No. 15 Soccer rallies from first-half deficit, nets match-winner in closing seconds

Thursday, August 17

Long Beach, CA

9 PM

University of Texas

1-0-0, 0-0-0

Long Beach State

0-1-0, 0-0-0

Texas

Long Beach St.

Photo by: Joseph Jimenez

No. 15 Soccer rallies from first-half deficit, nets match-winner in closing seconds

08.18.2023 | Soccer

Box Score

The latest regulation goal in program history allows Texas to begin the 2023 season on a high note

By: Chris Allen Brown

LONG BEACH, Calif. – For over 80 minutes of Texas' 4-3 win at Long Beach State on Thursday night, it appeared the Beach had an answer for every Longhorn score. But there was no answer for Abby Allen's second-chance header with 17 seconds left in regulation.

Allen's goal will go down as the latest regulation goal to win a match in program history — besting the previous mark set by Julia Dyche in a 2-1 victory at Baylor on Oct. 26, 2014 by 13 seconds — but the UNC transfer's first goal as a Longhorn was setup by a freshman, Avery Clark, also playing in her first collegiate soccer match.

After a pass up field by a Long Beach State student-athlete sailed out of bounds, Lauren Lapomarda threw the ball into Allen, who sailed a pass from the Longhorns' defensive 18-yard box all the way to 15 yards beyond the midfield stripe. Clark, a 5-foot-11 forward, leaped into the air to try to keep possession, but was fouled as a Beach defender climbed her back.

As the Texas coaching staff was yelling instructions with time ticking, Lexi Missimo sent a free kick into the 6-yard box, where Trinity Byars and Ashlyn Miller — who combined to score three goals on the evening to help the Longhorns rally — were waiting.

But the first person to make contact with Missimo's kick was a Long Beach defender, who stepped in front of the Beach's goalkeeper and popped the ball up into the air, allowing Allen to flick the loose ball into the back of the net.

FROM HEAD COACH ANGELA KELLY

"(Over that last 30 seconds) I just saw great grittiness to draw the foul. We were just organized to be on the end of (the free kick). Abby Allen, obviously, read it well. Obviously, I'm really pleased any time we have a win — it's fantastic — but to get a road win in a back-and-forth match, I think that speaks a little bit to how our preseason went. We've been together for 16 days and I feel like this team is further along than maybe we were at this point last year, but I'm just proud of the group for sticking with it."

FROM SENIOR ABBY ALLEN

"With there being only 30 seconds left, I told myself I might as well get up there for the free kick and, of course, Lexi sends in a great ball, and I was just there to put it in. I was just like, 'Oh my gosh, I think this is going in,' and (Trinity) let it go, so shout out Trinity for giving me the goal."

GAME NOTES

Long Beach State's first-half goal — just 41 seconds into the match — was the quickest goal allowed by the Longhorns to begin a match since Oct. 2, 1997, when Texas A&M netted a goal just 50 seconds in a match.
With her goal in the 55', junior forward Trinity Byars became just the fourth student-athlete in program history to reach 30 career goals.
- Byars joins Kelly McDonald (46), Kelly Wilson (44) and Kelsey Carpenter (39) as Longhorn women's soccer student-athletes to have accomplish the feat.
Allen's match-winning goal was the first goal of her Texas career and first of her collegiate women's soccer career since scoring one against Denver on April 30, 2021, when the Austin native was a member of the University of North Carolina program.
Miller's goal, which also came off a Missimo free kick less than six minutes into the second half, was just the third on her three-year career and first since scoring in the 78' against Texas A&M in the opening round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament on Nov. 11, 2022.

UP NEXT

Texas (1-0-0) will now return back to the Lone Star State for its next match as the Longhorns are set the host the Rice Owls (0-1-0) at 2 p.m. CT on Sunday, Aug. 20.
- The match, which will represent Texas' home opener, can be seen on the Longhorn Network.

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