
SOC Readies for Texas Tech, No. 12 TCU
10/19/2022 8:27:00 AM | Soccer
Bears Facing Red Raiders on the road, returning home to host Horned Frogs
BAYLOR at TEXAS TECH
Thursday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
Lubbock, Texas
John Walker Soccer Complex
Video: Big 12 Now ESPN+
BAYLOR vs. No. 12 TCU
Sunday, Oct. 23 at 1 p.m.
Waco, Texas
Betty Lou Mays Field
Video: Big 12 Now ESPN+
BAYLOR BEARS
2022 Record: 4-8-2
Head Coach: Michelle Lenard (North Texas, 2003)
Career Record: 205-85-27 (15th season)
BU Record: 4-8-2 (1st season)
TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS
2022 Record: 8-3-5
Head Coach: Tom Stone (Duke, 1987)
Career Record: 178-98-42 (16th season)
TTU Record: 178-98-42 (16th season)
TCU HORNED FROGS
2022 Record: 9-2-4
Head Coach: Eric Bell (Wooster, 1992)
Career Record: 124-78-34 (12th season)
TCU Record: 117-68-34 (11th season)
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Closing the regular season with three teams that have already punched their tickets to the Big 12 Championship, Baylor soccer (4-8-2, 2-4-0) will try to join them by knocking off one of the league's top teams.
Coming off a 1-1 road trip that included a 3-2 win over last-place Iowa State and a 3-1 loss to West Virginia, the Bears will face Texas Tech (8-3-5, 4-1-2) at 7 p.m. Thursday in Lubbock before returning home to host 12th-ranked TCU (9-2-4, 4-0-2) at 1 p.m. Sunday.
"I think it's important to know what's on the line," first-year Baylor head coach Michelle Lenard said. "At the same time, it doesn't change anything. It shouldn't, anyways. We should expect to come out and perform the same way every game. You never know when you're playing your last game."
With six points from its two conference wins, Baylor is currently in eighth place. The top eight advance to the Big 12 tournament that starts a week from Sunday in Round Rock, with the Bears fighting for one of the last spots with West Virginia, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Kansas and Iowa State.
"Nobody in our conference – maybe the top four are in at this point," Lenard said, "but the next six are really competing for the last four spots in the conference tournament. So, no one's really comfortable, nothing's really settled. It's all still in front of us. It's just a matter of taking it one game at a time."
After scoring seven goals combined in its first 10 games, Baylor has scored eight in the last four games, going 2-2 with wins over Kansas and Iowa State. Freshman Reneta Vargas has scored five of those, earning Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors on Oct. 11.
"She brought different things that I don't think we had yet," senior forward Jenna Patterson said. "I think we got a lot of momentum after the Kansas game, and it kind of just kept going. When you score two goals in the last two minutes of a game, I feel like it follows through in the next couple of games."
Freshman Hallie Augustyn, who assisted on Vargas' game-winning goal against Kansas, said there's a "comforting feeling of knowing that we can trust her enough to put the ball in the back of the net."
Lenard said it's hard not to play the "what if" game with Vargas, who missed the first nine games with an injury. Since returning three weeks ago and playing limited minutes in a 1-0 loss at Texas, she's taken over the team lead with five goals and had scored on five of her 10 shots.
"We could say that with a number of our players," Lenard said. "We've been missing key players in the front line all season. Getting one back has shown what this team is capable of just with one of those players back.
"We still don't have Taylor (Moon) back and we obviously don't have Mackenzie Anthony. That's part of the game. Unfortunately, injuries happen, and you've got to be able to ride that out. Though we didn't get the results we needed early in the season, we hung in long enough that we could get one of our kids back."
After an 0-1-2 start in conference play, Texas Tech has strung together four-straight wins and is tied for second in the Big 12 standings with 14 points. Ashleigh Williams is third in the league with nine goals, while goalkeeper Madison White is second in goals-against average (0.688 per game).
