 play. The last time they took the field, the Tigers defeated their first ranked opponent of the year, downing No. 23 Colorado 1-0 in Columbia.

On the field, junior forward Jennifer Nobis leads the team offensively with five goals and three assists for a total of 13 points. Ten players have tallied goals this season for Missouri, but beyond Nobis the Tigers have no other players with more than one goal this season.

In net, freshman goalkeeper Laura Buehrig has seen all the action for the Tigers, as she has played all 1132:01 minutes in goal this season. The Needville, Texas, native has posted a 5-6-1 record and collected a 1.43 goals against average, while making 50 saves for a .735 save percentage.

Head coach Bryan Blitz is in his ninth season as the head coach of Missouri and has posted a 89-86-6 record at the school.