PREVIEW: #25 Houston Heads to Face #8 Baylor - University of Houston Athletics

WACO, Texas — The #25 University of Houston Soccer team wraps the regular season against #8 Baylor at 7 p.m. Thursday at Betty Lou Mays Field.

Watch | Stats | Game Notes

BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIO
The Cougars are still in the running for a Big 12 Regular Season Championship. A Houston win over Baylor AND a Texas Tech loss AND a BYU loss or draw would secure the program's first league title.

LAST TIME OUT
Houston secured their first ranked win since 2021, winning 2-0 against #15 Kansas.

Fifth year Ella Morgan scored the first goal on the half volley in the 46th minute to put the Cougars up 1-0. Senior Ava Shannon would bury the dagger in the 79th minute to put Houston up 2-0.

ABOUT THE COUGARS

Houston returns 14 players from the 2025 season including three players that missed last season due to injuries.
Houston welcomes 15 newcomers including eight transfers and seven freshmen.
Fifth-years Ella Morgan and Morgan Donohue along with junior Casey Maddox were voted captains for the 2026 season. It is the second consecutive season Maddox has been voted a captain.
Sophomore Bailey Cate leads the Cougars with seven goals on the season.
Fourteen Cougars have scored a goal this season including seven players with multiple goals.
Houston goalkeepers have combined for 10 shutouts this season.
Houston is 17th in the country in goal differential which is good for second in the Big 12.
The Cougars are looking for their eighth conference win for the first time since 1999 when they won nine conference games.
The Cougars are #24 in RPI.
Junior Sierra McCluer earned Big 12 Goalkeeper of the Year for the second-straight week. It was the first time a Cougar won back-to-back conference player of the week since 2013.
Senior Ella Morgan earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week.
It's the first time since 2022 that a pair of Cougars earned Player of the Week honors in the same week.
Houston is six goals away from tying the program record for goals in a season.
The Cougars are ranked for the first time in program history, coming in at #25 in the IWSOC Week 12 poll.

ABOUT BAYLOR

Baylor enters the regular season finale with a 14-3-1 record and a 7-2-1 ledger in Big 12 play.
In their last match, the Bears dropped a 1-0 decision to #11 Texas Tech in Lubbock.
Baylor is ranked #8 in the IWSOC weekly poll and #9 in RPI.
Head Coach Michelle Lenard is in her fifth season with the Bears and has led them to a 49-34-15 record.
Aryanna Jimison leads the attack with eight goals this season.
Olivia Hess tops Baylor with eight assists.

HISTORY WITH BAYLOR

The Cougars meet the Bears for the 10th time and trail 1-7-1.
Houston has just one win over Baylor coming in Aug. 2006 in Houston.
The Cougars are 0-4 in games played in Waco.
Houston and Baylor tied the last match, 1-1, last season in Houston.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Soccer by purchasing tickets, providing NIL opportunities and by joining the Golden Goal Club which provides financial support directly to Houston Soccer for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarSoccer on X, formerly known as Twitter, and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarSoccer or on the team's Instagram page at @uhcougarsoccer.

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Players Mentioned

Bailey Cate

Morgan Donohue

Casey Maddox

Sierra McCluer

Ella Morgan

Ava Shannon