Kansas soccer sets 2018 schedule

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Four reigning conference champions, eight 2017 NCAA Tournament participants and 10 teams coming off seasons with 12 or more wins is just a taste of what the 2018 Kansas soccer team will face in its upcoming fall schedule that was released Wednesday. Fans will have plenty of opportunities to come root on the Jayhawks with 11 home dates scheduled for the fall, which includes five home games against Big 12 opponents.
 
SEASON TICKETS
The Jayhawks are set to play in their state-of-the-art facility at Rock Chalk Park for the fifth season in 2018. Kansas smashed its single-game attendance record last season and finished among the NCAA’s top-50 in average home attendance for the fourth-straight year. New for the 2018-2019 season, Kansas Athletics is introducing the Rock Chalk Card which includes general admission seating for soccer, women’s basketball, baseball and softball. The Rock Chalk Card includes an option to upgrade to women’s basketball reserved seats. 

Williams Education Fund members earn five points per Rock Chalk Card with a minimum purchase of two cards up to 20 priority points. Fans can purchase the Rock Chalk Card by going to KUAthletics.com and accessing the Tickets tab or by calling the ticket office at 800.34.HAWKS.
 
EXHIBITION
The Jayhawks will once again host an exhibition match prior to the start of the regular season. Kansas will welcome in the Colorado State Rams on Sunday, Aug. 12 for a match at 1 p.m. Last year, CSU finished 4-10-5 and 2-6-3 in the Mountain West.
 
NON-CONFERENCE
The Kansas coaches have once again constructed a non-conference schedule that is sure to challenge their team over the first five weeks of the season. Five of the Jayhawks’ 10 out-of-conference opponents ended their 2017 campaigns inside the top-60 of the year’s final RPI ranks and includes six teams that finished among the top-three of their respective league’s standings a season ago.
 
Kansas will face a stiff season-opening test when the Pepperdine Waves head to Lawrence to kick off 2018. Pepperdine is coming off a season that saw it go undefeated in the West Coast Conference en route to the league title. The Waves, who conceded just nine goals in all of 2017, advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The KU-Pepperdine match-up is slated for Friday, Aug. 17 at 7 p.m.
 
The opening weekend will conclude when South Dakota State takes the pitch at Rock Chalk Park on Aug. 19. The Jayhawks will face the Jackrabbits, who are the defending Summit League regular-season champions, for the fourth time in six years. Kickoff from Rock Chalk Park is set for 1 p.m.
 
Kansas will hit the road the following weekend to take part in the Husker Invitational at Nebraska’s Hibner Stadium in Lincoln. The Jayhawks will face a pair of Pac-12 teams as part of the four-team event, starting with the Oregon State Beavers on Friday, Aug. 24. KU and OSU met in Corvallis last season, a 2-0 Jayhawk victory. First touch is slated for 4 p.m. The trip to Lincoln will conclude with a 10 a.m., match against the Oregon Ducks on August 26. The Jayhawks and Ducks will meet for just the second time in the programs’ histories and for the first time since 2010.
 
A third-straight Pac-12 opponent will await Kansas upon its return to Lawrence the next week when the Utah Utes come to Rock Chalk Park on Aug. 31. KU hopes to exact revenge on a Utah team the handing the Jayhawks a 2-1 loss last season in Salt Lake City. The match is set to begin at 7 p.m.
 
Two days later, Kansas will welcome the Butler Bulldogs for a Sunday night match at Rock Chalk Park at 7 p.m. on Sept. 2. The Bulldogs are coming off a historic season that saw them earn the program’s first-ever at-Large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Butler ended its 2017 season with a 13-2-6 record and finished second in the Big East standings.
 
The Jayhawks will face their first true road test four nights later when they journey to play Cincinnati at the always torturous Gettler Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 6. The Bearcats, who ended 2017 with a 12-4-3 record and took third in the AAC, have lost just four matches on their home pitch in the last four seasons, which includes an unblemished 8-0-3 mark at home last year. Kansas and Cincinnati’s first-ever meeting is slated for 6 p.m. (CT). The two-game road swing will continue on Sunday, September 9 when the Jayhawks face Pittsburgh on the Panthers’ Ambrose Urbanic Field. KU will face a Pitt squad at 12 p.m. (CT), which is being led by first-year coach Randy Waldrum.
 
