MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Key first-half goals and an impressive defensive showing helped the No. 3-ranked West Virginia University women's soccer team open its Big 12 Conference season with a 2-0 win over Baylor tonight in front of 1,374 fans at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.

 

The win pushes the four-time reigning Big 12 champion Mountaineers' home conference unbeaten streak to 31, the third-longest active streak in the nation. It is WVU's (9-1-1, 1-0) 14th straight conference victory in Morgantown.

 

Tonight's shutout, credited to freshman goalkeeper Rylee Foster, is the team's fifth of the season and first since blanking Princeton in a 3-0 win at DDSS on Sept. 16. The Mountaineers have posted a clean sheet in five of their last six Big 12 home matches.

 

The Mountaineer defense zoned in on the Bears' attack this evening and held BU (8-4-1, 1-1-1) to just four shots, three in the second half and none on-goal. The Bears, who entered the match boasting a 2.00 goals/game average, are the second team this season to not register a shot on-goal against the WVU defense.

 

“I told the team that they beat a great Baylor team,” WVU coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “Baylor plays a certain way, and they really believe in what they do, and they do it the best I've ever seen from a team. We wanted these points. We wanted to come back out on this field and get that victory.”

 

A goal from junior forward Michaela Abam was all the Mountaineers needed to support their defense tonight, as the Houston native tallied her team-best sixth score and second game-winner of the season just 3:11 into the match for the 16th-fastest goal in program history. Sophomore forward Sh'Nia Gordon added an insurance goal in the 31st minute.

 

“Every soccer game is about momentum, and I think that early goal really took a lot out of Baylor's sails,” Izzo-Brown said.

 

WVU finished with a 20-4 edge in shots and forced Sara Martinson into five saves. The Mountaineers also earned nine corner kicks to the Bears' one.

 

Abam's goal helped the Mountaineers negate the Bears' game plan early. Senior midfielder Ashley Lawrence did a fantastic job setting up the play, as she took the ball to the end line before sending a cross toward the right post, where a waiting Abam headed it behind Martinson. She now shows 26 career goals and needs two more scores to break onto WVU's all-time career goals list.

 

“(The early goal) was all about momentum and confidence,” Izzo-Brown added. “The game of soccer is so much about rhythm. I thought starting the game with Ashley Lawrence sending that great ball in and Michaela getting that early score really set the tone. It helped the nerves and was a good momentum opportunity for us.”  

 

Lawrence's assist was the 22nd of her career, moving her into a tie for seventh place with All-Americans Frances Silva (2010-13) and Kate Schwindel (2011-14) on the program's all-time career assist list.

 

The Mountaineers scored in almost identical fashion less than 30 minutes later. Sophomore forward Hannah Abraham and Gordon connected for the score, with Abraham sending the end-line ball into Gordon, who was waiting just below the penalty-kick line. She quickly buried her shot toward the right post for her third goal of the year.

 

BU's leading scorer, sophomore forward Lauren Piercy, threaten to cut into the Mountaineers' lead early in the second half. With the ball in the 49th minute, she slipped past the WVU backline and earned a clean look at the net just outside the box, but her high shot went wide of the left post and out of play.

 

Ranked No. 1 in the Big 12 with a 0.5 goals/game average, Piercy was held to just one shot all match.

 

Sophomore forward Grace Cutler looked to pad the Mountaineers' lead in the 68th minute, as she pushed the ball up to Lawrence, but the ensuing low shot wide left of the box skimmed the right post and went out of play.

 

Twelve minutes later, Cutler was fouled hard just inside the box, drawing a penalty kick for the Mountaineers. Senior defender Kadeisha Buchanan stepped to the line, but her attempt was stopped at the post by Martinson.

 

The teams exchanged final attempts in the match's waning minutes. BU's Aline De Lima sent a behind-the-back shot toward the net in the 84th minute, but the ball went wide of the right post. Sophomore defender Bianca St. Georges responded for WVU in the 86th minute with a blast from beyond the box, but Martison was able to get to the right post for the save.

 

Abam paced the field with five shots, three on-frame. Buchanan and Gordon each tallied three shots.

 

With the win, WVU improves to 4-0-1 all-time against BU.

 

The Mountaineers continue their Big 12 season-opening weekend against No. 23 Oklahoma on Sunday, Oct. 2, at 3 p.m. The match will be broadcast on ESPNU.

 

Sunday is a Dollar Day, and all tickets will be available for $1 each. It also is WVU's annual Pink Match, and all fans are encouraged to wear pink to support breast cancer awareness.