Soccer’s Ward turns in first career brace

Monday, October 23

Austin, TX

7 PM

University of Texas

12-4-2, 6-3-1

TCU

10-5-3, 6-2-2

TCU

Texas

10.24.2023 | Soccer

Box Score

Behind Holly Ward’s two second-half goals, Texas rallies for three unanswered to beat TCU

By: Chris Allen Brown

AUSTIN, Texas – Holly Ward's second-half offensive outburst in Texas' 4-2 win over TCU on Monday night was a long time in the marking, especially after her performance in the Longhorns' win at UCF five matches ago.

Coming into Monday night's action, Ward had only five career goals on 83 shots — 36 on goal — in 61 career matches played across three seasons on the Forty Acres. But the 5-foot-6 forward from North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada was able to put two of her four shots on goal past TCU's Lauren Kellett for her first career brace.

After Lexi Missimo pushed Texas ahead, 1-0, less than six minutes into the match, TCU (10-5-3, 6-2-2) responded with a pair of goals, including a Longhorn own goal, less than three minutes apart to give the Horned Frogs a 2-1 advantage after the night's first 45 minutes. But Texas tied the match at 2-2 when Ward headed a cross from Jilly Shimkin into the back of the net after just five-and-a-half minutes of game action in the second half.

Nearly 23 minutes later, Shimkin, again, connected with Ward with a near field-width length pass that Ward took from just past midfield all the way into the attacking 18-yard box and finishing with a thunderous goal to give the Longhorns a 3-2 lead.

Twelve minutes later, Texas capped its three unanswered second-half goal span with Olivia Ahern's third goal on the season and second in as many matches to all but seal the result with five minutes remaining.

FROM HEAD COACH ANGELA KELLY

"I was just really pleased with the result (tonight). Going into halftime down 2-1, obviously, I thought we could've been more of ourselves during the first half. We got a little bit loose, defensively, but we challenged them at halftime — as individuals and as a team — and I thought it was a great response. I'm really proud of Holly Ward. Tonight was what we've been wanting her to do her whole time here and she's more than capable, so I'm really, really happy for her."

FROM JUNIOR FORWARD HOLLY WARD

"I think, what was working for me tonight, was just being comfortable with the teammates I was playing with. I've been wanting a goal for a really long time now, so it felt good to be able to go for the shot instead of the cross. I was just able to do what I know I can do best and be myself."

MATCH NOTES

With her goal at the 5:30 mark of the first half, Lexi Missimo became the first Big 12 Conference women's soccer student-athlete to score 20-or-more goals in a single season (20) since Nebraska's Morgan Marlborough netted 21 as a freshman in 2009.
- Missimo is the only student-athlete in program history to score 20 goals in a single season.
By being credited with an assist on Olivia Ahern's second-half goal, Trinity Byars has been credited with 11 assists on the season, the most for the forward in a single season in her three seasons on the Forty Acres.
- The assist was also the 30th for Byars' career, making her just the fourth student-athlete in program history to be credited with 30-or-more assists throughout a Longhorn career.
Olivia Ahern has now recorded goals in back-to-back matches for the first time in her career.
- She has scored a pair of second-half goals at Houston on Sunday, Oct. 15 and against TCU on Monday, Oct. 23.
For the second consecutive match, junior midfielder Ashlyn Miller has been credited with two assists.
- Last time out, the McKinney, Texas native set a career high with a pair of assists at Houston on Sunday, Oct. 15, before matching that total against the Horned Frogs on Monday night.
Texas junior midfielder Jilly Shimkin was credited with a team-high three assists on the night, marking the most assists in a single match for the New York native.
- Shimkin became the first student-athlete to have three assists in a single match this season and joined Lexi Missimo as the only student-athletes in the program to have a match with 3-or-more assists this season.

UP NEXT

With the 2023 regular season now concluded, Texas (12-4-2, 6-3-1) will turn its attention to the upcoming 2023 Sprouts Farmers Market Big 12 Soccer Championship, which begins on Saturday, Oct. 28.
- More details regarding the league's upcoming postseason tournament will be released once finalized.

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