— KANSAS ATHLETICS RELEASE —
DES MOINES, Iowa (KUAthletics.com) – The Kansas Jayhawks moved to 2-0 on the season as Kansas shutout Drake 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at Mediacom Stadium. Redshirt junior Emika Kawagishi scored her first goal as a Jayhawk in the 43rd minute and redshirt freshman Sophie Dawe recorded her first career shutout.
“One thing to be proud of for sure is limiting a conference champion to one shot in the entire game on their home field in a game that they were probably pretty hungry for,” head coach Nate Lie said. “Shoutout to Coach Lindsey (Horner), a proud KU alum. Her team battled, really organized and did some nice complex things in their build that caused us some issues. Credit to [our] team, they responded.”
Lie continued, “I don’t think we were very clinical in front of goal today. We had two or three flat out breakaways that we didn’t convert on, but we were able to score on a goal that’s pretty normal in the college game…that moment changed the game. We ask our players to find those special moments and congrats to Emika, congrats to Sophie on a shutout and the defense for limiting the opportunities.”
Kansas (2-0) was relentless in the first half as the Jayhawks held a 9-0 advantage on shots, including 4-0 on shots on goal. The first eight shots did not go in, but finally the ninth shot found the back of the net.
With time winding down in the first half, sophomore Olivia Page crossed a ball into the box that ultimately found Kawagishi on a Drake clearance attempt that never got out of the box. Kawagishi put the shot on target in the bottom left corner of the net. That gave Kansas a 1-0 lead at the break and ended up being the game-winning goal after a scoreless second half.
“I’ve been practicing that goal,” Kawagishi said. “At that moment, I had the confidence and I knew I could do it, so I’m glad I did it.”
The Kansas defense limited Drake to only one shot in the match. KU finished the game with a 13-1 advantage in shots and 5-1 in shots on goal. Kansas also had a 6-4 edge in corner kicks.
“It’s really exciting,” Dawe said on the shutout. “I have to give a lot of credit to my defense. We had one shot against goal. They did all the work and made my job so much easier.”
NOTES
• Kansas has started the season 2-0 for the first time since 2020.
• Kansas recorded its first shutout since Aug. 31, 2023 vs. Arkansas State.
• Kansas improved to 4-0-1 against Drake all-time.
• Kawagishi scored her first career goal as a Jayhawk.
• Dawe had her first career shutout in her second collegiate game.
UP NEXT
Kansas will play its home opener on Thursday, Aug. 22, against Tulsa at Rock Chalk Park. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Tickets can be purchased here or by calling the Kansas ticket office at 785-864-3141. Tickets will also be available to purchase at the ticket window at Rock Chalk Park, beginning one hour prior to kickoff.
