Oklahoma State Ranked #16 Nationally and Third in the Big 12 Preseason

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State checks in at No. 16 in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, and the Cowgirls are also picked to finish third in the 2021 Big 12 Conference standings in a preseason vote of the league’s head coaches.

The Cowgirls finished the 2020-21 season No. 14 in the final United Soccer Coaches rankings, and their preseason appearance in the poll extends OSU’s streak of being nationally ranked to 33 consecutive weeks dating back to 2019.

In the Big 12 poll, West Virginia was tabbed as the Big 12 favorite, garnering five first-place votes, while TCU was just one point behind the Mountaineers in the voting and received four first-place nods. OSU was next, with Texas Tech and Texas, who also received a first-place vote, rounding out the top five.

The Cowgirls are coming off a 13-3-2 season in which they finished third in the Big 12 with a 6-2-1 mark. OSU earned a No. 10 national seed in the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship and advanced to the third Sweet 16 in program history.

OSU returns nine starters from last season’s squad, five of whom earned All-Big 12 honors. The Cowgirls netted 40 goals a year ago, and the eight players who combined for that total are all back in 2021.

Following an exhibition match on Aug. 13, OSU is scheduled to open the 2021 season when it hosts UTSA on Aug. 19 at Neal Patterson Stadium in the BancFirst Cowgirl Soccer Invitational.

Big 12 Soccer Preseason Poll

                                             Points

1. West Virginia (5)       74

2. TCU (4)                       73

3. Oklahoma State        64

4. Texas Tech                 56

5. Texas (1)                     52

6. Kansas                        40

7. Baylor                         36

8. Iowa State                  26

9. Oklahoma                   15

10. Kansas State              14

First place votes in (); coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team