AUSTIN, Texas — Cyera Hintzen’s late goal gave No. 17 Texas an early leg up on ending West Virginia’s dominance in Big 12 women’ soccer.
Taking a pass between two defenders, Hintzen scored in the 88th minutes to give the Longhorns a 1-0 upset Sunday that snapped WVU’s 24-match regular-season unbeaten streak in conference.
Texas (10-0, 2-0) remained the lone unbeaten team in Division I
“I was actually kind of stunned that I got the ball in the box with so much time because usually people are collapsing really quickly,” said Hintzen, the league’s reigning offensive player of the year. “We also had a lot of really great opportunities, and I just knew that this one had to go in the back of the net.
“I was pretty confident that it was going to be on frame, and it was just a really great feeling with such little time left.”
The Mountaineers (8-3, 1-1), five-time champions since joining the Big 12, had not lost a conference regular-season match since 2013. They nearly scored the equalizer with 74 seconds remaining on a cross from Sh’Nia Gordon to Michaela Abam. Posted in front of the goal line, Abam immediately directed the ball toward the net but Longhorns goalkeeper Nicole Curry stuffed the attempt for her fifth save.
“They had been doing it all game, coming off blocks and then popping it in, so I felt ready for it,” Curry said. “So when she crossed, I just moved over to stay in line with the ball so when the shot came I was there.”
West Virginia keeper Rylee Foster made five saves, one on Hintzen just six minutes before the game-winner. Texas held a 14-13 edge in shots on the Mountaineers, who entered the day with a 36-1-3 record in the Big 12.
“This was a hard-fought match between two nationally ranked teams,” West Virginia coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “You have to credit Texas for finding the game-winner. Both teams battled today. This is a good opportunity to work on some things and get better as we move forward in Big 12 play.”