photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas forward Saige Wimes makes a move into the box during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

The Kansas soccer team dropped its conference home opener to the Baylor Bears on Thursday evening at Rock Chalk Park by a score of 3-0. The loss was the first of the season for the Jayhawks, who now have a 7-1-2 record.

“I think they wanted it more than we did,” junior midfielder Livvy Moore said after the game. “Honestly, I think they went hard into tackles, Coach Nate (Lie) talked to us about it at halftime and I think we just didn’t come out and beat them in that aspect of the game.”

The story of the first half was strong defense on both ends. Kansas had an early opportunity in the sixth minute when Moore found herself with an open look, but Baylor goalkeeper Azul Alvarez was able to deny Moore and keep the score at zeros.

Baylor struck first in the 34th minute, when junior midfielder Aryanna Jimison connected from outside the box and deposited the ball over a leaping Sophie Dawe, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead.

That lead held into the half, with Kansas trailing Baylor on the scoreboard, but leading in shots at 10-3.

In the second half, Baylor came out with a renewed energy. The Bears were keeping the pressure on Kansas, and were able to snuff out multiple big plays from the Jayhawks before they could form.

But just three minutes into the half, Moore found herself once again in front of the net with a wide open chance. Moore tried to shoot high over Alvarez, but the ball struck the crossbar and was cleared away by the Baylor defense.

“Livvy probably scores that nine out of ten times,” Lie said. “It’s all right, that stuff happens. But at that moment, I believe I looked up and it was something like 13, 14 (to) 3 on shots. It felt like we were just about to tie up the game, probably have the momentum, and then about, I don’t know, seven minutes later they score two more goals and the game is over.”

The first of those two goals came in the 56th minute, when junior forward Callie Conrad took advantage of a defensive lapse by the Jayhawks and found the back of the net uncontested. The second came six minutes later when Conrad found junior midfielder Theresa McCullough on a deflected pass and was able to get the ball past a sliding Dawe in goal.

Lie tried to find a spark later in the second half by making 19 substitutions, ultimately allowing 22 of the 25 players on the Jayhawks’ roster to see playing time during the match.

Lie said heading into his team’s next match, he has no worries about the team and their motivation.

“Our team so far, in my time with them, has been at our best when our back’s up against the wall a little bit,” Lie said. “These situations when you’re undefeated, I think that comes with a little bit of pressure, you know, I think I felt it over the last couple of weeks, I’m sure the players felt it to some extent. When you get told how good you are for a couple weeks, you might forget how hard you had to work and all the little things you had to invest in to get to that point.”

The Jayhawks now look forward to a Sunday matinee against No. 10 TCU at Rock Chalk Park. The game is a rematch of last season’s Big 12 Championship and is slated to start at 12 p.m. Central time.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas midfielder Sophia Mir looks back for a pass during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas forward Saige Wimes dribbles the ball down the line during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas goalkeeper Sophie Dawe waves to the crowd before the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas midfielder Lydia Viets delivers a free kick during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas forward Jocelyn Herrema fights for the ball during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas midfielder Emily Tobin kicks the ball up the field during the game against Baylor on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.

photo by: Nathan Friedman/Special to the Journal-World

Kansas midfielder Kate Langfelder dribbles around Baylor’s Tyler Isgrig during the game on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, in Lawrence.