"At this point in our season, we're not overly concerned about what our opponent's doing," Lenard said. "When we buckle down and we get things right on our side, then we perform well and we've gotten some positive results. When we've lost, it hasn't necessarily been because of our opponent. It's been because we've conceded some bad goals.
"We've essentially handed some games away that we really felt like, had we just stuck to our game strategy and executed better, we could have won. That's what this game is about."
After their last road trip, the Bears will finish the regular season with home games against TCU at 1 p.m. Sunday and Oklahoma State (10-2-3, 3-1-2) at 7 p.m. next Thursday, Oct. 27.
"I think a lot of it is still one game at a time," Patterson said, "especially with the next three opponents that we have. We can't look at the big picture. It's more, we have to focus on each game and getting the result that we need for each game."
STORY LINES
Thursday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
Lubbock, Texas
John Walker Soccer Complex
Video: Big 12 Now ESPN+
BAYLOR vs. No. 12 TCU
Sunday, Oct. 23 at 1 p.m.
Waco, Texas
Betty Lou Mays Field
Video: Big 12 Now ESPN+
BAYLOR BEARS
2022 Record: 4-8-2
Head Coach: Michelle Lenard (North Texas, 2003)
Career Record: 205-85-27 (15th season)
BU Record: 4-8-2 (1st season)
TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS
2022 Record: 8-3-5
Head Coach: Tom Stone (Duke, 1987)
Career Record: 178-98-42 (16th season)
TTU Record: 178-98-42 (16th season)
TCU HORNED FROGS
2022 Record: 9-2-4
Head Coach: Eric Bell (Wooster, 1992)
Career Record: 124-78-34 (12th season)
TCU Record: 117-68-34 (11th season)
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Closing the regular season with three teams that have already punched their tickets to the Big 12 Championship, Baylor soccer (4-8-2, 2-4-0) will try to join them by knocking off one of the league's top teams.
Coming off a 1-1 road trip that included a 3-2 win over last-place Iowa State and a 3-1 loss to West Virginia, the Bears will face Texas Tech (8-3-5, 4-1-2) at 7 p.m. Thursday in Lubbock before returning home to host 12th-ranked TCU (9-2-4, 4-0-2) at 1 p.m. Sunday.
"I think it's important to know what's on the line," first-year Baylor head coach Michelle Lenard said. "At the same time, it doesn't change anything. It shouldn't, anyways. We should expect to come out and perform the same way every game. You never know when you're playing your last game."
With six points from its two conference wins, Baylor is currently in eighth place. The top eight advance to the Big 12 tournament that starts a week from Sunday in Round Rock, with the Bears fighting for one of the last spots with West Virginia, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Kansas and Iowa State.
"Nobody in our conference – maybe the top four are in at this point," Lenard said, "but the next six are really competing for the last four spots in the conference tournament. So, no one's really comfortable, nothing's really settled. It's all still in front of us. It's just a matter of taking it one game at a time."
After scoring seven goals combined in its first 10 games, Baylor has scored eight in the last four games, going 2-2 with wins over Kansas and Iowa State. Freshman Reneta Vargas has scored five of those, earning Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors on Oct. 11.
"She brought different things that I don't think we had yet," senior forward Jenna Patterson said. "I think we got a lot of momentum after the Kansas game, and it kind of just kept going. When you score two goals in the last two minutes of a game, I feel like it follows through in the next couple of games."
Freshman Hallie Augustyn, who assisted on Vargas' game-winning goal against Kansas, said there's a "comforting feeling of knowing that we can trust her enough to put the ball in the back of the net."
Lenard said it's hard not to play the "what if" game with Vargas, who missed the first nine games with an injury. Since returning three weeks ago and playing limited minutes in a 1-0 loss at Texas, she's taken over the team lead with five goals and had scored on five of her 10 shots.
"We could say that with a number of our players," Lenard said. "We've been missing key players in the front line all season. Getting one back has shown what this team is capable of just with one of those players back.
