NASHVILLE, Tenn. (KUAthletics.com) – On Thursday night at Vanderbilt Soccer Complex, the Kansas Jayhawks and Vanderbilt Commodores played to a 0-0 draw. The defensive shutout was the second of the season by Kansas.
“I thought we were disappointing in the first half,” head coach Nate Lie said. “Vanderbilt is a really talented team and very good on the ball. A lot of skill and a lot of players that have flair and personality…I thought we played a little bit scared and thought we were on the back foot. We didn’t really execute anything that we had intended with our game plan.”
Lie continued, “I told the team that at halftime and I thought we responded with a great, really impressive second half. That was 45 minutes of gritty, unified and selfless work…we absolutely got on the front foot and created four or five point-blank chances. I couldn’t ask for more from the team. It’s a getting a little frustrating that we’re generating these chances and not finding the back of the net, but maybe we’ll save them for conference play next week.”
The first half was filled with a lot of possession between the two 18-yard boxes. Neither team had many quality opportunities, with Vanderbilt leading 4-3 on shots going into the break. The game was tied 0-0 at halftime.
Kansas controlled a majority of the second half, highlighted by a 10-3 advantage on shots. Two of those shots went off the right post. In the 78th minute, junior Lexi Watts had a breakaway that ended up going off the post. Then, in the 86th minute redshirt sophomore Saige Wimes got behind the defense and had a shot that hit the back post.
The Jayhawks led 13-7 on shots in the match. Sophomore Jocelyn Herrema had a team-high three shots.
Kansas moved to 2-1-3 on the season, while Vanderbilt went to 3-0-2 on the year. The Jayhawks are 2-0-1 on the road this season.
NOTES
• Kansas and Vanderbilt have played to a draw in back-to-back seasons. The record in the all-time series is 0-0-2.
• Kansas has played a scoreless first half in each of the last three matches.
UP NEXT
Kansas will be back in action next Thursday, Sept. 12 in the Big 12 Conference opener. The Jayhawks will host Iowa State at 6 p.m. CT and the match 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.
