Soccer Defeats Creighton to Move into NCAA Tournament Second Round

Junior forward Jessica Smith tallied her thrid goal of the season against Creighton.

Nov. 12, 2004

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LAWRENCE, Kan. - After falling behind early in the game, the University of Kansas soccer team scored three unanswered goals to defeated Creighton, 3-1, at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship.

The Bluejays (9-8-4) drew first blood in the match, taking a 1-0 lead in the game's eighth minute after sophomore midfielder Emily Munn fired a shot from 25-yards that eluded Kansas goalkeeper Meghan Miller.

The score would be the only tally allowed by Miller on the day, as she made three saves and shut Creighton out for the rest of the match.

No. 8 national seed Kansas (18-4-0) tied the match in the 18th minute as freshman defender Afton Sauer was able to convert her second goal of the year on a header off passes from sophomore Holly Gault and junior Caroline Smith.

Less that ten minutes before halftime, Kansas took its first lead of the day, as junior forward Jessica Smith took a pass from sophomore Jessica Kilpatrick and slipped in a one-on-one to beat Creigthon goalkeeper Valerie Zimmerer for her third goal of the season.

Senior Monica Brothers put the Jayhawks up 3-1 with an insurance goal at the 53:46 mark, as she took a pass from Caroline Smith and fired two shots at the diving goalkeeper, the second of which she fired into the net for her fourth goal of the year. The goal moved Brothers alone into third place on the all-time Kansas points list with 51 career points. The Leavenworth, Kan., native now trails only teammates Caroline Smith and senior Rachel Gilfillan on the list.

"We are obviously happy that we won, but I was disappointed in the first half," said Kansas head coach Mark Francis. "I thought we came out a little flat and I think we had a lot of people who weren't mentally in tune with what we needed to do. I felt like the second half was a lot better and I thought that our bench was a big key today. We had players coming off the bench that really contributed in a big way for us in establishing a rhythm and keeping possession of the ball."

The victory marked the first come from behind win for the Jayhawks this season and tied 2003 team for the most wins in a season with 18.

Kansas will be back in action on Sunday as they face Big 12 rival Nebraska in the second round of the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship. The game is scheduled for a 1 p.m. kickoff at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex.