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Greater Goals

NCAA Elite Eight is great, but TCU women's soccer wants more.

By TCU Magazine

August 10^th, 2021

By Oscar Saravia

Grace Collins has the ball in the heat of the game. Moving away with a spectacular turn, the sophomore forward leaves West Virginia’s left back behind.

With two defenders to beat, she’s headed to the box. Collins with another magical turn! She skips the defenders, but can she finish it?

She shoots … and finds the back of the net for TCU in the 51st minute of the 90-minute game.

With Collins’ solo goal, TCU took a 1-0 lead over West Virginia in the Nov. 6, 2020, game that would decide the Big 12 soccer champion. But 39 minutes until the final whistle is an eternity in soccer, plenty of time for the other side to tie the game or even snatch the lead.

As the match approached its closing minutes, the excitement at Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Stadium built until it grew higher than it ever had been.

In a blink, the Frogs were seconds away from glory. Seconds away from a dream. Seconds away from a championship that had been denied since the program’s inception.

“This has been definitely years in the making,” said Emily Alvarado ’20, TCU’s goalkeeper and a member of Mexico’s national team. “It didn’t happen overnight.”

In the last five years, TCU has established itself as a top dog in Big 12 soccer by finishing second twice and qualifying for the NCAA tournament five times. In the recently ended season, the program made its first foray into the Top 10.

But until Nov. 6, the Horned Frogs lacked what every team desires: the big trophy.

Grace Collins prepares to deliver a powerful kick in a game against Notre Dame. Her goal against West Virginia University snagged TCU's first Big 12 championship. Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Gregg Ellman

The journey to the first major piece of hardware for the program was not easy. The Frogs suffered multiple heartbreaks. Losing a final game against Kansas in the 2019 Big 12 tournament and being eliminated by Arizona after just one game in the NCAA tournament the same year were among the toughest moments for players and coaches.

But the team stayed strong by cultivating a relentless and competitive mindset.

And it paid off. The stadium erupted after the team held its lead to beat West Virginia and win that elusive championship. Fireworks exploded after the final whistle, and fans jumped to their feet applauding the victors. Players shed tears of joy as they gathered with the coaching staff in the middle of the field.

“A lot of emotions flowed through because it was eight or nine years of a lot of hard work by a lot of different people, not just the staff, not just current players, the former players as well,” Coach Eric Bell said.

“I cried and I then dropped to my knees,” said Messiah Bright, a junior forward. “I was just overwhelmed by everything that we’ve gone through, all of the adversity and heartbreaks that we faced throughout the seasons.”

“I can’t think of another team that deserves it more because of the passion and commitment everyone showed,” Alvarado said. “We talked at the beginning about what our goals and expectations were, and everyone bought into the process.”

Greater Goals

From the Top Down

Winning the Big 12 championship was the result of a 10-year journey that began with Bell’s appointment as coach on Dec. 17, 2011.

Bell was then an assistant coach at Florida State University. When he joined the program, TCU was about to play its debut season in the Big 12.

Jeremiah Donati, TCU’s director of intercollegiate athletics, said Bell had a reputation as one of the top assistant coaches in the nation, drawing the athletics department’s attention as a primary target for the job.

TCU had been playing in the Mountain West Conference with mixed results. Reaching higher levels would require an exceptional leader with a championship mentality and a true passion for the game.

Bell was that person, Donati said. “Coach Bell distinguished himself from other candidates with his vision of what TCU Soccer and their athletes could be on and off the field: competitors. He also believed we could improve in recruiting top-notch student-athletes locally and nationwide.”

Coach Eric Bell was named Big 12 Coach of the Year in 2020 after guiding TCU to an 8-0-1 conference record and the first-ever regular season title in program history. Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Sharon Ellman

After Bell took over the program, he sought the type of players who would suit his aggressive, direct and end-to-end playing style. He already knew North Texas’ reputation as “a hotbed for youth soccer in our country,” with its strong club teams that often compete for national titles.

“This was a motivating factor for me taking this job,” he said. “The youth clubs here do a tremendous job of developing young players.”

Ryan Higginbotham, associate head coach, also said being “close to the DFW area is a huge benefit to TCU and the soccer program. It is a great advantage in recruiting to be able to have kids attend TCU and play soccer so their families and friends can easily see them play.”

In turn, that inspires the student-athletes to work hard, both coaches said. Bright, from Dallas, is one of those players. She has won prestigious awards for TCU, including the Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Year in 2018, first-team All-Big 12 in 2019 and Big 12 Championships Offensive MVP in 2019.

Why TCU? “I think what motivated me was just going to a program that wanted to enhance their play,” she said.

“We knew that if we could bring players and work with them, mold them and make them better, they could reach that potential that maybe other people didn’t see,” Higginbotham said. “I think that was really something key.”

