Baylor Bear Insider
With ties against a pair of top-15 teams in the fall, coach Paul Jobson said Baylor soccer (3-3-3) did "enough to keep ourselves in the conversation" for a spot in this spring's scaled-down 48-team NCAA tournament.
"I just wanted to make sure that we didn't mess up by not scheduling hard enough to be able to get in," said Jobson, whose team has begun preparation for a spring schedule that includes an exhibition game against No. 8 Texas A&M (7-1-0) on Feb. 27 and a matchup against No. 3 TCU (8-0-1) on March 6.
"I think we put ourselves in a good position to get in, if we take care of business. I don't believe that we're too far into the bubble, but we're definitely not out of it. Now, we've got to get some quality results, where hopefully (the NCAA committee) doesn't have to make the decision. Hopefully, we can make it easy."
The Bears' regionalized schedule also includes home dates against Texas (March 11), LSU (March 18), Louisiana (March 27) and Texas Tech (April 17) and a road game on April 10 at Oklahoma.
"We're fortunate that we're in an area where there's a lot of schools within driving distance . . . that are viable opponents that we could reach out to," Jobson said. "We're blessed in that way. As a conference, I think we did a really good job of supporting each other and making sure that we got games. Those are games that will hopefully not only help us to compete to get into the NCAA tournament but also develop as a team."
After taking nearly a three-month break following a 1-0 overtime win over Oklahoma on Nov. 6, the Bears jumped back into practice two weeks ago.
"What people may or may not know about our sport is that we're used to extended breaks," Jobson said. "We take the entire summer off, we're not allowed to work with our players the entire summer. They show up for fall, and we have to be ready to compete. If there's any benefit, our players should be used to that."
Baylor's freshmen accounted for four of the team's nine goals and five assists in the fall, with Mackenzie Anthony, Chloe Japic and Gabby Mueller named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team. The program's all-time leader with 31 career shutouts, senior goalkeeper Jennifer Wandt was joined on the All-Big 12 second team by juniors Kayley Ables and Taylor Moon.
"For some of (the freshmen), you can already see a difference," Jobson said. "I hate to use the word confidence, but . . . now they know they belong. Now, they know that they can compete at this level. Your first couple of months as a freshman, you're trying to prove not only to your team but to yourself that you belong. And they've done that. There is an air of confidence about them on the field."
Ables and Japic were part of Baylor's "No Goal Patrol" backline that pitched six shutouts in the fall, including scoreless ties against Big 12 champion TCU and 11th-ranked Oklahoma State.
"We won't get our 20 hours (of practice) until the middle of next week, but we've been able to get a lot done," Jobson said. "We're kind of considering it a mini-preseason where we're coming out of a break and trying to make sure our fitness is where it needs to be and our mentality and starting to throw in some X's and O's competition as we ramp up to our exhibition."
Baylor's four home games in the spring are scheduled to be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
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RAMPING UP AGAIN - BaylorBears.com
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