photo by: Sarah Buchanan/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas senior forward Lexi Watts dribbles forward in the second half of Kansas’ game against Florida State on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025, in Lawrence.

The Kansas soccer team avoided any potential letdown in the wake of its much-publicized draw with No. 2 Florida State, as it took down Drake 3-1 on Sunday night at Rock Chalk Park.

Senior forward Lexi Watts built on her team-leading total with her fourth goal of the season to open the scoring for the Jayhawks in the 22nd minute, and freshman Jordan Rowan and sophomore Jillian Gregorski built on KU’s lead over the next half-hour of game time.

That was more than enough to exceed Drake’s lone goal by Isabella Balsley, her first of the season and a consolation for the Bulldogs in the 73rd minute as KU (4-0-2) beat them for the second straight year.

“One nice thing about this team is, even though I don’t think we played great in the first half, we still found two goals,” KU coach Nate Lie said in a press release. “So our quality showed through Lexi (Watts) and Jordan (Rowan), who made excellent plays to lead up to both goals.”

The Jayhawks held a 15-7 advantage in shots, although goalkeeper Sophie Dawe was needed for three saves, as she snagged a high attempt by Layla Kelbel immediately following Gregorski’s third goal after denying Izzy Snowden and Maia Bentley in the first half.

Junior midfielder Emily Tobin, a transfer from IU Indianapolis who has started all six matches for the Jayhawks this season, played Watts in for the first goal with a well-placed through ball past Drake’s Mika Marolly. Watts took a touch to the right with the outside of her foot to beat Drake goalie Addie Ford and then finished into an empty net.

Rowan continued a strong early-season scoring stretch for the Jayhawks’ freshmen when she got on the end of a long ball from classmate Lydia Viets by outracing Drake’s Hannah Renz, dribbled to her left and shot back across her body with her left foot for a low grounder into the bottom right corner of the net in the 33rd minute.

The Bulldogs forced those two saves from Dawe in the final minutes of the first half, and KU went into the interval with a two-goal lead.

“I challenged the team at halftime and said we have to demand better, hold ourselves to a higher standard,” Lie said. “I thought we came out pretty sharp in the second half. Saige (Wimes) got behind in the first few minutes and then found that goal through Jillian (Gregorski).”

Gregorski added on her third goal of the year. She got her head to a corner kick by Caroline Castans at the back post, and her header bounced off Bulldog defenders and caromed into the back of the net.

After Balsley’s tally, neither team recorded a shot for eight minutes, and KU outshot Drake 4-1 in the final stretch.

Following a short break, the Jayhawks will head back out for three consecutive road matches, beginning on Sunday at Yale at 11 p.m. Central Time.