Texas Longhorns take their first SEC championship trophy with many more to come
With NCAA up next, Texas women’s soccer coach Angela Kelly can’t stop smiling after SEC tournament win
The first thing you notice about an SEC championship trophy is the weight. It’s heavy.
Not bulky enough that it takes two people. But it’s not exactly a feather, either.
“But it’s a nice looking trophy, isn’t it?” a jubilant Texas soccer coach Angela Kelly said Monday.
The Tower’s burnt orange glow and Kelly’s smile have yet to fade after her Longhorns captured the SEC women’s soccer tournament championship on Sunday. It was the first SEC championship trophy captured by a proud athletic department that has designs on hundreds more as time goes on.
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Texas will host a first-round matchup on Friday in the NCAA women’s soccer tournament. Kelly will learn her team’s opponent later Monday when the bracket is announced.
But for a few additional moments, Kelly wanted to soak in the joy that her program will forever be a fun answer to a future trivia question: Who was the first team to win a SEC title at Texas?
Odds are that Carly Montgomery will never forget her winning header in the 79th minute against South Carolina or Lauren Lapomarda’s miraculous goal in the 108th minute of a double-overtime win in the semifinals.
What about Lexi Missimo’s leadership and incredible goal-scoring ability? And don’t forget her lifelong best friend Trinity Byars. Together, they have scored more than 100 goals for the Longhorns.
Every Longhorn will talk for years about goalkeeper Mia Justus’ sensational play between the pipes. Justus has now won three championships in three different leagues (Florida State in 2021, Texas/Big 12 in 2023 and Texas/SEC in 2024)
“I’m incredibly grateful,” said Kelly, now in her 12th season at UT. Prior to that, she spent 12 seasons at Tennessee and won four SEC tournament crowns. Somewhere along the way, Angela Kelly just became Ange, dropping those last few letters just like how Texas dropped the Big 12. ``
“Obviously we’re showing still that we are competitive enough to win championships and to pull this out and to be the first here at Texas is, personally, I’m just so very proud of the players and the fact that they can carry that with them the rest of their lives,” Kelly said.
Kelly told athletic director Chris Del Conte and executive senior associate AD Sarah Baumgartner via FaceTime that this was “team Texas. Texas won, and there's 20 more to go.”
Asked if Del Conte would give her a bonus, Kelly joked, “I don't know about bonus. I think CDC is going to come give me a nice little tap on the back and say, ‘Good job. That's what was supposed to be done.’”
Football coach Steve Sarkisian arrived at Monday’s press conference and couldn’t resist giving Kelly a big hug. His team controls its own destiny in the SEC football championship race with three regular-seasons games left.
“Super fired up for them,” Sarkisian said. “But that’s the thing here at the University of Texas. It’s kind of like the standard is the standard.”
