Kansas State University Athletics
SE: K-State Soccer Delivers a Senior Night You Couldn’t Script
Nov 17, 2020 | Soccer, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
They held it together for almost two hours.
Brookelynn Entz broke for a second during player introductions, a sharp exhale as "Number Eight, Brookelynn Entz" blasted through Buser Family Park for the last time.
But there was still dancing on the bench. Shae Turner and Silke Bonnen still did their pre-game chest bump.
It was Senior Night, but it was also a routine, run-of-the-mill, hoe-hum 2-0 win for the Wildcats over Texas Tech. No overtime heroics. No comeback necessary.
K-State was simply the better team.
Late in the second half, even as the Wildcats were killing the clock against a program that played in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament, the match felt pretty normal.
And more than anything else, that normal feeling will be the legacy of the seven seniors who walked off the field in Manhattan for the last time on Friday night.
"These girls deserve it. They set their goals, set their expectations and they reached it. There is progress, and there is a process, and baby steps. And those steps were taken tonight," Mike Dibbini said. "Texas Tech was the team that people selected to win [the Big 12]."
Don't mistake the win over the Red Raiders as just a feel-good, Senior Night moment.
The Wildcats ended 2020 playing their best soccer of the season. Everything, from K-State's recent form to their spot in the Big 12 standings, suggested this kind of performance was possible.
Except Texas Tech is a 26-year-old program that has qualified for nine of the last 10 NCAA Tournaments.
The Red Raiders had never lost to K-State since the Wildcats arrived on the scene in 2016.
"Stay organized, communicate, keep the ball in front of us. We knew they were going to come at us," Dibbini said. "We knew they [Texas Tech] were going to be really good."
Even as K-State managed the better chances in a scoreless match on Friday night, the terrible reality of Senior Night began to set in: there just wasn't room for a moral victory.
The Wildcats couldn't play well, lose to Texas Tech and tell themselves that it was finally going to pay off next time, because Friday night was always going to be the last time for Grace Brennan, Brookelynn Entz, Christina Baxter, Avery Green, Shelby Lierz, Brooke Ramos and Maddie Souder.
That's when Baxter took matters into her own hands. Or more accurately, her right foot.
"I almost blacked out in that moment," she said. "Me and Bailey [Nemechek] locked eyes, and I knew she was going to play me the ball. It felt like I just needed to shoot it, I saw it going and I could not believe it. Of course, this happens on Senior Night. This is amazing."
Baxter unleashed a 20-yard strike from the edge of the penalty box to put K-State up 1-0 and bring the crowd at Buser Family Park to life.
No other sport has a higher reward for a single moment of brilliance, but the goal came after a first half when all seven K-State seniors helped put the Wildcats in a position to grab the lead.
Entz peppered the Texas Tech net with shots throughout the first half, drawing extra attention after her five goals this season and giving K-State time to settle into the match.
Souder and Lierz helped control the flow of the game, after their most experience defender was limited to a curtain call.
Green was lost for the season in October, but started the game for K-State wearing a leg brace. She subbed out after the opening kick, earning one last ovation in her final match as a Wildcat.
On a night with so many of those moments crammed into 90 minutes, the match just went full storybook in the second half, thanks to the players who will guide K-State into the future.
Freshman Peyton Pearson, making the first start of her K-State career in net, came up with nine saves to keep the momentum with the Wildcats. In the 63rd minute, her team cashed in.
Kyler Goins got loose in front of the K-State bench, drawing a pair of Texas Tech defenders. The sophomore showcased her hold-up play, controlling the ball before finding freshman Maddie Weichel all alone with the goalkeeper.
In a one-on-one matchup, Weichel didn't miss.
"I was low-key freaking out," she said. "The seniors have worked so hard this season and there have been some obstacles, but just to secure this last win was huge for them."
The celebration began moments after the final whistle, with a dog-pile on top of Entz following the first Senior Night win in K-State history.
The win over Texas Tech also gave K-State their first winning streak in Big 12 history and secured the best conference finish in program history. Put simply, the Wildcats are running out of firsts.
"The culture, the love for each other, the way they approach the game, the way they approach training, I mean everything top to bottom has been just unbelievable," Dibbini said. "We turned a chapter tonight."
They held it together for almost two hours.
Brookelynn Entz broke for a second during player introductions, a sharp exhale as "Number Eight, Brookelynn Entz" blasted through Buser Family Park for the last time.
But there was still dancing on the bench. Shae Turner and Silke Bonnen still did their pre-game chest bump.
It was Senior Night, but it was also a routine, run-of-the-mill, hoe-hum 2-0 win for the Wildcats over Texas Tech. No overtime heroics. No comeback necessary.
K-State was simply the better team.
"It really is a family and it showed tonight. They played for each other and they wanted to win this senior night for each other."
