BATON ROUGE, La. – For the first time in program history, the ULM soccer team opened the season with back-to-back shutouts as the Warhawks blanked Southern 5-0 on Friday evening at Burbank Park.
“It's always good to start the season 2-0, especially with a pair of shutouts. These girls have been working very hard and it's great they are making history so early in the season,” said ULM head coach Roberto Mazza. “We were able to create a lot of opportunities tonight and finish. We wanted to get off to a fast start and were able to do that with the speed of our play. I am very happy with tonight's performance.”
Junior Kelley O'Dwyer put ULM (2-0) on the board in the 31st minute after a run down the right side. Junior Karlea Fehr got it started from midfield who fed sophomore Nancy Kirk in the middle. Kirk found O'Dwyer all alone and she fired it past the keeper.
O'Dwyer was in on the action again on the second goal as her perfect through-ball found freshman Cassidy Kunicyn one-on-one with the goalie in the 43rd minute. Kunicyn, who had sped past the defender, rolled it in after a few dribbles. Sophomore Cameron Stoker also registered an assist on the play.
The Warhawks kept it up in the second half on Southern (0-3) and made it 3-0 in the 51st minute on a goal by sophomore Jenna Pillon. Passes from junior Mariah Mitchell and sophomore Kylie Kukowski set up Pillon who chipped a shot over the head of a charging goalkeeper and into the back of the net.
In the 63rd minute, Kirk increased the lead to 4-0 after a cross from Fehr. Sophomore Mary Ashton Lembo got it started from midfield and fed Fehr down the right side who made a deep run.
ULM capped it off in the 78th minute when freshman Danielle Sabathe fired from close range. After a pass from sophomore Jenna Floyd, Kunicyn made a long run down the right side and found Sabathe open in the middle of the box for the finish.
Sophomore Katherine Werther earned the start in net and picked up her first victory after making a pair of saves. Sarah Forde took the loss for Southern.
ULM held advantages of 33-6 in shots, 18-2 in shots on goal and 7-0 in corner kicks. Pillon and Fehr led the team with five shots apiece.
The Warhawks will close out the weekend Grambling State on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. at the GSU Soccer Field. They opened the season with a 3-0 victory over Northwestern State. ULM is off to its best start since 2008 when it began 3-0.
Follow the ULM soccer program on twitter, @ULM_Soccer, for live in-game updates. Support the Warhawks through participating in the Athletic Foundation, you can join the ULMAF by calling 318-342-5415.