The final non-conference home match of 2018 will feature the Saint Louis Billikens on Friday, September 14. SLU is coming off one of its best seasons in program history a year ago when it posted a 15-3-2 record and finished second in the Atlantic 10. The Jayhawks pulled out a draw against the Billikens in St. Louis last season. First touch from Rock Chalk Park is set for 7 p.m.
 
A trip to a former Big 12 foe will await the Jayhawks on Sunday, September 16 to close out the nonconference portion of the schedule. The Texas A&M Aggies will host Kansas in a 1 p.m., match-up at Ellis Field. The Aggies were the SEC’s regular-season runner-up in 2017 and went on to claim the SEC Tournament title before advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. 
 
CONFERENCE
The Big 12 Conference schedule again appears to be a gauntlet that will provide the Jayhawks with a challenge in all nine outings. The league has elevated itself to among the top soccer conferences in the nation, seeing five or more of its squads advance to the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four seasons.
 
Kansas will see three-straight home matches to begin its conference schedule. The first will be a Sept. 21 match against Oklahoma. The Jayhawks are undefeated against the Sooners over the last three seasons, which includes a 3-1 KU win last year in Norman. First touch from Lawrence will be at 7 p.m.
 
On Sept. 23 the defending Big 12 Champion, Oklahoma State, will come to Rock Chalk Park. Kansas hasn’t suffered a loss to OSU in the last three meetings in Lawrence. KU will look to make it four-straight against the Cowgirls in the game set for 1 p.m.
 
Iowa State will close out the month of September when the Cyclones meet the Jayhawks on Sept. 28 at 7 p.m., at Rock Chalk Park. The Jayhawks are unbeaten versus the Cyclones in 10 of their last 11 meetings, and are 8-0-0 at home against ISU since 2000.

The first Big 12 road trip will be a new one for the Jayhawks as KU will make its first trek to Manhattan to take on in-state rival Kansas State on Friday, Oct. 5. The Jayhawks will try to even up the young series of the Dillons Sunflower Showdown after the Wildcats spoiled the inaugural meeting last season in Lawrence with a 1-0 win. Kick off from K-State Soccer Complex is slated for 7 p.m.
 
The following weekend will feature a pair of teams out of the Lone Star State making the trek to Lawrence. The TCU Horned Frogs and the Jayhawks will do battle on Oct. 12 inside Rock Chalk Park in the match set to begin at 7 p.m. The Texas Tech Red Raiders will be next on the calendar two days later on Oct. 14. KU will look to make it three-straight unbeaten results against the squad from Lubbock when it hits the pitch for the 1 p.m. kickoff in the regular-season home finale. The match will serve as Senior Day for five Jayhawks seniors: Lauren Breshears, Grace Hagan, Miriam Melugin, Alex Schweitzer and Kaycie Young.
 
Three-straight road games will then await the Jayhawks to close out the regular-season, all against squads that notched 14 or more victories and advanced to the third round or further in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. The trip will start with a visit to Waco, Texas on Oct. 19 to take on the Baylor Bears. Baylor, which was just a win away from the College Cup last season, will try to claim its first win over KU on its home turf since 2012. The Jayhawks will then head south to Austin for a 1 p.m., contest against the Texas Longhorns on Oct. 21. KU has won four of its last five meetings with UT, and has won each of the last two meetings with the Longhorns in Austin.
 
The regular-season finale is set for Thursday, Oct. 25 at 6 p.m. (CT), when the defending Big 12 Tournament Champion West Virginia hosts the Jayhawks in Morgantown.
 
BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
The Big 12 Soccer Championship will operate under a new format this season. The quarterfinal matches will be held Sunday, Oct. 28, at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Missouri. The semifinal matches will follow on Friday, Nov. 2, and the championship match will be held on Sunday, Nov. 4. The final three championship matches also will be held at Swope Soccer Village.
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