Creighton women’s soccer found its footing at Morrison Stadium this weekend, posting consecutive 1-0 victories over Kansas City and Missouri. The back-to-back wins gave the Jays their 200th all-time home victory, extended their shutout streak to three games and handed Creighton its first win over an SEC opponent since 1997. 

The weekend began Thursday, Aug. 27, when the Jays welcomed Kansas City to Morrison Stadium for their first home match of the season. 

Ending the match with 13 shots, five corner kicks, and one save, the Jays took the win with a 1-0 score. Highlighting the match was junior midfielder Olivia Duray. Her unassisted goal was the only one of the day, awarded within the first 30 minutes of the game.  

“This game was probably for the attackers today … We haven’t had a lot of production up front so we’re trying to establish a better forefront,” Duray said. 

The Jays also showed increased connectivity following their two previous losses to Colorado College and Air Force and their tie with Iowa State. Head coach Jimmy Walker said the “compactness” of their lines has slowly closed in from these first few games, therefore involving all the midfielders, forwards and defense in the shutout win.  

Starting the game with four sophomores and a pair of freshmen, Duray also explained the growth in communication and comfortability throughout the field. 

“I think a lot of the younger [players] are starting to understand that they have to step up,” she said. “The communication across all lines has been a lot better … we’re working on bonding, we’re working on going out of your comfort zone to reach out to people that you don’t normally, so that on the field it comes together.” 

Duray went on to explain the difficulty of “stepping into that role at such a young age,” but emphasized that it all starts with building confidence. 

Despite the clean sheet, Walker explained that it still was not necessarily his idea of their best performance. He wanted to see some more fire out of the offense. 

“We know the best version of our forwards, that would have been three-nothing tonight, but it wasn’t a perfect day for us,” Walker said. “We regroup… and we will get it right. We’re going to catch a day where everything goes in.” 

The Jays got another opportunity to do just that Sunday, defeating Missouri 1-0 and earning their third-consecutive shutout and first win over an SEC opponent since 1997. 

Sophomore Sarah Hyde scored the lone goal of the match in the 32nd minute, marking the first goal of her career. Hyde intercepted a pass along Missouri’s back line before racing upfield and beating the Tigers’ goalkeeper in a one-on-one opportunity. 

“We talked to the team about making something happen,” Walker said. “The last couple of games, we’ve had a lot of chances and not scored. We had a couple of really good opportunities today and Sarah made something happen for us top. That’s what we’ve talked about. Make a play. Get on the end of it. Make the run behind. Be dangerous. Be a forward no one wants to go up against, and we did it today. [I am] just so proud of the group, so proud of the effort. Unbelievable result.” 

While Missouri controlled possession and outshot the Jays 21-7, Creighton’s defense held firm through the final whistle. Goalkeepers Morgan Paley and Kailey Hall combined for seven saves, with Paley recording three in the first half and Hall adding four in the second. The shutout also extended the Jays’ scoreless streak to more than 317 minutes. 

“It was just a great effort all around on the field,” Hyde said. “We all worked as hard as we could for one another. We knew we just had to go and our backline killed it today, just getting the ball up to the forwards… it was just overall team effort, and we all worked our butts off.” 

The win brings Creighton to 2-2-1 on the season after opening the year with losses to Colorado College and Air Force, a scoreless draw against Iowa State and consecutive 1-0 victories at Morrison Stadium. 

The Jays return to Morrison Stadium this evening at 5 p.m. to host Northern Colorado in the 14th annual Socctoberfest match.