MONROE, La. – The ULM soccer team (3-5-1) returns home to open Sun Belt play, hosting Old Dominion (2-5) for the first time since 2023. The teams will kick off at 7 p.m. on Friday (Sept. 18) in Brown Stadium. 

FOLLOW THE WARHAWKS –
Friday's match will be available for streaming on ESPN+, and live stats for the match will also be available. Links to live stats and video streams for all matches, when available, can be found at ULMWarhawks.com. 

SCOUTING THE MONARCHS – 
Old Dominion arrives in Monroe with a 2-5 record, claiming wins over Longwood and Maryland. But the Monarchs have traversed a difficult nonconference schedule, seeing teams such as #2 Duke, Liberty, #11 Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. Most recently, ODU fell at Liberty, 1-2. Hannah Morgan leads the team with eight points, having recorded four goals this season. Ellie Goodrich has seen the majority of matches, with a 1.23 goals-against average and 13 saves through five matches played. Under first-year head coach Will Roberts, the Monarchs were selected to finish second in the Sun Belt.

SERIES HISTORY VS. ODU –
This is the fourth meeting between the Monarchs and the Warhawks, as well as the tie-breaking match. The series is currently 1-1-1 between the teams. The lone win for ULM came in 2025 in the Sun Belt Tournament. The last time ODU made the trip to Monroe was 2023, when the teams resigned for a 1-1 draw.

FAMILIAR FACES –
The Warhawks will see a handful of familiar faces wearing Monarch colors. ODU head coach Will Roberts spent three seasons at the helm in Monroe, with associate head coach Matt Caley at his side. Players Libby Holmes and Ally Richardson also make the return to ULM after multiple seasons played as Warhawks.

LAST TIME OUT –
The ULM Warhawks fell to the Rice Owls on the road, in a 3-0 score. The Owls led with 14 shots to ULM's seven, eight of the 14 landing on target. 

Camille Quarterman earned the first yellow card of the match in the 38th minute, Rice then picking up a second just four minutes later by Lola Foley. But after opportunities arose, the match remained tied at nil through the first 45 minutes.

26 seconds into the second half, Sloane Popov scored the leading goal for the home team, as the Warhawks looked to find the equalizer as opposed to the game winner. Both teams traded shots as the scoring had broken open. A yellow card came for Stacey Qosja in the 53rd minute, making it one yellow card to Rice's two.

In the 61st minute, Popov made it a brace for the day as she notched a second goal. Now down two goals, ULM fought to net one and get on the board. Goalkeeper Jen Handy continued to collect saves so she could prevent the lead extension. Rice's Jordyn Mariam made it a three-spot for the Owls in the 82nd minute, making it a 3-0 score with under 10 minutes to play. The Owls continued to push their offense, settling the clean sheet.

FIRST-YEAR FIRE –
Victoria Vinals opened the season with a goal in the 80th minute at Little Rock. Vinals is the first first-year player to open the season's scoring since 2018. Charli Harris then followed with a brace against Alcorn, making her the first first-year since 2022 to record a multi-goal game, the lone first-year in the Sun Belt with multiple goals in the opening week of competition. Harris followed the week with her first career assist against Jackson State, now posting three this season.

NOW AT THE HELM –
The Warhawks have welcomed a new head coach in the fold this season in Antony Blackburn. Blackburn arrives in Monroe from Baton Rouge, where he spent three seasons as an analyst and assistant coach for LSU. He brings a wealth of experience internationally as well, as the academy head coach for Valencia CF and Sunderland AFC in his career. Blackburn logged his first career win as head coach of the Warhawks on August 16 against Alcorn.

#1 IN GOAL –
Jen Handy returns for a third season in goal for the Warhawks after earning the starting role in her first. Named to the All-Sun Belt Second Team in 2025, Handy currently holds multiple ULM records, including shutouts in a season (7, 2024). In her career, her 1.35 goals-against average ranks second all-time, as well as her wins (22) and shutouts (13). Handy leads the Sun Belt in goalie minutes played (781:35), ranking second with 42 saves to rank her 22nd nationally.

O CAPTAINS OUR CAPTAINS –
ULM Soccer has named two team captains this season: defender Beth Strutton and midfielder Lucia Gomez. Strutton enters her second season as a captain, also earning the role in 2025. Strutton was an all-conference selection last season, holding down the Warhawk defense and recording three goals and two assists. Gomez earns the title in her second season with the Warhawks.

LOOKING AHEAD –
The Warhawks will continue SBC play on the road, traveling to the east coast to face James Madison. The teams will face off in Harrisonburg on Thursday (Sept. 24) at 6 p.m. CT.