Preview: Baylor Soccer Aims to Keep Hot Start Rolling against Rivals Texas A&M

Baylor Soccer is aiming to follow up the statement win at No. 10 Arkansas on Wednesday night with a second straight victory over an SEC opponent. Former conference foe Texas A&M is coming to Waco for a Sunday night bout with a new coach at the helm of the Aggieland program. 

This is what you need to know, starting with the quick facts:

• Baylor went undefeated against the SEC last year (2-0-1) with wins against Texas and Mississippi State. The lone draw was the season opener at Texas A&M. 
• Since 2000, Baylor is 2-11-4 against the Aggies, but Michelle Lenard is undefeated in the series at 1-0-2. 
• Former Texas A&M G. Guerrieri retired after his 33rd season in charge, leading the Aggies to hire Florida State assistant coach Bobby Shuttleworth. More on Shuttleworth and his style later.
• Kickoff Sunday night is at 7:30 p.m., and entry is free. It is a “Green Out” and a limited number of free T-shirts will be available. Stream the game on ESPN+ if you can’t make it.

Now for the specifics:

The Bears are carrying serious momentum right now after dismantling No. 10 Arkansas 4-1 in the season opener in Fayetteville. While the confidence gained can be a positive for the season at large, Michelle Lenard knows that she can’t let one result get her players carried away.

“It gives us a lot of confidence going into not just this upcoming game, but going into the rest of the season that if we commit to our plan and we execute at a high level, that we can play with anybody and succeed … the only game that matters in sports is the next one. And so we told the team as soon as the game ended, we're going to enjoy this tonight, and then tomorrow when we wake up, we get back on the bus to go back to Waco. It's focused on A&M.”

Even when asked to look back at the success, senior forward Callie Conrad circled back to the Aggies. 

“Even though our styles of play were definitely a mismatch with Arkansas, we were able to execute ours at a high level. So we're hoping to do that against A&M. We're not exactly sure what we're going to see from them with a new coaching staff coming in in the spring, but just preparing to play our game.”

Now don’t get too concerned at the bit about not knowing what to expect from the Aggies. They have a new head coach in Bobby Shuttleworth, a two-time national championship-winning assistant at Florida State, and they are at the start of the first transition season. 

Shuttleworth’s stated goals are establishing a “fast-paced, aggressive and high-scoring team that opponents dread facing” and “We just want to be dynamic, high-pressing and energetic”.

On top of that, there is the baseline expectation of SEC toughness, and Conrad added a comment about expecting more direct play. When that all mixes together in my head, I’m left thinking of Andoni Iraola’s Bournemouth of the last couple years for a stylistic comparison. That is a high-pressing, never-stop-running, direct-but-not-afraid-to-possess style. 

Back to the Bears, they are in year five of the Lenard Era, and it was clear as day on the field on Wednesday night. The Bears have great understanding of their system, and they have it in depth. 

When asked about attacking depth in reference to the Bears’ third goal, Lenard had this to say: “ I think the fluidity in our play showed up in that goal that you're describing as well. Theresa [McCullough] was playing as a winger, but she was in the midfield. Liv [Hess] was coming out of the midfield when she made that run, looked like a left winger, and that's exactly how we want to be playing… I thought we played really versatile, flexible, intuitive soccer. And we have a lot of players that can do that for us.”

Frankly, the cohesiveness, understanding and fluidity that the Bears played with at Arkansas was just not there two years ago and is even a notable step forward from last year. Texas A&M will have seen all of this during film study, and they will force Baylor to do one of the other most important things in sports: adapt. 

Lenard sees adaptability as another strength of her squad. Arkansas played them differently than they were preparing for. The Bears adjusted and led 1-0 at halftime before having to adjust again when the Hogs shifted tactics around halftime. 

So the matchup is set: new-look, high-energy, aggressive Aggies against confident, cohesive, adaptable Bears. Throw in the rivalry aspect, and it should be a great show.

“I mean, a local rival right down the road … We recruit a lot of the same kids. We have an A&M transfer on our team who played fantastic against Arkansas (Bella James). These kids all know one another, so yeah, it's a big deal. We should have a great turnout. A&M travels well, so we need all the Baylor folks to come out and support us on Sunday. We don't want to have more maroon in the stands than we do green. So big challenge. Everybody, come out, watch us, support the girls, get behind this team because they're really fun to watch!”

And don’t think that the crowd doesn’t make a difference to the players.

“That'd be amazing. I would love that,” said senior winger Lauren Omholt. “I thrive off of energy from the fans and from the sidelines … We definitely have it all on our sideline, and to see it also in the stands would be amazing.”

Kickoff Sunday night is at 7:30 p.m., and entry is free. It is a “Green Out” and a limited number of free T-shirts will be available. Stream the game on ESPN+ if you can’t make it.