Loaded with returners, UTEP soccer has high hopes for season.

The UTEP women's soccer team opens its season Thursday at Texas Tech looking in some ways much like it did at the beginning of the last season.

In other ways, not so much.

"Last year" was earlier this year, as the 2020 season was moved to the spring. Coach Kathryn Balogun and her team knew she'd soon be on maternity leave and handing the reigns to top assistant Stewart Givens.

On the other hand, the current UTEP team that will take the field against Tech returns nine starters, plus co-captain JoJo NgoNgo, who played the first three games last year before an injury.

Why will they be better?

Last year's group finished with a 3-6-1 record, but went into the final game with a chance to make the Conference USA tournament before losing to finish C-USA play 2-3-1.

With so much back, optimism that continuity and the season-long presence of the third-year coach Balogun will lead to a step forward is high.

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"We were fortunate enough not to lose a lot of playing seniors, so we only got additions onto the team and they are really looking strong for us," co-captain Kam Fisher said. "We got a couple of outside backs in, a couple of holding mid(fielder)s and a strong goalie. I think it's going to be a great season.

"Working hard is the key. We have the talent to achieve what we need to, we just need to grind day in and day out, make sure we get stuff done with our effort."

Balogun thinks another year in the system will be a big help.

"The key to improvement this year is just the fact we are 100 percent bought into what we want to do and everybody's on board," she said. "Everybody knows what we want. The culture is really about getting better this year and knowing that we can achieve what we have set out to."

How they'll play

What UTEP wants is the ball.

"We are always going to be a possession-based team," Balogun said. "I think we will start to see some more fluidity in the attack and a lot more creativity.

"We're going to go back to being a little more defensively organized in our own defensive side. Last year we hunted a little more, this year we're going to be a little more compact."

Said Fisher: "We're a possession-based team. We like to play the ball in all thirds of the field. We're not much of a direct team, so it's about finding each others feet, working hard, running far."

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at 915-546-6359; bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on Twitter.

2021 UTEP Soccer Schedule

Aug. 19, at Texas Tech, 6 p.m.

Aug. 22, Abilene Christian, 1 p.m.

Aug. 26, at Nevada, 7:30 p.m.

Aug. 29, at UC Davis, 2 p.m.

Sept. 3, at Incarnate Word, 4 p.m.

Sept. 5, at Texas A&M, TBA

Sept. 9, New Mexico State, 7 p.m.

Sept. 16, Rice*, 7 p.m.

Sept. 19, at North Texas*, Noon

Sept. 24, UTSA*, 7 p.m.

Oct. 1, at La. Tech*, 6 p.m.

Oct. 9, Florida Atlantic*, 7 p.m.

Oct. 15, at Middle Tennessee*, 6 p.m.

Oct. 17, at Western Kentucky (non-conference), Noon

Oct. 22, Southern Miss*, 7 p.m.

Oct. 28, at UAB*, 6 p.m.

Nov. 3-7, 2021 C-USA Championships, Boca Raton, Fla.

Bold denotes home game

* Conference USA Game

All Times Mountain