The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Thursday, September 23
Manhattan, Kan.
7 p.m. CT
University of Texas
at
Kansas State
Soccer preview: at Kansas State
09.22.2021 | Soccer
The Longhorns head out on the road to open Big 12 Conference play in the "Little Apple"
Match 10: Texas (4-3-2) at Kansas State (5-4-0)
Time: Thursday, Sept. 23 – 7 p.m. CT
Location: Manhattan, Kan. (Buser Family Park)
Live Stats: LINK
TV: The match will be web-streamed live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and can be watched online through this LINK.
Free Kicks:
- Texas holds a 5-0-0 all-time record against Kansas State, including a 2-0-0 mark at Buser Family Park in Manhattan, Kan. Entering Thursday, the Longhorns have never allowed a Wildcat goal, outscoring KSU by a combined 15-0.
- Texas owns a 14-9-2 all-time record in Big 12 Conference openers. The Longhorns are 6-2-1 in league lidlifters under the guidance of head coach Angela Kelly and have won three of their last four Big 12 openers (at Kansas, 1-0, 2019; vs. Baylor, 2-1 OT, 2018; vs. Iowa State, 1-0, 2017). Last year, Texas lost its league opener to Kansas, 1-0.
- With full credit to Lexi Missimo's dad Derek, who coined the "Run BMG" moniker on Twitter, Texas has its very own trio creating "music" on the pitch this season. It may not be rap like the legendary "Run DMC," but their efforts have been impossible to ignore as freshman forward Trinity Byars, freshman midfielder Lexi Missimo and senior midfielder Julia Grosso have powered he Longhorns offense. Check out what the trio has contributed to the Texas attack below:
-- 14 of Texas' 18 total goals in 2021 - 78 PERCENT
-- 12 of Texas' 17 total assists in 2021 - 71 PERCENT
-- 40 of Texas' 53 total points in 2021 - 75 PERCENT
-- Have combined to score 10 of Texas' last 12 goals dating back to Sept. 12
- The dynamic freshman scoring duo of Lexi Missimo and Trinity Byars is officially off-and-running now as the pair have combined to score nine of Texas' last 11 goals against UTRGV (Sept. 12), Samford (Sept. 16) and SIUE (Sept. 19). Missimo curently leads the Big 12 in goals (15th in NCAA Division I - seven) and points (ninth in Division I - 19), while Byars is tied for fourth in points (13) and for eighth in goals (four).
- Byars was honored on Sept. 21 as the Big 12 Conference's Offensive Player and Freshman of the Week and was also an honorable mention selection for Top Drawer Soccer's National Team of the Week. The freshman forward scored three goals, including her first career "golden goal," to go with an assist as Texas swept Samford and SIUE.
- The Longhorns currently lead the Big 12 Conference and rank 10th in all of NCAA Division I in shots-per-game at 21.6. Freshman midfielder Lexi Missimo is tied for the Big 12 lead with 41 total shots, while freshman forward Trinity Byars rates tied for fifth with 31.
- Texas players have recorded four multi-goal efforts so far in 2021 as Lexi Missimo has done it twice (New Mexico State, UTRGV), while senior midfielder Julia Grosso (New Mexico State) and freshman Trinity Byars (Samford) have each recorded a brace.
- Following her four-goal performance against UTRGV (Sept. 12), Texas freshman midfielder Lexi Missimo was named to the Top Drawer Soccer National Team of the Week (Honorable Mention) and picked up her second straight nod as the Big 12 Conference's Freshman of the Week (Sept. 14). MISSIMO IS ONE OF JUST FOUR PLAYERS IN ALL OF NCAA DIVISION I IN 2021 TO SCORE FOUR GOALS IN A MATCH.
- Lexi Missimo now owns an impressive 10 career goals, seven career assists and 27 career points over her first 12 collegiate matches. She became the fastest Longhorns player to reach 10 goals in program history, breaking former Longhorns All-American Kelly Wilson's (2001) record by one match.
- Texas senior defender Emma Regan has been voted as one of the team leaders for a reason. It's because she provides a consistent presence in the Longhorns backline. The Burnaby, British Columbia, native has played in Texas' last 49 matches and is riding a streak of 45 consecutive starts dating back to Oct. 25, 2018. For her career, Regan has played in 55 total matches with 54 starts. As a freshman in 2018, she missed numerous matches due to a Team Canada call-up for senior-level international duty at the CONCACAF Women's Championship.
