Exhibition Match: Texas A&M 3, Incarnate Word 0
Records: Texas A&M (0-0-0, 0-0-0), Incarnate Word (0-0-0, 0-0-0)
Opening the 2026 season with new head coach Bobby Shuttleworth, Texas A&M debuted at Ellis Field with 11 returners, 10 freshmen and four transfers.
A 3-0 exhibition shutout of Incarnate Word is the unofficial start to the Aggies’ season.
While Shuttleworth said he is satisfied with his team’s performance, there is still room for improvement before the Maroon & White take on Rice for their first regular-season game on Aug. 12.
“I think, defensively, we need to sort out just some of our spacing,” Shuttleworth said. “Getting sometimes a little bit closer to each other, and then other times, we'll be farther away.
“We're just trying to stay as fluid as we can, and attack, and make sure that those players are communicating. … You wanna be able to pop up in different places with different players, but they gotta communicate about that information.”
The Aggies dominated possession of the ball throughout the first half, with five fouls from the Cardinals.
Leah Diaz scored the first goal in the top right corner with an assist by freshman midfielder Brynja Rán Knudsen in the 11th minute.
“I just think we're so active on the field,” Diaz said. “Everybody's moving. It's creating pockets of space and allowing me to take defenders on and allowing me to get a shot off.”
Five attempts at goal from the senior forward in the first half kept the Aggies’ momentum alive. Coming off an injury from the previous season, Diaz said she is healthy and good to go.
“It's my senior year,” the Richardson native said. “I want to make it the best year that I have yet, so I'm just happy to be back out here. It's so much easier playing with other girls who want to play for each other. I mean, they're working for me, so I'm gonna work for them.”
In the 40th minute, freshman forward Ireland Churchill made the game 2-0 off an assist from freshman defender Blake Hughes.
“I think overall, we did really well with that,” Churchill said. “You know, hence the goals, and I think the chemistry; we're building that, and I think it's getting better and better every day.”
Freshman goalkeeper Makenna August saved two shots in the first half.
In the 58th minute, sophomore forward Holly Storer scored the Aggies' third goal of the night, with an assist off the crossbar from Diaz.
“I thought it was a positive first step,” Shuttleworth said. “Obviously, first game against a different opponent. There’s a lot of positives, but a lot of stuff that we need to work on.”
That work will continue when the Aggies travel to Austin to play Texas in their final exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 8, at 7 p.m. CT.
