ORLANDO – On a humid Sunday afternoon at UCF Soccer and Track Complex, the UCF Knights defeated the Kansas Jayhawks 1-0 on a penalty kick goal in the 84th minute by Katie Bradley.
UCF improved to 7-2-0 on the season with the win and 3-0-0 in Big 12 play. Kansas dropped to 3-3-5 and 0-2-1 in conference action, playing its fifth straight road game.
“The game is cruel sometimes,” Head Coach Mark Francis said. “I thought we deserved way more out of the game. That was hands down our best game of the year on both sides of the ball. Defensively, we did a fantastic job of executing our game plan. We made it hard for them to build and play what they wanted to play. At the other end, we generated some quality opportunities.”
The coach continued: “There are so many positives to take out of this. Again, the result did not go our way, but we’re finally at home next week and we have to build off this. If we can continue to play like this on both sides of the ball, we’re going to get results. We have to recover now and get ready for (Baylor) Thursday.”
Kansas generated offensive opportunities the entire game and that began early in the first half. Redshirt junior Brie Severns received a pass in stride in the box and struck the crossbar. Kansas dominated possession and had quality chances early on in the match. At the half, the game was scoreless and each team had seven shots.
Similar to the first half, the Jayhawks came out with sustained pressure in the second. KU outshot UCF 8-4 in the period, but no shots found the back of the net. For the game, Kansas held a 15-11 edge on shots. Severns and Magali Gagné led the Jayhawks with three shots apiece.
UCF broke through on the scoresheet in the 84th minute after a foul in the box led to the penalty kick opportunity. Melania Pasar dove the right direction, but the shot by Bradley went past her outstretched arms for the lone goal of the game. Pasar made five saves in the match.
UP NEXT
Kansas returns to Lawrence to face Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. CT. The match at Rock Chalk Park is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
Season tickets and individual tickets for the 2023 season are on sale now. Season tickets cost only $55 and includes all nine regular season home matches at Rock Chalk Park. Single-game and season tickets can be purchased here or by calling the Kansas ticket office at 785-864-3141. Single-game tickets will also be available to purchase at the ticket window at Rock Chalk Park on gamedays, beginning one hour prior to kickoff.
