Jayhawks Breeze Past Iowa State, 2-0
AMES, Iowa – Sophomore Jessica Bush and freshman Shannon McCabe tallied goals, while goalkeeper Julie Hanley made a career-high nine saves for her fifth shutout of the season as the University of Kansas blanked Iowa State, 2-0 Friday evening at the ISU Soccer Complex.
The Jayhawks improve to 8-6 overall and 3-3 in the Big 12, while the Cyclones drop to 6-10 and 2-4 in conference play.
KU ended two ominous streaks in the win on Friday the 13th. The Jayhawks won a Friday evening match for the first time since defeating Alabama, 2-1 in overtime on Sept. 8. KU also scored multiple goals in a match for the first time since Sept. 17.
“It was a good result for us on the road,” Jayhawks head coach Mark Francis said. “It wasn’t a pretty game, but we found a way to win and that’s the important thing.”
KU broke out of a two-match scoring drought early in Friday’s contest. In the 15th minute, sophomore Jessica Bush cleaned up a Jayhawk corner kick for her third goal of the season.
The 5-foot-2 midfielder collected a Monica Dolinsky corner kick deep in the box and buried her second chance after ISU goalkeeper Ann Gleason had made the save on Bush’s initial shot. It proved to be the sophomore’s second game-winning goal of the season.
Later in the half, freshman Shannon McCabe extended the Jayhawk lead. McCabe made a long run down the far side of the field after senior Michelle Rasmussen had served her the ball from midfield. The first-year forward blasted a shot into the near corner of the net from 16 yards out to give KU its margin of victory.
The offense was more than enough support for goalkeeper Julie Hanley, who collected a career-high nine saves. The Cyclones peppered Hanley with 18 shots, but the sophomore keeper was equal to the task each time.
The nine-save effort was the most for Hanley since she made eight saves at Colorado on Oct. 16 of last season.
ISU held a slight edge in shots (18-16), while KU had 11 shots on net compared to just nine for the Cyclones. The teams tied with five corner kicks apiece. Bush led the Jayhawk charge with four shots, including three on net.
The Jayhawks will travel to Missouri for their final road match of the 2006 regular season on Sunday at 1 p.m.
KU Notes: Jessica Bush and Shannon McCabe remain the only Jayhawks to record goals in the conference season. Bush scored KU’s game-winner at Oklahoma on Sept. 24, while McCabe had the deciding tally in the 1-0 win over Nebraska on Oct. 1 … Bush’s goal ended a 297-minute KU scoring drought, dating back to the second minute of the Nebraska match … Julie Hanley recorded her fifth shutout of the season Friday. All three of her conference victories have come via a shutout.
