The Longhorns defeated Houston Christian 3-0 at Mike A. Myers Stadium to begin the 2026 season.
The Margueritte Bates era in Austin began with the Texas Longhorns shutting out Houston Christian 3-0 on Wednesday's season-opening match.
The Longhorns, who went just 4-12-1 last season before hiring Bates, got goals from Amalia Villarreal, Sadie Hoch and Kennedi Cotter. Texas out-shot the Huskies 19 to 3.
"It was great to get our first win as a staff here at Texas and begin this new chapter," said the new head coach, who comes to Austin after a four-year stint at UCLA.
"It was exciting to see some players earn their first minutes as a Longhorn and even score their first goal as a Longhorn. While we still have a lot of work to do, hopefully we can build some momentum from this into the weekend and the rest of the season."
Just three minutes into the match, the veteran Villarreal gave Texas the lead in what was the program's fasted goal score since 2017.
The score was Villarreal's 21st goal in her career wearing the burnt orange. The junior forward/midfielder from Lansing, Mich. posted eight goals last season and 12 during her SEC Freshman of the Year campaign in 2024.
Hoch's first-half score was the sophomore's second goal with the Longhorns. For Cotter, she found the back of the net for the first time as a collegiate. The sophomore Rutgers transfer laced a ball into the top right corner to give Texas the advantage it needed to coast to victory.
For Bates, she is looking to replicate the immediate success she had with the Bruins now in her new role.
In 2022, Bates became the first rookie head coach ever to win a national championship. She received two Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors during her time in Southern California, where UCLA went a dominant 67-13-9 record with her on the sideline.
"Margueritte is a proven championship coach, an elite developer of student-athletes and a dynamic leader, with a clear vision for building a program that competes at the highest level year after year," athletic director Chris Del Conte said in the hiring announcement.
"From the moment we met with her, it was clear she was a perfect fit for Texas. I want to thank Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director for Sports Administration Sarah Baumgartner leading this search and helping us bring Coach Bates to The Forty Acres."
The Longhorns' next time on the pitch will be Sunday, Aug. 16, in Pittsburgh for their first true road match against the Pitt Panthers. That begins a three-game road trip that features two contests in the desert against Arizona State and Grand Canyon.
