West Virginia women’s soccer head coach Nikki Izzo-Brown secures 400th career victory

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Four different Mountaineers found the back of the net Thursday night as the West Virginia University women’s soccer team collected a 4-0 victory over Oklahoma at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium in Morgantown.

With the win, West Virginia (4-7-3, 2-2-1 Big 12) helped Nikki Izzo-Brown secure her 400th career victory as a head coach. WVU’s only coach in program history, Izzo-Brown’s 29-year career record now stands at 400-142-72, which includes 28 seasons with the Mountaineers and one season at West Virginia Wesleyan.

It was West Virginia’s game from the start, as sophomore forward Taylor White put WVU on the board in the 15th minute following a rebound shot from junior midfielder Lisa Schöppl. Junior forward Dilary Heredia-Beltran played a corner kick ball into the box, but Schöppl’s ensuing shot was saved by the OU keeper. However, the rebound off the save found White, and she quickly put it away for her seventh goal of the season.

From there, WVU held on to the 1-0 lead, with the defense successfully defending Oklahoma’s attacking third. However, the Mountaineers earned a corner kick in the 42nd minute, which was taken by freshman forward Jacey Rase. Her well-placed ball found the head of fifth-year senior midfielder Maya McCutcheon, who flicked it on frame and into the net to give the Mountaineers the 2-0 lead at the half.

4️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ for @WVUIzzoBrown! ?#HailWV pic.twitter.com/K2iArnKt0k

— WVU Women’s Soccer (@wvuwomenssoccer) October 6, 2023

Out of the locker room, it didn’t take long for WVU to extend its lead after Heredia-Beltran sent a beautiful ball down to freshman forward Jordyn Wilson in the 47th minute. Wilson dribbled around the OU defense and sent a long ball into the goal to give West Virginia the 3-0 advantage. The Mountaineers added a fourth tally in the 68th minute after junior forward Aria Bilal’s high shot was mishandled by the Oklahoma keeper. Heredia-Beltran earned her second assist of the match on the score, helping WVU earn the 4-0 victory.

Despite the final score, West Virginia just edged Oklahoma in shots, 16-14, while the Mountaineers placed nine shots on goal compared to four for the Sooners. WVU earned eight corner kicks in the match, while OU earned five. In addition to the four goal scorers, Heredia-Beltran quarterbacked the offense with a pair of assists to go along with two shots. White’s 15th-minute goal was credited as the game winner, the first of her career.

Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Kayza Massey and the West Virginia defense earned their sixth shutout of the season Thursday night, as Massey collected four saves to salvage the clean sheet.

With the win, the Mountaineers remain unbeaten all-time against the Sooners, as the series now moves to 14-0-1 overall, as well as 8-0 in games played in Morgantown.

Up next, WVU returns to Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium to welcome Oklahoma State to Morgantown on Sunday, Oct. 8, for a 1 p.m. ET, kick. The match is West Virginia’s annual Pink Match, with all fans encouraged to wear pink as the Mountaineers “Pack It Pink” for breast cancer awareness.