— K-State Soccer (@KStateSOC) November 14, 2020
⚽️ Postmatch Recap vs Texas Tech ⤵️#KStateSOC pic.twitter.com/FVzCUoxqGG
Late in the second half, even as the Wildcats were killing the clock against a program that played in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament, the match felt pretty normal.
And more than anything else, that normal feeling will be the legacy of the seven seniors who walked off the field in Manhattan for the last time on Friday night.
"These girls deserve it. They set their goals, set their expectations and they reached it. There is progress, and there is a process, and baby steps. And those steps were taken tonight," Mike Dibbini said. "Texas Tech was the team that people selected to win [the Big 12]."
Don't mistake the win over the Red Raiders as just a feel-good, Senior Night moment.
The Wildcats ended 2020 playing their best soccer of the season. Everything, from K-State's recent form to their spot in the Big 12 standings, suggested this kind of performance was possible.
Except Texas Tech is a 26-year-old program that has qualified for nine of the last 10 NCAA Tournaments.
The Red Raiders had never lost to K-State since the Wildcats arrived on the scene in 2016.
"Stay organized, communicate, keep the ball in front of us. We knew they were going to come at us," Dibbini said. "We knew they [Texas Tech] were going to be really good."
Even as K-State managed the better chances in a scoreless match on Friday night, the terrible reality of Senior Night began to set in: there just wasn't room for a moral victory.
The Wildcats couldn't play well, lose to Texas Tech and tell themselves that it was finally going to pay off next time, because Friday night was always going to be the last time for Grace Brennan, Brookelynn Entz, Christina Baxter, Avery Green, Shelby Lierz, Brooke Ramos and Maddie Souder.
That's when Baxter took matters into her own hands. Or more accurately, her right foot.
"I almost blacked out in that moment," she said. "Me and Bailey [Nemechek] locked eyes, and I knew she was going to play me the ball. It felt like I just needed to shoot it, I saw it going and I could not believe it. Of course, this happens on Senior Night. This is amazing."
The vision, the finish, the GOAL!@cbaxter__ with a 😻 topshelf strike for the 'Cats #KStateSOC x @NCAASoccer pic.twitter.com/cZZKb20Ym3
— K-State Soccer (@KStateSOC) November 14, 2020
Baxter unleashed a 20-yard strike from the edge of the penalty box to put K-State up 1-0 and bring the crowd at Buser Family Park to life.
No other sport has a higher reward for a single moment of brilliance, but the goal came after a first half when all seven K-State seniors helped put the Wildcats in a position to grab the lead.
Entz peppered the Texas Tech net with shots throughout the first half, drawing extra attention after her five goals this season and giving K-State time to settle into the match.
Souder and Lierz helped control the flow of the game, after their most experience defender was limited to a curtain call.
Green was lost for the season in October, but started the game for K-State wearing a leg brace. She subbed out after the opening kick, earning one last ovation in her final match as a Wildcat.
On a night with so many of those moments crammed into 90 minutes, the match just went full storybook in the second half, thanks to the players who will guide K-State into the future.
Freshman Peyton Pearson, making the first start of her K-State career in net, came up with nine saves to keep the momentum with the Wildcats. In the 63rd minute, her team cashed in.
Kyler Goins got loose in front of the K-State bench, drawing a pair of Texas Tech defenders. The sophomore showcased her hold-up play, controlling the ball before finding freshman Maddie Weichel all alone with the goalkeeper.
In a one-on-one matchup, Weichel didn't miss.
"I was low-key freaking out," she said. "The seniors have worked so hard this season and there have been some obstacles, but just to secure this last win was huge for them."
Baxter ➡️ Goins ➡️ @MaddieWeichel = GOAL #KStateSOC x #OnTheRise2020 pic.twitter.com/VHea10Rh8l
— K-State Soccer (@KStateSOC) November 14, 2020
The celebration began moments after the final whistle, with a dog-pile on top of Entz following the first Senior Night win in K-State history.
The win over Texas Tech also gave K-State their first winning streak in Big 12 history and secured the best conference finish in program history. Put simply, the Wildcats are running out of firsts.
"The culture, the love for each other, the way they approach the game, the way they approach training, I mean everything top to bottom has been just unbelievable," Dibbini said. "We turned a chapter tonight."
Players Mentioned
M
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
F
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
D
/ Soccer
GK
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
M
/ Soccer
MF
/ Soccer
F
/ SoccerK-State Men's Basketball | Cat Q's - Nate Johnson and Marcus Johnson
Friday, October 03
K-State Football | Pregame Hype vs Baylor
Friday, October 03
K-State Athletics | Ask the A.D. with Gene Taylor - Oct. 2, 2025
Thursday, October 02
K-State Football | Matt Wells Press Conference - Oct. 2, 2025
Thursday, October 02