MORGANTOWN—One season ago, the West Virginia University women’s soccer team failed to reach 10 wins in a season for the second time in program history.
With a 2-0 victory over Baylor last Sunday, the Mountaineers (10-3-2, 6-1-1 Big 12) earned their 10th win of the current campaign and the 400th victory in program history.
As the only head coach WVU has had for the women’s soccer program, Nikki Izzo-Brown says 400 wins is a significant number and a milestone to be celebrated.
“First and foremost, our success doesn’t happen without the players, staff, administration, and support I’ve always had here,” she said. “It’s a big number, but it’s hard to celebrate big milestones like that sometimes in the heat of the season, especially when a team like Texas Tech is your next opponent. Most importantly for me, though, is connecting with all of the people from the past who have been a pleasure to work with.”
The Mountaineers suffered their first conference defeat last Thursday, 3-1, at the hands of nationally ranked TCU in Fort Worth. However, they turned around and earned a clean sheet against Baylor three days later. Izzo-Brown was pleased with her team’s response after the defeat to TCU just days prior.
“After that TCU loss, we really focused on what we needed to check to get better, and our girls impressed me with their performance on Sunday,” Izzo-Brown said. “The parity in this league is so hard. I told the team that this season isn’t a sprint; it’s a marathon. I’ve learned over time that winning doesn’t necessarily make you a winner, and when you lose, it doesn’t make you a loser. It’s mostly about how you react to each game and each day and how you improve on those days.”
WVU must continue trending in a positive direction as they enter the final stretch of the regular season with a pair of huge matches at home this week.
Something that has been a positive this season for Izzo-Brown and her team is the dispersion of scoring and assisting.
Through 15 games in 2024, ten different Mountaineers have found the back of the net, led by junior striker Ajanae Respass, who has six goals. Four other players have contributed at least three goals, with three scoring four or more.
Along with scoring, WVU has shared the ball efficiently, assisting on 25 of its 27 goals in 2024. Six different Mountaineers have provided three or more assists in the campaign.
“One of the things we discussed as a key thing for us this season was a midfield who can score goals,” Izzo-Brown said. “We’ve stepped up in that position and responded to that concern. It’s crucial for us to have so many players contributing because that makes it a little harder to scout us and know where to shut us down. We can score at all ends and must ensure we keep the ball out of our net.”
On Thursday, WVU will welcome No. 24 Texas Tech (11-2-2, 6-0-2 Big 12) to Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium for a contest between two of the better sides in the conference.
“They are so tenacious and defend very well,” Coach Brown said. “They’re very organized and can score goals. We know that we will be playing a team that has grit about them and can score goals, and is stingy in allowing goals. We are still right there in it regarding the title race, and our girls are so focused on things like that. We know what’s still ahead of us and what is possible this season.”
