On a chilly Friday night in Austin, Texas, soccer fought tooth and nail in front of 1,645 supporters against storied rival Texas A&M. The Longhorns prevailed in a hard-fought match, winning 3-1 to move onto the second round.

No love was lost between the two teams. Despite many of the players on both teams playing in the Dallas area when they were younger, the intensity on the field was high with physical play throughout. 

“There was a lot of tension even before the game, stuff was posted, people just feed into all of that,” sophomore midfielder Ashlyn Miller said. “Before the game, we had all this juice and energy, and we just wanted to kill them. In the match it was the same exact energy.”

Texas has been a momentum-based team all season, relying on early goals to spark an eventual offensive onslaught. Sophomore midfielder Jilly Shimkin’s 12th minute goal off of a free kick gave the Longhorns all the cushion they needed to take more risks down the field and push the attack.

“Getting the first (goal) was really important, and we knew getting the second was going to be even more important,” head coach Angela Kelly said. “At halftime, I told them I didn’t think it was just going to take two, so we wanted to push for (the advantage).”

Despite the two-goal difference on the scoreboard, the game was much closer than the box score indicates. At the half, Texas A&M led Texas in total shots 4-3, managing to pressure graduate goalkeeper Savannah Madden throughout the opening period. However, in the second half, the Longhorns outshot the Aggies 13-4 and put themselves in complete control of the game.

“We played mature, we played smart in moments,” Kelly said. “We could have made quicker decisions to give ourselves a little less stress, … but that’s a good opponent, a tough matchup from the NCAA, and I think we had a good response.”

Texas’ attack, just like it has been all season, was spearheaded by its group of impact sophomores. Shimkin, Miller, forward Trinity Byars and midfielder Lexi Missimo combined for all three goals and an assist, with Miller scoring her first goal in over a year to put the nail in Texas A&M’s coffin. The sophomore class gave Kelly a lot to work with offensively, making her job that much easier to scheme up success.

“I’ve been playing with Lexi and (Trinity Byars) my entire life, and then to add Jilly and Emma (Regan) into the mix, it’s just completely outrageous,” Miller said. “Our connection and what we have on the field is unbeatable.”

Texas might be riding high after its first round victory, but the Longhorns are staring down the barrel of a potential matchup with No. 2-seeded Duke in the second round. Despite the energy, Miller is confident that her team will be prepared to keep the Longhorns’ postseason dreams alive in the second round.

“I think (the win) gives us a bit of confidence,” Miller said. “But, I think we’re not very cocky, I think we’re very humble. … If anything, (this win) is going to humble us more (potentially) going to play Duke.”