Texas soccer has played five games since the team lost senior forward Trinity Byars to a knee injury in a match against Central Michigan on Sept. 1. Though there hasn’t been an official report of Byars’ injury, she has been wearing a knee brace and it is unknown if she will return for the remainder of the season. In the five-game stretch since Byars got hurt, Texas has won three times, lost once and tied once, producing 11 goals without the forward.
Prior to her injury this season, Byars netted five goals and three assists, including a four-goal haul against SMU. As the program’s top scorer with 52 goals, Byars left a notable hole in the squad. Thankfully for head coach Angela Kelly, the team has been able to step up amidst Byars’ absence.
“We have to be able to be the next person up,” Kelly said about winning 2-0 against Central Michigan despite Byars’ injury. “The best way to show (Byars) that we love her is by the response. By putting it all on the field, I thought the team had a great response.”
Senior forward Holly Ward and sophomore forward Avery Clark have been the “next people up” in place of Byars in the starting lineup, each providing a different style of the team.
Ward, with more experience, plays the forward role with more freedom due to her expertise on how to attack the defense. Ward is typically seen making a run behind the defense to receive the ball so that the defender has to chase her down to get it back. This leads to one-on-one situations where she can either attempt to dribble past the defender or combine with one of her teammates. Regardless of her attack attempt, Ward is ready to set up scoring opportunities for the Longhorns, and so far has registered one goal and one assist for Texas.
On the flip side, Clark, with her 5-foot-11-inch stature, is one of the tallest on the team. Because of this, she acts as a different asset for the Longhorns’ attack. Instead of running to receive the ball, Clark uses her physical abilities to receive and shield it from defenders, baiting them to try and win the ball back. While this happens, midfielders are able to make their own runs past defenders who are out of position. Clark’s tall stature also makes her a promising target on crosses and corners, heading one goal against CSU Bakersfield.
“We’re bouncing back pretty good, and people are stepping up into those roles in different ways,” senior midfielder Lexi Missimo said.
Missimo herself is also stepping up into forward roles. After losing Byars, it’s Missimo’s first time playing with her childhood teammate.
“I played with her since I was 7 to 8 years old, and I haven’t played soccer without her. It was definitely very impactful,” Missimo said. “I would change my game a bit because I would have to be the one who makes the runs in behind instead of it being (Byars).”
Texas soccer, while successful in the attack to end the preseason, produced a mixed bag of offensive performances in its first two conference games. With 19 shots against Alabama, but only seven versus Mississippi State, players such as Ward and Clark will have to keep finding ways to fill Byars’ shoes.
