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PAGE 10
MONDAY, AUGUST 25, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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Kansas soccer defeats SMU to sweep opening matches
BENJAMIN CARROLL
@BCarroll91
Senior Ali Kimura turns swiftly at the ball during Sunday's game against Southern Methodist. The Jayhawks defeated the Mustangs 3-0.
After the Kansas women's soccer match at the new Rock Chalk Park facility Friday night, Sunday afternoon's game was moved to the old Jayhawk Soccer Complex. There, the Jayhawks completed their opening weekend sweep with a 3-0 win against Coach Mark Francis' alma mater, the Southern Methodist University Mustangs.
MICHAEL O'OBRIEN/KANSAN
The Jayhawks had plenty of momentum built up from Friday night's win and kept it coming into Sunday's match.
The team took to the field with the same starters and the same 4-2-1-1-2 formation from Friday night. Kansas' new offense performed much better, cutting back the offside penalties from nine on Friday to two on Sunday.
It took both teams most of the first half to find any sort of groove offensively. The first real scoring chance of the match occurred in the 26-minute mark when the Mustangs kicked a penalty shot just outside the top of the box. The shot ended up just wide left of the net.
Midfielder Tayler Estrada dribbled the ball up field at
At the 30-minute mark,
SMU led in shots, but senior
goalkeeper Kaitlyn Stroud
was able to keep the match score-
less with two saves.
"I think it was an awesome cross from Tayler, and I was in the right situation in the right moment in the right place," Mayr said. "It was good to score the first goal for Kansas, and I think it was an important goal."
the 31-minute mark, just before she kicked a perfect cross into the box to the far post to freshman forward Eli Mayr. Mayr chipped it in front of the net as Kansas jumped to a 1-0 lead over the Mustangs. The Javhawks never looked back.
The shots were scarce for both the Jayhawks and the Mustangs, and by halftime, Kansas led SMU in shots 6-4 and maintained the slim 1-0 advantage.
During halftime, Francis expressed his displeasure with how the team played in the first half.
"I kind of got on them a little bit because the first 20 minutes we just weren't sharp," Francis said. "Our movement, our passing — we just wasn't sharp at all, and I thought SMU had more of the first 20 minutes."
Francis said Kansas looked much better in the second half, especially in the last 20 minutes when the players became more consistent with their passing and runs.
goal of the season.
Kansas tacked on another goal in the 70-minute mark. Senior forward Ali Kimura picked up a loose ball at the top of the box, beat her defender and scored for her first
The Mustangs tried to claw themselves back into the match with a late penalty kick in the box. SMU's defender Olivia Elliott took the kick, but was unsuccessful in putting it in the back of the net because of a diving stop by Stroud.
"There's six or seven minutes left and now it's 2-1 and they're throwing everyone forward, and it would have been a totally different game," Francis said,
highlighting the importance of Stroud's save.
With just seconds left to play, Kansas put SMU away when Liana Salazar scored an unassisted goal to put Kansas on top 3-0.
Both Mayr and Francis said finishing the opening weekend with two wins is crucial for a team with plans to make it to the NCAA tournament, but most importantly, the success gives the team a momentum
boost.
Kansas' next match will be Friday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m. against the University of Texas San Antonio. The match's location has not been determined yet.
"I think the biggest thing is it just gives you confidence," Francis said. "We've scored six goals in the first two games, and as an attacking player when you score a goal, it gives you confidence, which is just going to help our team going into the next game."
"We have to stay focused," Mayr said. "To win the first two games is really important, and we want to continue it on Friday."
Edited by Emily Brown
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TRACK AND FIELD
WOMEN'S GOLF
The KU track and field team followed up its championship season in 2013 by sending 10 athletes to compete in the
Spring sports savor success
Last May the women's golf team concluded its long season by qualifying for the NCAA Championship and finishing 24th among the best teams in collegiate women's golf. On the way to its championship tournament appearance, the team finished in the top 10 in every tournament on the schedule, including 10 top-five finishes and two tournament wins. Both of the wins, the Sunflower Invitational and the Palmetto Intercollegiate, came early in the season last September and October. The team's postseason run was a historic one as the Jayhawks tied for fourth in the conference championship and tied for fifth at the NCAA Regionals earning themselves a trip to Tulsa where they competed in only their second NCAA championship and their first in 24 years.
SAM DAVIS
@davis_Samuel
SOFTBALL
2014 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships this past June in Eugene, Ore. Due to the group's small size, neither the men's nor the women's team was able to place, but both teams managed to bring individual honors back to Kansas. Sophomore long jumper Sydney Conley finished 7th overall in her second straight championship appearance earning herself First-Team All-America Honors. Also on the women's side, senior thrower Jessica Maroszek finished sixth in the discus and earned her third First-Team All-America Honors in her college career. The men's lone top finish came on the track where junior hurdler Michael Stigler took second place in the 400m hurdles. This was Stigler's second straight runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships.
Out on the diamonds, the softball team added to the springtime success for KU Athletics. The Jayhawks finished the season well over .500 with a 34-23 record and reached their first NCAA Tournament since 2006.
The team started off the tournament with a statement 3-1 win over No.19 overallseed Nebraska and moved on to play Missouri but lost 3-6. Because of the tournament's double elimination format, the team continued on, but lost to a revived Nebraska team, thus concluding the postseason run with a 1-2 record.
- Edited by Benjamin Carroll
The baseball team also experienced success on the diamond last spring. The team finished third in the Big 12 with a record of 15-9 and a 35-26 record overall, eventually reaching its first NCAA tournament since 2009. The Jayhawks got off to a strong start in the tournament with a 10-6 win over Kentucky, but went on to lose the following day to a strong Louisville team that would eventually advance to become one of the final eight teams in the College World Series. The team's second loss came a day later to a Kentucky team that sought revenge in a close game that the Jayhawks lost 6-8.
BASEBALL
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