MATCH 1: ULM WARHAWKS (0-0-0) at TARLETON STATE TEXANS (0-0-0)
7 p.m., Thursday, August 17, 2023 | Tarleton Soccer Complex | Stephenville, Texas
TV/STREAM: ESPN+ | LIVE STATS
MATCH 2: ULM WARHAWKS (0-0-0) at SAM HOUSTON BEARKATS (0-0-0)
1 p.m., Sunday, August 20, 2023 | Pritchett Field | Huntsville, Texas
TV/STREAM: None | LIVE STATS
MATCH NOTES
MONROE, La. - The ULM soccer team begins the 2023 season and opens the
Will Roberts era at 7 p.m. Thursday at Tarleton State. The Warhawks conclude the season-opening Texas two-step road swing at 1 p.m. Sunday against former Southland Conference foe Sam Houston in Huntsville. It is ULM's seventh-straight season opener on the road and eighth-consecutive season opener played away from Monroe. It is the third-straight season ULM has opened the season in Texas (2022 at Texas A&M-Commerce, 2021 at Texas Southern).
FOLLOW THE WARHAWKS -
Links to live stats and video streams for all matches, when available, can be found at ULMWarhawks.com. Navigate to the soccer schedule page and select that day's opponent.
LAST TIME OUT -
Lake Charles, La. - ULM picked up a 2-0 win at McNeese in its lone exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 12. Junior
Mara Grutkamp scored twice in the second half off a pair of assists from junior
Skylar Blaise. Grutkamp struck for the first goal in the 50th minute off of Blaise's assist, and then added another with a helper from Blaise in the 61st minute for the 2-0 margin. ULM dominated the possession, posting 23 shots to five for McNeese. The Warhawks put 15 shots on frame while the Cowgirls had just two. Grutkamp had six shots, with five on goal, to lead ULM, while senior
Lucia Lobato added five shots with two on net.
SERIES HISTORY -
ULM and Tarleton State met for the first time last season on Sept. 11 at Brown Stadium in Monroe, with ULM picking up a 3-1 win over the Texans.
Eve Blakey scored a pair of first half goals for ULM, coming in the 20th and 30th minutes, with assists from
Lucia Lobato and
Ashley Washburn on the first goal and
Paula Guba and
Kathryn Yarbrough on the second.
Inge Konst added the insurance with a penalty kick goal in the 75th minute. Nicole Fels scored Tarleton's lone goal in the 83rd minute. The 2022 season marked Tarleton's first season of soccer and just the third year for the institution as a member of NCAA Division I.
ULM and Sam Houston meet for the first time since the Warhawks departed the Southland Conference for the Sun Belt Conference following the 2005 season. The two teams last played on Nov. 3, 2005, with the Bearkats picking up their first-ever win against ULM, 2-1, at the Southland Conference Tournament in Natchitoches, Louisiana, just four days after the two teams closed the regular season with a 1-1 draw in Monroe. It is the first meeting in Huntsville since Sept. 24, 2004, a 4-2 win for ULM.
ROBERTS TAKES THE REIGNS -
After spending three seasons as an assistant coach at ULM,
Will Roberts accepted his first collegiate head coaching job with the Warhawks in January. A native of Denbigh, North Wales, Roberts has helped ULM reach new heights over the last three seasons, including just the second 10-win season in program history in 2022. The Warhawks increased their win total in each of his three seasons as an assistant coach, going from a winless season prior to his arrival to five wins in 2020-21, eight wins in 2021 and 10 wins in 2022. Roberts is assisted by
Matthew Caley, who was promoted from his role as a graduate assistant.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOKS –
Four players on the 2023 roster have had Top-10 single-season performances and rank in the Top-10 career marks in ULM soccer history.
Junior
Mara Grutkamp begins 2023 ranking tied for sixth with 11 career assists. She is tied for fifth in single-season assists (6, 2022) and 10th in single-season points (17, 2021).
Junior
Inge Konst enters 2023 ranking third in career penalty kicks made (3), which all came last season to tie her for most in a single season in program history. She is sixth on the single-season goals list (8, 2022), tied for seventh on the single-season assists list (5, 2021) and tied for eighth on the single-season points list (19, 2022).
Junior
Mickaela Leal has made a mark in net, ranking first in career goals against average at 1.18 and tied for fifth with five career shutouts entering the 2023 season. Leal's 2022 season ranks tied for seventh in goals against average at 1.50.
Junior
Janet Stopka ranks fifth with 16 career goals and is ninth with 35 career points entering the season. Her last two seasons have been cut short due to injury after posting a record-setting true freshman campaign in the split 2020-21 season. Stopka's 10 goals in 2020-21 set a program record at the time, but now ranks third behind
Courtney Marten's 14 goals and
Theoni Zerva's 11 goals, both in 2021. Stopka's 21 points in 2020-21 rank sixth-best in a single season in program history.
Since
Will Roberts arrived as an assistant coach ahead of the 2020-21 season, ULM's has put 29 entries in the team single-game Top 10 marks and 12 entries in the single-season Top 5 records lists, including the most points in a single season (146, 53 goals, 40 assists, 2021), goals (53, 2021), shots (383, 2021) and goals against average (1.04, 2021).
2022 HONORS -
ULM sophomore forward
Inge Konst was named First-Team All-Louisiana, while sophomore midfielder Lena Göppel and sophomore forward
Mara Grutkamp were named Honorable Mention All-Louisiana by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. The 2022 All-Louisiana soccer team was selected by the state's media relations directors.
Konst started all 17 matches in which she appeared, leading ULM in points (19), goals (8), shots (48) and shots on goal (23). She ranked fourth in the Sun Belt Conference in points and shots per game (2.82), fifth in points per game (1.12), sixth in goals per game (0.47) and seventh in goals and points. She played in all 90 minutes 11 times, including the final seven matches of the season. She scored a hat trick at Texas A&M-Commerce and had three goals inside SBC play, coming against Southern Miss, Arkansas State and at Troy.
Göppel started all 18 matches in which she appeared, playing 90 minutes in 17 of the 18 matches. She helped ULM post four clean sheets and allow just one goal in eight other matches. She scored three goals with one assist for seven points, firing 19 shots, putting seven on goal, with one game-winning goal and converting 1-of-3 penalty kick opportunities. She had multiple shots against Jackson State (4), Texas Southern (3), at Alcorn (2), at Prairie View A&M (2), at App State (2) and vs. Arkansas State (2).
Grutkamp started all 18 matches in which she appeared, leading ULM in assists (6), was second on the team in points (14) and shots (44) and was third on the club in goals (4) and shots on goal (17). Her six assists were tied for fifth-most in a single-season in ULM history. She tied for second in the Sun Belt Conference in assists, finished fourth in assists per game (0.33), tied for eighth in shots and ninth in shots per game (2.44). She played all 90 minutes seven times, including each of the final four matches. It is Grutkamp's second-straight honorable mention All-Louisiana selection.
A LOOK AHEAD –
ULM returns to Louisiana to meet up with I-20 foe Louisiana Tech at 7 p.m. Friday in Ruston. The Warhawks play the first of seven home matches in 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31, vs. Texas A&M-Commerce at Brown Stadium.
