By Carson Vercoe | Sports Writer
Thursday night did not start on the right foot for Baylor soccer. The rain in Austin delayed the match by almost an hour, and Texas jumped ahead 15 minutes into the match as forward Ava McDonald sent a pass across the box to forward Callan Harrington, leaving fifth-year goalkeeper Azul Alvarez frozen as the ball went into the net.
Baylor (3-1-0) stormed back with two unanswered goals to beat Texas (3-1-1) 2-1 in the Bears’ third SEC matchup of the season.
Baylor looked to make a statement after dropping a game to No. 21 Texas State 3-0 and falling out of the Top 25 earlier in the week.
The Longhorns held most of the possession right from the kickoff but were unable to generate a high volume of shots. Baylor set the tone early with three shots to the Longhorns’ one while holding the ball less than the hosts.
Texas’ continued possession became too much for the Bears when it took a 1-0 lead off the Harrington goal.
Both teams continued to put up shots after the early goal, combining for eight shots through the next 15 minutes, but none were able to fall.
Baylor continued to rack up shots until senior midfielder Aryanna Jimison got the ball at her feet, made a defender miss and sent a shot into the bottom right of the goal, tying the game 1-1.
The Longhorns ramped their attack up after the Bears’ goal, but the Baylor defense held up as the teams went into halftime even.
Both teams’ defensive adjustment slowed the game down at the start of the second half. The two sides focused on possessing the ball and figuring out each other’s defense, combining for five shots in the opening 20 minutes.
They started to press and put shots at the goal after the slower offensive pace to begin the half. Senior forward Theresa McCullough put the Bears in front 2-1 with a shot into the bottom left of the corner in the 74th minute.
Texas, with its back against the wall, leveled up its offensive intensity, putting up three shots to Baylor’s none, but the Bears defense stayed strong to win the match 2-1.
The win marked Baylor’s third win over SEC opponents after starting the season with victories over then-No. 10 Arkansas and Texas A&M.
The Bears will look to continue their winning ways when they take on Pepperdine. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. Sunday at Betty Lou Mays Field. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
