By Nate Maki | Sports Writer
Looking to ride momentum after shutting out Arizona State, Baylor soccer dropped its final home game of the season against West Virginia, 2-0, on Sunday afternoon at Betty Lou Mays Field.
The Bears (7-6-3, 2-4-2 Big 12) opened the first half strong as they immediately took possession. The first shot came off the foot of junior forward Tyler Isgrig in the 6th minute. The shot was on frame, but deflected by West Virginia (10-3-2, 6-1-1 Big 12).
“I really thought we had a good matchup going into it,” head coach Michelle Lenard said. “I’m just really frustrated at how we handled some of those moments. Outside of that, I really thought we did well.”
The Bears’ strong start didn’t last long. After nine shots by the Mountaineers, they broke the scoreless bout in the 43rd minute. West Virginia sophomore defender Olivia Shertzer found the back of the net after moving through an open backfield, and sending a shot over the head of junior goalkeeper Azul Alvarez. Without any more pressure, the Mountaineers took a 1-0 lead into halftime.
“I think the team’s mentality was really good coming back from it,” junior defender Hallie Augustyn said. “We were just trying to attack the goal, and I think we accomplished that really well, we just couldn’t find the back of the net. I’m glad we kept working at it.”
The Mountaineers burst out of the break and put the pressure on with a shot in the 46th minute. Alvarez dove and defelced the shot, but it ricocheted into the net for the Mountaineers second goal, extending their lead 2-0.
“It kills me that that goal happened so early,” Lenard said. “It’s hard to come back from 2-0. We responded well in the second half, but it was too little, too late. I think we can turn this around and win three more games, I really do. It’s just a matter of finishing the job and finding a way to win.”
From then on it was a race against the clock for the Bears as they rushed to get points on the board. The green and gold put up an impressive 11 shots in the second half, outshooting the Mountaineers’ 4, but still couldn’t find the back of the net.
Their last opportunity to score came in the 86th minute when Isgrig weaved through a swarm of defenders and launched a shot that skimmed the top of the crossbar.
“We talk about the first five [minutes] and last five all the time, so it’s unlucky we didn’t succeed in those moments,” Augustyn said. “It’s really frustrating when we put everything in to try and get that goal. It’s just important that we keep that confidence up. We’re a good team and we know that.”
The Bears will be back in action at 8 p.m. Thursday against BYU (5-5-4, 3-2-2 Big 12) at South Field in Provo, Utah.
