DETROIT (9/20/23) – The Detroit Mercy women's soccer team continues #HLWSOC play with a road match at IUPUI followed by a home tilt against Green Bay. The Titans and Jaguars kick off on Thursday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. with the game being broadcast live from Michael A. Carroll Stadium on ESPN+. UDM and Green Bay play on Sunday, Sept 24 at 1 p.m. with the match also being broadcast live from Titan Field on ESPN+ with Steven MacDonald on the call.
 
Last Time Out:
Sept. 17 – Detroit Mercy 0 at Milwaukee 2:
The Detroit Mercy women's soccer team saw its three-game win streak come to an end with a 2-0 setback at the hands of defending #HLWSOC champion Milwaukee on Sunday afternoon at Engelmann Stadium. Senior Jazmine Scott matched a season-high making seven saves while facing 19 total shots.
 
Perfection Continued Against YSU:
With the UDM's first #HLWSOC win of the season, the Titans moved to a perfect 12-0 all-time record against YSU at Titan Field.
 
Balanced Attack:
• The Titans have seven different players with two or more goals.
• Senior Karsen Murray leads the team in goals (3) with tallies against CMU (8/17), BGSU (8/31) and Concordia (9/10).
• Graduate student Hailey Matthews, seniors Gabby Ketola and Erica Toupin, junior Ashley Bates, and sophomores Sophia Blankenship and Abbey Lodato have each scored two goals.
 
Ketola On a Tear:
Gabby Ketola leads the team in points (7) and assists (3) and is tied for second in goals (2). She played a major role in helping Detroit Mercy record their first two wins on the season by posting five total points. In the Titans 4-2 win at Chicago State (9/8), she recorded her first assist of the season and followed with a goal and two assists in UDM's 6-0 shutout win over Concordia (9/10) on Senior Day.
 
Defense to Offense:
Hailey Matthews recorded three points from her defensive position assisting on the game-winning goal followed by scoring her first goal in a Detroit Mercy uniform helping the Titans earn their first win of the season with a 4-2 result at Chicago State. Matthews also anchored the backline which didn't allow a single shot in UDM's 6-0 shutout win over Concordia. She then added the game-winning goal to lead Detroit Mercy to a 2-1 #HLWSOC opening win over YSU for her second goal of the season.
 
Toup There It Is:
Erica Toupin scored her second goal of the season and assisted on game-winning goal for a total of three points in the Titans' first league win over YSU. She posted her first goal of the season against Morehead State (8/20).
 
High-Five:
Sophia Blankenship posted five points scoring two goals with an assist in UDM's 6-0 shutout win over Concordia.
 
Combined Shutout:
Jazmine Scott picked up her second consecutive win in goal and combined with sophomore Holli Brown and freshman Grace McCormick to secure a shutout. This marks the fifth career shutout for Scott and the first career shutout for Brown and McCormick.
 
On the Board:
Sophomores Abbey Lodato and Soraya Puerto-Khalil scored their first goals of the season at Chicago State. Lodato also added her second goal while Puerto-Khalil posted two her first two assists on the year against Concordia. Sophomore Megan Malek posted her first goal of the season and the second of her career against the Cardinals.
 
Murray with a Missile:
Karsen Murray scored her second goal of the season off a long-range missile strike against BGSU (8/31). She got the ball in space at the 30-yard line, took a touch, and fired the ball from the 25-yard line that beat goalkeeper Lili Berg to the upper right 90 for the equalizer.
 
Shut Em' Down:
Scott recorded her fourth career shutout making four saves in the Titans' scoreless draw at Canisius (8/24). Against St. Bonaventure (8/27), Scott faced 10 shots making three saves and had not allowed a goal in 170.20 total minutes before surrendering the equalizer in the 80th minute in the 1-1 draw.
 
Freshman Firsts:
Freshman Natalia Sobh posted her first collegiate goal at St. Bonaventure.
 
Dish the Assists:
Detroit Mercy had three different players in senior Paige Myers and juniors Adriana Mroz and Danica Paesano record assists against the Chippewas.
 
The Team:
The 2023 season marks the 30th year of the women's soccer program.
Head Coach Steve Shelton is in his fifth season with the program.
 
Returning Firepower:
The Titans have 21 returners led by sophomore Abbey Lodato who led the team in points (9) and tied for the team lead in assists (5) while starting in all 17 games last season to earn Horizon League Freshman of the Year and All-Freshman team honors. Graduate Student Taylor Stanley also returns after tying for the team lead in assists (5) with Lodato while ranking second in points (7) while also starting in all 17 games.
 
Sophomore Sophia Blankenship is back who tied for the team lead in goals (3) with departed senior Julie Ann Piechocki while ranking fourth in points (6) followed by sophomore Soraya Puerto-Khalil who ranked fourth on the team in points (4) and second in goals (2).
 
