Texas came out victorious in a hard-fought defensive struggle against Iowa State that gave the team consecutive wins for the first time this season.  

The Longhorns looked to build off last week’s seven-goal effort against Kansas State when they made the trek to Ames, Iowa, to take on the Cyclones on Friday night.

The game was vital in determining seeding for postseason play. Both teams came into the game deadlocked in the Big 12 standings at 2–3 with four games remaining on the schedule.  

While Texas was able to generate some chances early on with five shots on goal coming in the first 20 minutes, Iowa State kept the Longhorns off the score sheet by making sure those shots came from far out. 

The first real scoring threat for either team came when Iowa State sophomore midfielder Mira Emma narrowly missed the net after forcing a turnover at midfield at the 21-minute mark.  

The Longhorns were able to maintain possession and keep the Cyclones from registering a single shot until the nine-minute mark. That changed when Iowa senior forward Courtney Powell forced senior Texas goalkeeper Savannah Madden to make an exceptional save on a close shot corner opportunity for the Cyclones.

Although sophomore Iowa State goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz maintained control of the Longhorns’ first four shots on goal, she nearly allowed a Longhorns goal at the 41-minute mark on a rebound that stemmed from a hard shot on goal from junior forward Cameron Brooks.
 
The first half featured a couple of decent chances on goal for both teams, but neither was able to establish enough possession to generate any momentum. The score remained deadlocked at 0-0 going into halftime.

The Longhorns did a better job of sustaining offensive zone time coming out of halftime but failed to capitalize on a prime scoring chance again when junior midfielder Carlee Allen missed the net from just inside the goal box at the 46-minute mark. 

Senior midfielder Haley Berg scored her 22nd career goal on a perfectly placed free kick after getting tripped up just outside of the goal box, putting the Longhorns ahead 1-0 after 53 minutes. 

Iowa State quickly responded and nearly tied the game when Emma sent the ball just over the crossbar following a sequence of well-executed passes on Texas’ side of the field.

After a brief onslaught of offensive opportunities in the opening minutes of the second half, both teams again struggled to produce quality chances as time dwindled. 

Iowa State generated some excitement at the 68-minute mark when Powell had the ball on her foot from just inside the Longhorns goal box, but the shot went just left as the Texas defense hounded her at the point of attack.    

That ended up being the last quality scoring chance of the night for either team, as the Longhorn defense never allowed another shot on goal for the remainder of the half and won the contest 1-0. 

The victory gives the Longhorns a .500 winning percentage and a much-needed boost going into a critical game against Oklahoma State next week.