Marit McLaughlin kept coming through for Kansas when the Jayhawks needed it most.
For the second straight match, McLaughlin delivered a late winner, this time in the 87th minute, as Kansas edged Iowa State 1-0 on Friday night at Rock Chalk Park. The result kept Kansas firmly in the Big 12 title hunt and extended a run of clutch finishes for the sophomore, who also scored the decisive goal in the 84th minute against Colorado on Sunday.
This one came off a corner from Livvy Moore, whose low inswinging service found McLaughlin at the near post. With no clean route to goal, McLaughlin backheeled the ball toward frame and watched it carom in off Iowa State goalkeeper Eme McClenehan.
“Relief, more than anything,” Kansas head coach Nate Lie said postgame. “If you want to compete for a Big 12 championship, this was one that was important. We took care of business.”
Kansas had to grind for it. Iowa State, still winless in Big 12 play, made life difficult for much of the night and created several chances of its own in the first half. The Cyclones put 6 of their 9 shots on target, while Kansas finished with 10 of 23 on frame.
“Iowa State played an excellent game,” Lie said. “I thought they had a really nice game plan.
I thought their players played super hard, thought they beat us in 50/50 more, in second balls. And so it was always going to be a hard game.”
Sophie Dawe, the reigning Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Week, had to stay sharp early as Iowa State tried to strike on the break. Her biggest stop came in the 17th minute, when she dove to turn away Breezie Brewer’s low shot, Iowa State’s best look of the night.
Kansas eventually imposed itself the way it so often does: by wearing teams down. Lie pointed to the Jayhawks’ second-half edge as the pressure steadily built.
“I do think we wear out opponents,” Lie said. “I don’t know what the stat is right now, but I think it’s 25 goals to 3 or 4 that we’re outscoring teams in the second half. We are really owning the box score in the second half.”
The numbers backed that up on Friday. Kansas outshot Iowa State 15-5 after halftime and kept finding dangerous moments before finally breaking through. Jordan Rowan had a golden chance in the 76th minute but couldn’t finish a rebound into an open net, and Jillian Gregorski needed a last-ditch slide tackle to stop her in the 84th minute.
Rowan nearly ended it herself in the 87th minute when her curling effort was pushed wide by McClenehan, setting up the decisive corner. Moore, who now has 11 assists on the season and is tied for first in the country, delivered the ball perfectly.
“Livvy did an awesome job putting the service in; we had runners crashing back posts and central in case it fell anywhere,” McLaughlin said. “That was just my job today, and Livvy helped me execute.”
The win gave Kansas three more points and moved the Jayhawks into a three-way tie with Texas Tech and BYU for first place in the Big 12 with four matches left. Kansas still has both BYU and Texas Tech on its remaining schedule.
Next up is BYU on Thursday at Rock Chalk Park. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. CDT.
In Other News...
Lance Leipold Pressure Just Hit A New Level At Kansas
Kansas had Kansas State on the ropes early, building a double-digit lead before the game tilted hard in the other direction in a 35-24 loss. Special teams errors and defensive breakdowns opened the door, and a mishandled punt by Matthew Gill that led to a safety became one of the days defining moments as the Jayhawks watched another winnable game slip away.
The defeat stretched Kansas losing streak to 18 games and added another frustrating chapter for Lance Leipold against the programs biggest in-state rival. Since arriving in 2021, Leipold has now gone 6 straight against Kansas State, and with the losses piling up the scrutiny around his job security is only growing louder. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Just Faced A Run Defense Reality Check Against K-State
Kansas got a harsh reminder in the Sunflower Showdown that stopping the run is still a work in progress. Kansas State piled up 359 rushing yards, the most the Jayhawks have allowed on the ground since last year, and the game left coach Lance Leipold and defensive tackle Blake Herold pointing to the same problem areas: physicality and tackling.
Those are the kinds of issues that tend to linger unless they get cleaned up quickly, and Kansas does not have much time to let this one sit. Defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald is expected to tackle the breakdowns as the Jayhawks turn their attention to the next stretch of games, where opponents will surely notice what the Wildcats were able to do. [Read more 🡒]
Kansas Let The Sunflower Showdown Slip Away Again
Kansas had chances to make the Sunflower Showdown feel different, and for stretches it looked as if the Jayhawks might finally tilt the rivalry back in their direction. Isaiah Marshall gave them a spark with his arm and legs, the defense delivered a few timely stops, and Bryson Hayes provided a special teams jolt with a kickoff return touchdown that briefly energized the home side.
But the bigger picture was the same one Kansas keeps trying to escape. Kansas State answered with Avery Johnson controlling the game, and the Wildcats pulled away for a 35-24 win that stretched Kansas losing streak in the rivalry to 18 straight. For a program trying to turn narrow moments into statement wins, this one was another reminder that the Sunflower Showdown still has a long way to go before the balance shifts. [Read more 🡒]