Messiah Bright runs for the ball as TCU faces West Virginia Nov. 6, 2020, at the Garvey-Rosenthal Soccer Complex in Fort Worth. Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Gregg Ellman

Points of Progress

In the first five seasons under Bell, TCU made steady improvements. In his first year, the program finished with a 7-10-4 record. Five years later, the Frogs finished 12-7-2.

“Making significant changes to any program does not happen overnight, and sometimes it can take multiple seasons to rebuild the foundation,” Donati said. “Our situation was no different. Coach Bell and his staff essentially revamped the program in every aspect to fit his vision.”

A dramatic win against Baylor in the 2016 Big 12 tournament was pivotal: Winning would qualify the Frogs for their first appearance in the NCAA tournament, while losing meant packing their bags and ending the year on a sour note.

Both Bell and Higginbotham labeled the game as a turning point for the team’s mentality — not only for that season but for years to come.

At that semifinal matchup against the Bears, the Frogs were down by two goals at halftime.

Bell said the team’s seniors, the first student-athletes he had recruited, “wanted to be the first group to help us get into the NCAA tournament. We had a very spirited conversation with them at the half, and then they came out with their hair on fire.”

What was said inside the locker room remains with the student-athletes, but what was shown on the field in the second half belongs to the fans and to program history.

TCU scored two early goals in the second half. With the game tied 2-2, the women went from dreamers to believers.

After 90 minutes of play, the game went to overtime. The Frogs scored in the 98th minute to secure an NCAA tournament spot.

“I knew that at that point in time we had done something monumental,” Bell said.

Greater Goals

In the NCAA tournament, the Frogs were eliminated in the first round by Texas A&M. However, that senior class left a goal for future generations: to be a regular in national tournaments and to go above and beyond in the pursuit of a first Big 12 title.

“I think that Baylor game laid the foundation for the NCAA tournament as being the standard,” Bell said. “We now have the expectations of competing for conference titles and competing for national titles as well.”

In each of the last three years, the Frogs have finished in the top three of the conference and qualified for nationals. In January 2018, Ryan Williams ’18 became the first player drafted by the National Women’s Soccer League, selected in the fourth round; this year Yazmeen Ryan ’21 was drafted in the first round.

Bright said unity drove the program to new heights.

“We’re always there for one another. We push each other every day out there on the field to be great, and we let each other know that we have each other’s backs,” Bright said. “Everyone is always together.”

Sweet to Elite

The Big 12 champs achieved a final season record of 11-1-1. With a tightened schedule because of the pandemic, the NCAA split the season in two. After an 8-0-1 fall season, TCU finished the short spring season with a 3-1-0 record as the team geared up for the national tournament.

The yearlong grit resulted in a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Championships in North Carolina.

The Frogs opened the tournament with a dominant 6-2 win against the University of New Mexico on April 30. The win sent TCU to its first Sweet 16 in soccer.

The next opponent was No. 13 Georgetown, and the game was a mix of high stakes and tense nerves for both teams. Georgetown controlled the first half with six straight shots. A deflected shot off the crossbar went past Alvarado and into the goal, putting TCU down by one at the half.

The TCU women celebrate after winning the program's first Big 12 soccer championship. Courtesy of TCU Athletics

Goalkeeper Emily Alvarado, who is also on the Mexican national team, made crucial saves that advanced TCU to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament. Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Sharon Ellman

The Frogs’ equalizer came from sophomore midfielder Michelle Slater with an assist from Ryan in the 77th minute.

Tied after an intense 90 minutes, the game went to two overtimes and finally, in pouring rain, to penalty kicks. Georgetown scored on its first shot, then the game was suspended because of lightning.

Almost an hour later, the nail-biting resumed. The Frogs knocked three PKs into the net. Alvarado saved the day by blocking two of Georgetown’s attempts, with the third ringing off the post.

“Emily was phenomenal, absolutely fantastic,” Bell said. “You only ask your goalkeeper to come up with one save, and she came up with two and then one hit the post. You can’t ask for more than that.”

A victorious shootout sent the Frogs into unexplored territory: the Elite Eight, where TCU’s historic season ended in a hard-fought 1-0 loss to Virginia.

But the season was sealed with plenty of new benchmarks.

“I’m really proud of our group,” Bell said, “and we will build on this historic season and strive to be better.”

Higginbotham said discipline kept the team focused as the players practiced for the Elite Eight and will continue to be the cornerstone of the program. “It made everybody understand that we’re in this together.”

With a first Big 12 championship in the bag for the Frogs, Bell said the progress with the program has taught them patience.

“It’s about the players. It’s always about the players, and I think over the course of time we’ve been able to develop a pretty strong culture,” he said. “If we continue to do that, I think we’ll be more successful as we move forward.”

Maddy Warren fights for the ball in TCUs game against West Virginia that secured the Big 12 tournament trophy. Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Sharon Ellman

Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Sharon Ellman

Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Gregg Ellman

Courtesy of TCU Athletics | Photo by Sharon Ellman

Courtesy of TCU Athletics

Courtesy of TCU Athletics

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