No. 19 Kansas Stays Unbeaten; Earns Gritty 1-0 Shutout Win at Oklahoma State in Big 12 Opener

Thursday, September 18

Stillwater, Okla.

7 p.m. CT

University of Kansas

7-0-2, 1-0-0

Oklahoma State

4-4-1, 0-1-0

Kansas

Oklahoma St.

No. 19 Kansas Stays Unbeaten; Earns Gritty 1-0 Shutout Win at Oklahoma State in Big 12 Opener

9/18/2025 10:14:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

STILLWATER, Okla. – No. 19 Kansas continued its unbeaten start to the season by opening up Big 12 play with a gritty 1-0 shutout victory at Oklahoma State on Thursday night. Down a player for a majority of the match following a red card in the 33rd minute of the game, Caroline Castans scored the game-winning goal for Kansas in the 56th minute of the match.

The first win for Kansas in Stillwater since 2004, Kansas improved to 7-0-2 on the season, which is the longest unbeaten streak to start a season in program history. The Jayhawks have also posted an 11-0-3 record in their last 14 regular season games dating back to last season. The win is also Kansas' first conference opener victory since Sept. 11, 2020 at Texas.

"Winning games is really hard," Kansas head coach Nate Lie said. "Winning games in conference makes it harder. Winning conference games on the road is about the hardest thing you can do…It was a great game for our players. Total credit to the entire team – every player that touched the field and every player on the bench. It took a program effort to make it to the finish line and to just keep fighting."

Lie continued, "The thing I'm most proud of is that being short for 57 minutes, we still tried to dictate the game to the best of our ability. Everyone stepped up, players bought into the game plan, fought for each other and sacrificed for each other. We showed some really solid game management at the end and we were able to pull out the victory. Very indebted to our group for everything they put into this game. It gets us off on a good foot [to Big 12 play]...We look forward to returning to Rock Chalk Park and hosting a few games next weekend."

The teams traded possession in the first 30 minutes, as the Jayhawks had a couple opportunities but couldn't capitalize. In the 33rd minute, Jordan Rowan was tracking a ball going into the box towards the goalkeeper, but made contact with the goalkeeper as she slid to the ground. The foul was initially ruled a yellow card, but it was changed to a red card following video review. Kansas was forced to compete with only 10 players for the final 57:13 of the match. The game was tied 0-0 at the half.

In the 56th minute, Lexi Watts crossed the ball into the middle of the box and an Oklahoma State defender attempted to clear the ball. The attempted clearance went to the edge of the box where Castans was running in and took a shot with her right foot that floated perfectly over the goalkeeper to give Kansas a 1-0 lead.

Oklahoma State (4-4-1) continued to put pressure on the Kansas defense in the second half. In the 83rd minute, Laudan Wilson took a shot from the top of the box, but Sophie Dawe made her one save of the night to keep the Cowgirls scoreless.

Kansas was able to withstand the final minutes of the game by drawing two corner kicks in the last five minutes and controlling possession by keeping the ball on the sidelines. Oklahoma State was unable to get off another shot for the rest of the match.

The Jayhawks outshot the Cowgirls 13-5 and 6-1 in shots on goal. Castans led the Jayhawks with three shots and two shots on goal.

NOTES
• Kansas has not lost a game this season and improved to 7-0-2 on the season. The nine-match unbeaten streak to begin the season is the longest streak to start a season in program history.
• Kansas is now 11-0-3 in its last 14 regular season games. The Jayhawks have not lost a regular season game since Oct. 5, 2024 vs. Oklahoma State (L, 0-3).
• Kansas improved to 13-3-2 under Nate Lie in games played away from Lawrence.
• Kansas won its first game in Stillwater since Oct. 15, 2004 (W, 1-0).
• Kansas recorded its first conference opener win since Sept. 11, 2020 at Texas (W, 1-0).
• Kansas has outscored its opponents 21-8 on the season.
• Kansas tallied its fourth shutout of the season.
• Kansas won a game where a KU player was issued a red card for the first time since Sept. 4, 2016 vs. Valparaiso (W, 2-1).
• Castans scored her second goal of the season, and the sixth of her career.
• Dawe has three shutouts this season and 11 shutouts in her career.

UP NEXT
Following three weeks on the road, Kansas will be back at Rock Chalk Park for the conference home opener on Thursday, Sept. 25, against Baylor. That match is slated for 6 p.m. CT, and will be broadcast on ESPN+. Fans can purchase tickets by clicking here or by calling the Kansas ticket office at 785-864-3141.