Spring-Check In: Baylor Soccer Acclimating to Extremely New Roster

In this new age of the transfer portal, coaching changes bring massive roster overhauls with immediacy. For Baylor Soccer that means a spring roster comprised of 19 players in their first or second semesters in Waco. Head Coach Michelle Lenard had just six players who had been Bears for multiple seasons playing in the team’s six exhibition games over the last couple of months.

The newest faces are certainly making up for that by making the biggest waves this spring though. Transfers Tyler Isgrig (TCU), Hannah Boughton (Ole Miss) and Natalie Vatter (Missouri) have all come on campus and made an immediate impact. 

Boughton has the No. 10 jersey and is starting in the midfield while Isgrig is wearing No. 11 and scoring goals in nearly every scrimmage for the Bears.

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Tyler Isgrig (11) is a transfer F from TCU

“Some people can score and some are gonna score… and Tyler's gonna score,” said Coach Lenard of her new forward.

“She just finds a way, she's dangerous on both feet... one-v-one situations she shifty and can unbalance and really she has a rocket on both feet. So she's been a great addition.”

That is not to say that Isgrig is a one-woman show. Her connection with the top returning attackers from last year, like Ashley Merrill and Jenna Patterson will mean a great deal to the offensive prospects of the 2023 team.

“They fit great,” Coach Lenard says, “They're all getting along. They're all like-minded, they want the same things. They have a similar mindset in how they want to play the game. So the chemistry has been fantastic.” 

Specifically for Isgrig, Lenard added that the former Frog can “serve a heck of a ball”, racked up a couple assists in the two scrimmages on the day of my interview with coach, and is a “big weapon in several different ways” for the Bears.

After Ashley Merrill and freshman Renata Vargas, the top scorers for the 2022 Bears, combined for just nine goals, a front line of Isgrig, Patterson and Skyler Zinnecker backed by Merrill in the attacking midfield role and Vargas off the bench sounds much more prolific.

Who is Skyler Zinnecker though? And why should Baylor fans be excited to see her on Betty Lou Mays field in the fall? 

Zinnecker is an early enrollee freshman forward from Westwood High School in Austin, Texas who nailed down a starting role through the spring.

As with any program looking to turn things around after a rough season, new faces coming in and quickly cementing starting roles is typically a good sign. Talent is being added to the program and we will see it on the field.

So with all four new faces this spring either in starting roles or playing big minutes off the bench like Natalie Vatter in defense, significant progress has been made it appears.

Four out of 11 players on the field is a huge difference, as Coach Lenard made sure to point out. Plus more help will come in the fall. 11 more players will join the squad in August, including Oklahoma transfer Makinzie Short who could prove to be another new starter for the Bears at goalkeeper.

There is a long way to go to the first game of the 2023 season, however. So there is time for plenty of competition amongst the squad, as well as time for bonds to form and leaders to emerge. 

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Ashley Merrill  (17) was the most consistent attacking threat for the Bears in 2022

Michelle Lenard noted that Merrill, Patterson and Isgrig were voted into leadership roles despite being relatively new to the team.

Coach went on to say that the returning players “have done really well. And the system has settled in. We've been just a lot more confident.”

So it seems that things are looking up from a roster standpoint. Though, there very well could be a little more attrition with a player or two looking to get more playing time elsewhere. 

Already at the end of the spring junior defender Sarah Hornyak announced that along with her early graduation from Baylor, she would be transferring to Texas. While losing a hardworking and solid defender is never optimal, things will roll on for the team.

The 20 players who were on the 2022 team will work to integrate the 11 newest players in the squad the same way they did for the four spring additions. And together they will all prepare for a challenging but balanced slate of games to come in the 2023 season.

“We'll see when we really get tested in the fall,” coach Lenard said of the strides her team has taken this spring, “but so far, we really feel like everybody's on the same page and rowing the boat in the same direction.” 

The opponents that boat will encounter will be released soon, with the Big 12 Soccer schedule expected to be released May 15th. So stay tuned for more Baylor Soccer coverage!