"We still don't have Taylor (Moon) back and we obviously don't have Mackenzie Anthony. That's part of the game. Unfortunately, injuries happen, and you've got to be able to ride that out. Though we didn't get the results we needed early in the season, we hung in long enough that we could get one of our kids back."
After an 0-1-2 start in conference play, Texas Tech has strung together four-straight wins and is tied for second in the Big 12 standings with 14 points. Ashleigh Williams is third in the league with nine goals, while goalkeeper Madison White is second in goals-against average (0.688 per game).
"At this point in our season, we're not overly concerned about what our opponent's doing," Lenard said. "When we buckle down and we get things right on our side, then we perform well and we've gotten some positive results. When we've lost, it hasn't necessarily been because of our opponent. It's been because we've conceded some bad goals.
"We've essentially handed some games away that we really felt like, had we just stuck to our game strategy and executed better, we could have won. That's what this game is about."
After their last road trip, the Bears will finish the regular season with home games against TCU at 1 p.m. Sunday and Oklahoma State (10-2-3, 3-1-2) at 7 p.m. next Thursday, Oct. 27.
"I think a lot of it is still one game at a time," Patterson said, "especially with the next three opponents that we have. We can't look at the big picture. It's more, we have to focus on each game and getting the result that we need for each game."
STORY LINES
- Baylor will split time on the road and at home this week as they first take on Texas Tech in Lubbock, Texas on Thursday and then will return home to host No. 12 TCU on Sunday.
- The Bears are 18-7-4 all-time against the Red Raiders, defeating them last season at home, 3-2.
- The Bears are 14-2-4 all-time against the Horned Frogs, taking down the then ranked No. 8 team in Fort Worth, 2-1, their last win over a ranked opponent.
- Texas Tech, who is 4-1-2 in conference play, is on a five-game conference win streak, defeating both Kansas and Kansas State last week.
- In conference play so far this season, No. 12 TCU is 4-0-2 after playing only one game last week against Oklahoma State and defeating them, 3-0.
- The Bears are 4-8-2 overall, 2-4-0 in conference play so far this season, coming off of a win against Iowa State and a loss to West Virginia.
- Continuing her momentum from last week, Reneta Vargas netted two more goals in the Bears 3-2 victory over Iowa State. Also contributing a goal to the win was Elizabeth Kooiman who scored her first goal of the season.
- Against West Virginia, Ashley Merrill scored the Bears lone goal, netting her first goal of conference play and her fourth goal of the season.
- Giving the Bears an assist this week were Merrill who assisted both of Vargas' goals against ISU and Sarah Hornyak who gave Kooiman the assist she needed.
- Coming back from injury, Reneta Vargas played her first-career minutes against Texas and has made four conference starts since. She was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Week on Oct. 11 for her three goals in two games. She was the second Bear this season to win the conference's Freshman of the week award.
- Five different Bears have started in all 14 of BU's games this season, three defenders and two midfielders.
- BU has had 26 different players see playing time this season, with 13 of them being newcomers to the team.
- Ashley Merrill's 10 points, 25 shots and 14 on goal leads the Bears.
- Freshman, Hallie Augustyn earned the Bears first Big 12 weekly award, as she was tabbed the conference's Freshman of the Week for her work against Houston and Iowa on Sept. 6, 2021.
- For Gabby Mueller's game winning goal against Florida on Aug. 25, she was named Top Drawer Soccer's National Team of the Week Honorable Mention.
- Kayley Ables was the lone Baylor player named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team. A fifth-year senior for the program, she has been a key component to the Baylor backline, aka the "No-Goal Patrol."
- Taylor Moon was named a preseason Forward to Watch this season by United Soccer Coaches.
- With coach Lenard's new playing philosophy, BU defeated both LSU (3-1) and UTSA (2-1) in preseason exhibition matches with five different Baylor players scoring goals.
- The NCAA has done away with overtime during the regular season this year, meaning that every game will end at the end of the 90-minute regulation time.
- BaylorBears.com -
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