MATCH PREVIEW: at Northwestern

QUICK KICKS

• Kansas is coming off a 2-1 comeback win over Purdue in West Lafayette on Sept. 8. KU scored a pair of goals in the second half, with the game-winner coming off the foot of Kailey Lane in the 85th minute.
• The Jayhawks lead the series against Northwestern 3-1-0, with KU claiming victory in the last meeting in Evanston in 2010, 2-1.
  Kansas dropped seven spots but stayed inside the top-20 in the latest United Soccer Coaches’ poll. At No. 18, the Jayhawks were slotted in the top-20 for the third-straight week.
• Since 2014, the Jayhawks are 46-1-1 in matches in which they score two or more goals, this includes a 12-0-0 mark since the start of the 2018 season.
• The 2019 Jayhawks are the ninth Kansas squad to earn five victories through the opening six games of the season. A win Friday would mark the fifth It would mark the fifth time in program history a KU squad has won at least six games through its first seven matches.
• Katie McClure is out to a quick start to her senior campaign. Her seven goals and 17 points lead the Big 12 and rank her in the top-10 of the NCAA, while her four game-winning goals lead the nation.
• McClure is tops among active players in the Big 12 in career goals (29), goals per game (0.43), game-winning goals and career points (68).
• KU is 23-17-8 over the last five seasons in matches played away from Rock Chalk Park. The Jayhawks have posted a winning percentage of .500 or better every year in that span.
• KU’s defense has conceded just three goals through its first six matches of 2019 and became just the third Jayhawk team to allow two or fewer goals through its first six games of a season. Last season’s KU squad let only two goals in through its first six contests, while the 2004 team didn’t concede its first goal until its sixth match of the year.

STORYLINES

• HOT START HAWKS
  The impressive early performance to the 2019 campaign puts this year’s Jayhawk squad among just a handful of Kansas teams that have gotten their seasons off to a fast start. This bunch joins eight other KU teams that were also able to tally five or more victories in the first six games the season. This number includes four teams in the last six years.The Jayhawks’ early success bodes well for the bunch, as six of those past eight KU teams going on to make the NCAA Tournament and posting 11 or more victories. In three of those seasons, Kansas logged top-three finishes in the final Big 12 standings.
• ROAD WARRIORS
  With the Jayhawks set to continue their four-match road swing this weekend, they will look to continue their trend of relatively strong performances in matches away from Rock Chalk Park in the recent years. Kansas can hang its hat on an impressive record in road games over the past five seasons.KU has played 48 regular-season games away from home since the start of the 2014 season, amassing a record of 23-17-8, which included a 3-3-2 record last year. KU has posted a .500 record or better in regular-season road or neutral matches every year since 2014.
• McCLURE MINUTES
  Senior Katie McClure is already putting an emphatic stamp on an already outstanding career at KU, having already posted seven goals and three assists through her first six outings of the season. Last year saw her make headlines across the state, the region and the nation. She led the Jayhawks with 11 goals, seven game-winning goals, 28 shots on goal and 25 points, figures that ranked the Wichita product among the top-10 in the Big 12 in their respective categories.Just six matches into her career finale, she has already made big jumps on some impressive lists, creeping closer to inserting her name among the top offensive players in Jayhawk history. Her 29 career goals currently rank her second on Kansas’ all-time goal scorer chart. McClure’s 15 game-winning goals are the most ever for a Jayhawk.