KU women's soccer quickly bought in under new leadership

LAWRENCE (KSNT) - KU women's soccer is entering a new era, as head coach Nate Lie will lead the program for his first season in the fall of 2024. Previous Mark Francis retired after a quarter-century at the helm.

Lie asked the players he inherited in Lawrence to give him two things: A chance and their best effort. He says that's been answered by the Jayhawks who chose to stay through the coaching change.

"I think as coaches we try to find the balance of being good educators, having patience, showing some grace and understanding things take time," Lie said. "On the flip side, you want to grow. So, there has to be a level of accountability, competition, intensity. We were juggling all those balls at once and the players were as well. I know we're really appreciative as a coaching staff and I'm very, personally, indebted to the team for welcoming us- for giving us a chance."

One Jayhawk opted to stick around for her sixth year of college soccer. KU midfielder/ forward Hallie Klanke says it's been easy to buy-in under Lie's changes for multiple reasons. Lie's resume commands respect, plus KU hadn't quite reached its goals in recent seasons.

"We immediately just saw it paying off," Klanke said. "The intensity that we practice with, just being intentional in everything we do. It's even easier to buy into something when you immediately see the results. I would say just from the entire staff, the passion that they bring every single day just makes it easy to listen, easy to accept change and do things differently."