No. 9 WVU Women’s Soccer (5-0-1) is still a few days away from welcoming No. 12 Baylor to Morgantown Friday. The preparations for the top 15 showdown are well underway, and head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown knows the challenge the Mountaineers face. Read more: WVU Women’s Soccer faces toughest challenge yet when Baylor comes to town.
The Bears clock in at 7-1-0 with a ferocious attack and solid defense, matching up well on paper with the old gold and blue. This match has the potential makings of an incredible, intense Big 12 opener for the Mountaineers.
Aware of the challenge
The lone head coach in program history wasted little time in Monday’s media availability giving BU its flowers.
“We’re going to have a tough opponent coming to town,” Izzo-Brown said.
It is not an overstatement, either.
This is a Baylor squad that has racked up 17 goals in eight matches, averaging more than two per outing. The toughest part for the Mountaineers will be dealing with the myriad of offensive weapons, though. Five BU players have two or more goals already.
“It’s going to be a big challenge,” Izzo-Brown said. “They have firepower, they’ve got a huge kid transferring in from Houston who is very lethal and then obviously they have a great attack.”
Seeing what the Bears have to offer, Izzo-Brown knows what they will have to defend against.
“We’re going to have to be very balanced in our defensive set and understand that we have to be really good on both sides of the ball,” Izzo-Brown said.
Speaking of who the Mountaineers will have to defend against Friday…
Tough opposition
Those five aforementioned multi-goal scorers include Grace White (4), Aryanna Jimison (3), Lauren Omholt (3), Theresa McCullough (2), and Callie Conrad (2).
The scary part is, they are all team players. All but one of the five have two or more assists, making it an extremely well-balanced attack.
When Izzo-Brown mentioned a Houston transfer, she was referring to Jimison. The Mountaineers have shared a pitch with her before, as Jimison spent two seasons with the Cougars. WVU was able to keep her quiet in the most recent meeting less than a year ago.
How to handle the threat
Izzo-Brown did not give away everything Monday, but she mentioned one point of emphasis for her squad leading into the highly anticipated contest — to remember your specialty.
“Everybody’s got a craft,” Izzo-Brown said. “Everybody’s got a good understanding of what they can and can’t do, I hate to say can’t… but to make sure we’re playing inside ourselves and if we’re going to take a shot you’ve got to show coach you can do that 17,000 times in training.”
This comment comes following the team’s first non-win of the season, tying with UConn after getting a 1-0 jump early. It sounds as if she wants her team to know their limits and focus on their talents.
It is safe to say it could serve as a key to the match for the Mountaineers, because they have their toughest opponent yet rolling into town soon.
What’s next
WVU welcomes Baylor to Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Morgantown Friday. First touch is set for 7 p.m.
The match will be streaming on ESPN+ — the latest chapter in a series the Mountaineers have dominated, 10-2-2.
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