By Carson Vercoe | Sports Writer
While many fans get ready for the blackout football game on Saturday, No. 13 Baylor soccer had its own blackout Friday night against TCU in the first leg of the Revivalry weekend.
In front of 1,509 people in black, an attendance record at Betty Lou Mays Field, the Bears (12-2-1, 5-1-1) fought to a 1-0 win over the Horned Frogs (5-7-1, 2-5-0).
The win marks Baylor’s first win against TCU in the Michelle Lenard era. It was previously 0-3-1 under Lenard before Friday night.
The Bears notched their fifth conference win of the season, moving them into second place in the Big 12.
“A huge result for us tonight,” Lenard said. “Another conference win, three points in a big rivalry game.”
TCU held the ball for most of the first 20 minutes. The Horned Frogs pressured fifth-year goalkeeper Azul Alvarez, but she made two saves on four shots.
Windy conditions from the Brazos River helped TCU shut down the Baylor offense for most of the first half.
“The first 20 minutes were still really windy, and they were trying to use the wind,” head coach Michelle Lenard said. “They were hitting a lot of long balls, and then we were having trouble getting it out of our own end.”
Baylor started to find its offense, putting up three shots in a short span before it found the net.
Sophomore midfielder Olivia Hess sent a ball into the box in the 25th minute, earning the Bears a throw-in. But after a video review, Baylor was awarded a penalty kick after Horned Frog midfielder Kamdyn Fuller committed a handball inside the box.
Leading scorer and senior midfielder Aryanna Jimison took the kick for the Bears. Her low ground ball smacked off the post, but Jimison sprinted in and tapped it in as TCU defenders crashed in.
“There was no thought in my mind, just put it in the back of the net,” Jimison said.
Lenard had mixed feelings about how officials determine whether a player’s arm is in an unnatural position or not, but she still embraced the Bears’ scoring opportunity because of the handball.
“I don’t know if I like this rule or not, frankly,” Lenard said. “Today it helped us, and we got out with the win, but it’s been pretty inconsistent.”
Video review saved Baylor again in the 36th minute after a goal from Fuller was disallowed for another handball by the Horned Frogs.
Baylor came out of the half with the same intensity it ended the half with. The Bears outshot the Horned Frogs 4-1 in the first 35 minutes of the second half, but no team was able to put one away.
As the second half progressed, both teams ramped up the physicality, committing multiple fouls and hard tackles.
TCU picked up the pace on the attack with its back against the wall. The Horned Frogs had five shots in the last five minutes, but Alvarez denied every attempt as Baylor claimed the 1-0 victory.
Alvarez picked up her third clean sheet of the season, and it came against the team she spent two years at.
“I know it’s not a lot of clean sheets right now, but we are planning to fix that,” Alvarez said. “But it means a lot, especially to a team I came from.”
Baylor will hit the road for three straight games, starting at 8 p.m. Thursday against Arizona State at Sun Devil Soccer and Lacrosse Stadium in Tempe, Arizona.
