No. 20 Soccer Tops Colorado 2-1 Behind Jimison’s Brace

Sunday, October 5

Waco, Texas

1 PM

Baylor

9-1-2, 4-1-0

Colorado

9-2-2, 3-1-1

Colorado

Baylor

No. 20 Soccer Tops Colorado 2-1 Behind Jimison’s Brace

10/5/2025 4:56:00 PM | Soccer

Box Score Box Score

Bears hand Buffaloes their first Big 12 loss

By Rylee White, Baylor Athletics Communications

WACO, Texas – No. 20 Baylor soccer (9-1-2, 4-1 Big 12) claimed their fourth consecutive victory with a 2-1 nailbiter against Colorado (9-2-2, 4-1 Big 12) on Sunday afternoon at Betty Lou Mays Field. With the win, the Bears evened the all-time series with Colorado at 7-7-4 and secured their first victory over the Buffaloes in the Michelle Lenard era.

Baylor set the tone early, recording the first shot of the match in the 16th minute as midfielder Olivia Hess narrowly missed the target. The Bears capitalized shortly after, as forward Aryanna Jimison came off the bench and curled a shot just out of reach and into the back of the net off a setup from Tyler Isgrig.

After the half, the Buffaloes came off firing with the first shot of the half coming in the 51st minute saved by Azul Alvarez. A few crosses later, in the 58th minute Colorado's Caley Swierenga sent one in the box to meet the head of Emerson Layne to find themselves the equalizer.

The Bears quickly reclaimed the lead in the 61st minute when Natalie Vatter connected with Jimison burying her second goal of the night and marking her first brace since last season against UTSA as a Cougar. This goal delivered the Buffs their first multi-goal loss of the season.

To preserve the lead, Baylor's disciplined back line held strong, denying Colorado a second equalizer after an 89th-minute set piece goal was called back for offsides. BU maintained possession to seal the win.

QUOTABLE
Head coach Michelle Lenard
On today's match…
"You have to give credit to Colorado, that was a really difficult game for us. It's hot out here, it's both of our second game of the weekend and our fourth game in 11 days, the first time we've done that all season. We knew it was going to be a grind at some point, and this team all season has shown great resilience and the ability to withstand some challenges. I think the moment we demonstrated that the best was after we got scored on. We had a goal, we had a lot of other opportunities that could have put us up two, and we had good control over the game, and then they kind of scored against the run of play. Now it's 1-1, and you're wondering, how's the team going to handle that mentally? But I thought we did a great job of responding to that and staying confident."

On the impact players off the bench…
"Ari [Jimison] is definitely a special talent. She can score with both feet, she can beat players one-on-one and she scores spectacular goals like that at training all the time. For her, it's just a matter of getting in, being patient and waiting for her opportunity, and then she's going to score a high percentage of those types of goals. She's been working really hard to make sure she's coming off the bench and making an impact, and obviously had a big impact in the game, not just in the goals she scored but in the defensive work she did today, transitioning back and slipping into different positions for us when we needed to start to sub. She had a great game overall. Same for Alysiah [Lockette]. I mean, having to come in and run up front and drop into a little bit more of a defensive role as the game went on. Both of them did an excellent job with that. And Nyela [Calnek], who comes off the bench for us, played left back then played right winger. She's all over the place. She's doing whatever is needed."

Midfielder Aryanna Jimison
On her brace performance today…
"I couldn't have done it without my teammates around me, and honestly without the power of prayer. We pray before every game, we pray that we win, that we can score, that we can finish and that we can keep the ball out of our goal, and that's what we did today. It felt amazing. I love these girls, and I love the confidence that they give me to do what I do. I couldn't do it without them."

Midfielder Kai Hayes
On the team's performance and mentality today…
"I think we come out with huge belief in each other and what our identity is. It's been nailed into us day in and day out. Everyone has been winning at their role and that's why we've been winning games. Whether that's at practice and being someone who can help us in scout or being a first sub or even starting, no matter what it is, we're all so selfless and able to put each other first. The wins are big, but each individual win is big too."

UP NEXT
Baylor is back home in Waco for the penultimate home match of the regular season, hosting BYU on Friday at 7 p.m. at Betty Lou Mays Field for Senior Day. All regular season matches offer free admission on the Banks of the Brazos.

To stay up to date throughout the year on all things Baylor Soccer, follow the team on Facebook, X and Instagram: @BaylorFutbol.

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