Like a pitcher giving up a home run or a cornerback getting burned for a touchdown, Jennifer Wandt has to quickly turn the page when she gives up a goal. Even if it's not very often.

Named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team, the Baylor goalkeeper ranks second in the Big 12 and 18th nationally with a 0.55 goals-against average. She's given up just eight goals in 14 games, with four of those being golden goals in overtime losses to #7 West Virginia, 14th-ranked Texas, #16 Oklahoma State and TCU.

"I think you just have to have a short-term memory," said Wandt, a 5-10 freshman from Brookfield, Wis.

"You can obviously learn from every situation, but I think you just have to kind of move onward and upward from it so that you're not dwelling on the past and thinking about making a mistake again."

Wandt and the fifth-seeded Bears (10-5-2) will get a chance to redeem one of those four overtime losses when they face fourth-seeded and No. 14 Texas (13-2-2) at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City, Mo.

"Second chance is a good word for it," Wandt said. "When we played them before, we got a lot of shots on goal, our defense was strong. So, I think if we can just put one away and we stay strong on defense, we'll come out with a win."

Growing up in Wisconsin, Wandt was a field player until her freshman year of high school, when she switched from center back to goalkeeper "kind of on a whim."

While she was "shooting around with some friends," Wandt knocked away a shot, instantly catching the eye of her coaches.

"They talked to me afterward and were like, 'Have you ever thought about playing (goalkeeper),''' Wandt said. "At that point, I said no, because I didn't really want to. But then time went on, and I just decided to try it."

Playing for the Wisconsin Eclipse and club coach Christian Lavers, Wandt was part of the Player Development Program for the last three years, was an ECNL Training Camp selection last year and Midwest Player to Watch.

The transition to the net wasn't always easy, though.

"It was hard at first," she said. "I really liked it in the beginning, and then I kind of went downward because I was trying to learn all the techniques and everything, and I really wasn't that good. But as I started to learn things more and more, it all started to click."

When Lavers recommended Wandt to Baylor, "we took a really hard look at her and relied on his insights and trusted him, more than probably what we were able to see at the time," coach Paul Jobson said.

"He was right, and I'm glad we trusted him, because she's been fantastic," Jobson said. "He's one of the guys that started the ECNL program, he's big in soccer, went to college with Marci (Jobson). Just a guy we've known for a long time and trust his soccer knowledge. He also coached (former Baylor players) Dana Larsen and Justine Hovden, so we've gotten a few players from him."

Wanting to escape the cold of the Midwest, Wandt took a recruiting visit to Baylor and "loved the atmosphere."

"It was the team that brought me here, and the coaches are amazing," she said. "And I really didn't want to be in the cold. Texas was the right place for me. I wanted to branch out and try something new."

Graduating from Brookfield East High School a semester early, Wandt enrolled at Baylor in the spring, a move that "helped in a tremendous way."

"I got acclimated to the balance of school and soccer, and I also got to work with (assistant coach Matt Smith) early and get a feel for the back line and the whole team. So, it helped a lot."

Coming out of preseason camp, Wandt was backing up sophomore goalkeeper Hannah Parrish, who posted shutouts in both exhibitions and two of the first three games as Baylor got out to a 2-0-1 start.

Wandt was frustrated at herself early on, after suffering a concussion when "I hit my head on a car door" and coming back "not as fit as I should have been."

"It was just kind of a grind to get back in it, but I knew that if I kept working hard that I would come back," she said.

When Parrish suffered an injury, Wandt made her collegiate debut in a home game against UTSA on Sept. 1, posting the first of three straight solo shutouts. For the season, she has eight shutouts, which is tied for the most nationally among freshman.

"I always say that if I had a Magic 8 ball or a crystal ball to know how kids are going to come in, it would be fantastic," Jobson said. "You just don't know. I think we knew what she could be, you just never know how quickly they're going to be. So, I think we're pleasantly surprised that she came in with a bit of a veteran mentality and was able to compete right away, which was obviously really nice."

Like Wandt, the Baylor soccer team has to flip the page after ending the regular season with back-to-back overtime losses. Last Friday, in a 2-1 loss at TCU, Wandt gave up a regulation goal for the first time since the 88th minute of a 2-1 overtime loss to West Virginia in the conference opener.

The Horned Frogs' golden goal came on a penalty kick in the 99th minute.

"They're difficult, it's an open shot from pretty close distance," Wandt said of defending penalty kicks. "But, all the pressure is on the kicker. You just have to be free with it and give it your best shot."

At No. 55 in the latest RPI rankings, the Bears have some work to do to earn an NCAA Tournament berth for the first time since a Sweet 16 appearance in 2012. High-RPI wins over Texas and possibly Oklahoma State in the semifinals would go a long way, though.

"It won't be hard to motivate the girls (for the Texas game)," Jobson said. "We felt like they got out of here with somewhat of a lucky win. We outplayed them (20-9 in shots), but they won. Secondly, it's a great RPI-builder. We lost to them last time and our RPI went up. We know if we get a victory, it's going to help our RPI and our chances of getting into the tournament. But, it is one at a time. We've got to beat them first and then we'll worry about the other ones."

Live streaming for Wednesday's game is available at www.big12sports.com.