Kansas Battles West Virginia in Quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship Saturday

Kansas (10-5-4, 6-4-1 Big 12) vs. West Virginia (12-4-2, 8-2-1 Big 12)
When	Saturday, Nov. 2 at 5:15 p.m. CT*
Where	Kansas City, Mo. // CPKC Stadium
Watch	ESPN+
Live Stats	Stats
Game Notes	Kansas \| West Virginia \| Big 12
Tickets	Buy Tickets
Social Media	@KUWSoccer \| @kansassoccer \| Facebook

*The game time was adjusted to 5:15 p.m. CT due to the potential for inclement weather.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – No. 6-seeded Kansas will take on No. 3-seeded West Virginia in the quarterfinals of the Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championship on Saturday at 5:15 p.m. CT at CPKC Stadium. The game was originally scheduled for 8 p.m. CT, but the time was adjusted to 5:15 p.m. CT due to the potential for inclement weather.

"The growth that our team has shown from the first day until now is satisfying, but I think we still can continue to get better," head coach Nate Lie said. "West Virginia beat us earlier in the year and the great thing about the conference tournament is that we get another opportunity against them to earn a different result. They are a really talented and well-coached group. We're going to need to play our best if we want to advance past Saturday."

Kansas (10-5-4, 6-4-1 Big 12) took down Arizona State by a score of 2-1 on Wednesday night in the first round of the tournament. The victory was the fifth in a row for Kansas and it's now the longest winning streak since the 2019 season. It also marked the 10th win of the season, which is also the most since 2019.

All-Big 12 First Team selections Lexi Watts and Caroline Castans scored the goals in the win against Arizona State. Castans scored the game-winner for the second straight match after never having a game-winning goal in her career. She also was named to TopDrawerSoccer's Women's National Team of the Week on Oct. 29 and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 28.

Jillian Gregorski, Saige Wimes, Kate Langfelder and Makayla Merlo all recorded assists in the game on Wednesday. The Jayhawks have 33 assists as a team this season. That is the most assists since 2019. Gregorski was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team earlier this week when postseason honors were announced.

Castans and redshirt freshman goalkeeper Sophie Dawe also were recipients of the final Big 12 weekly awards earlier in the week.

ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA
West Virginia (12-4-2, 8-2-1 Big 12) finished the regular season conference schedule with a record of 8-2-1 to finish in third place in the standings. The Mountaineers have not played since Oct. 25 and have won three of their last four matches, including wins against Baylor, Colorado and Houston. Ajanae Respass and Taylor White each lead the team with seven goals this season. Mackenzie Smith has started 16 games in goal this season and has posted a 1.09 goals against average.

SERIES HISTORY
Kansas and West Virginia have a series that dates back to 2012 when the Mountaineers joined the Big 12. West Virginia has a 10-3-2 advantage in the series. However, Kansas is 3-3-2 in the last eight matchups. Earlier this season, West Virginia won 3-2 in Morgantown. Saige Wimes and Shea Ryan each scored in the defeat.

The last time the teams played in the conference tournament was on Nov. 3, 2019 as Kansas beat West Virginia 2-0 in the quarterfinals. Kansas went on to win the tournament that year.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG
Saturday night's match will be broadcast on ESPN+, with Chuckie Kempf (play-by-play) and Sarah Gonzalez (analyst) on the call.

Live statistics can be found here, while live updates will also be provided on the team's official X page @KUWSoccer.

UP NEXT
Kansas will either advance to the semifinals of the Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championship to play the winner of Texas Tech-Baylor on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. CT at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City or its season will come to an end.

Kansas Battles West Virginia in Quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Caroline Castans

Sophie Dawe

Jillian Gregorski

Kate Langfelder

Makayla Merlo

Shea Ryan

Lexi Watts

Saige Wimes

University of Kansas Athletics

Kansas Battles West Virginia in Quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Caroline Castans

Sophie Dawe

Jillian Gregorski

Kate Langfelder

Makayla Merlo

Shea Ryan

Lexi Watts

Saige Wimes

Related Videos