Senior Erica Toupin (1 goal, 1 assist, 3 points), senior Gabby Ketola (1 goal), sophomore Megan Malek (1 goal) and senior Olivia Zulewski (1 goal) also return to round out the offensive production from the 2022 season.
 
Senior Tia Jokic is also back after a season ending injury in 2022. She was second in goals (2) and fifth in points (4) during the 2021 campaign.
 
Last Line of Defense:
The Titans return solid experience in goal with seniors Jazmine Scott and Marisa Silver. After Silver suffered a season-ending injury during the first game at FGCU in the 2022 season, Scott stepped in and started in 15 of 16 games posing a 6-9-1 record with 67 saves while ranking fifth in the Horizon League with three shutouts (HL stats only) in league play.
 
Home Grown Talent:
Detroit Mercy has 26 student-athletes from the state of Michigan
 
West Coast Flavor:
The Titans have two student-athletes in Grace Brutto and newcomer Samantha Ceballos from the state of California.
 
O' Canada:
Junior Danica Paesano, seniors Jazmine Scott and Tia Jokic are the only student-athletes from Canada.
 
Outside the Mitten:
Transfer Hailey Matthews and newcomer Elena Neceski, who are from North Carolina and Ohio respectively, round out the six student-athletes from outside Michigan.
 
Newcomers:
Detroit Mercy has a diverse group of 12 newcomers in goalkeepers Eva Hill and Grace McCromick, forwards Sydney Osgood and Natalia Sobh, midfielders Samantha Ceballos, Elena Neceski, Rianna Shrewsberry and Natalie Vance, defenders Leila Lanier, Sophia Lock, Hailey Matthews and Chloe Wiggins, who will look to make an immediate impact.
 
Senior Day Salute:
Prior to the Concordia match, the Titans honored seniors Gabby Ketola, Paige Myers, Karsen Murray and Jasmine Scott for their hard work and dedication to the program.
 
Return of the MAC:
Detroit Mercy has competed against three schools from the Mid-American Conference in BGSU, Toledo and CMU at Titans Field.
 
Titans picked Ninth in 2023 #HLWSOC Preseason Poll:
The Detroit Mercy women's soccer team was picked to finish 9th in the 2023 Horizon League women's Soccer (#HLWSOC) Preseason Poll as announced by the league office and voted on by the league's 11 head coaches. The Titans received 40 points and moved up one spot from being picked 10th prior to the 2022 season.
 
Season Rewind:
Sept. 14 – Detroit Mercy 2 vs. YSU 1:
Senior Erica Toupin scored her second goal of the season and assisted graduate student Hailey Matthews' game-winning goal to lead Detroit Mercy to a 2-1 #HLWSOC opening win over visiting Youngstown State on Thursday night. The Titans have now won three consecutive games and moved to a perfect 12-0 all-time record against YSU at Titan Field.
 
Sophomore Abbey Lodato recorded her first assist of the season on Toupin's goal while senior Jazmine Scott picked up her third consecutive win in goal making three saves with the only goal she surrendered coming off a deflection.
 
Sept. 10 – Detroit Mercy 6 vs. Concordia 0:
Senior Gabby Ketola had quite the performance on Senior Day recording four points with a goal and two assists while sophomore Sophia Blankenship posted five points scoring two goals with an assist as Detroit Mercy rolled past Concordia 6-0 on Sunday afternoon at Titan Field.
 
Senior Karsen Murray posted her team-best third goal of the season just 1:55 into the match off a feed from Ketola. Sophomore Megan Malek also added her second career goal. Sophomore Soraya Puerto-Khalil also recorded two assists while sophomore Abbey Lodato scored a goal in her second consecutive game.
 
Sept. 8 – Detroit Mercy 4 at Chicago State 2:
Graduate Student Hailey Matthews scored her first career goal in a Titans uniform off a corner kick and added an assist as Detroit Mercy recorded their first win of the season as they rolled past over Chicago State 4-2 on Friday night.
 
Sophomores Abbey Lodato and Soraya Puerto-Khalil scored their first goals of the season while junior Ashley Bates added her second goal. Senior Gabby Ketola and junior Adriana Mroz each added an assist.
 
 Sept. 3 – Detroit Mercy 0 vs. Toledo 3:
Senior Gabby Ketola recorded two shots on goal while sophomores Soraya Puerto-Khalil and Megan Malek each had one shot on goal as Detroit Mercy fell 3-0 to Toledo on Sunday at Titan field.
 
After both teams played even for a majority of the first half, Toledo (1-2-1) got on the board first with a goal in the 40th minute to take a 1-0 lead at the half. Ketola had Detroit Mercy's (0-3-3) best chance for the equalizer in the 49th minute as she got into the box and delivered a shot to the lower left side but UT goalkeeper Brielle Young was able to cut down the angle and make the save to keep the Titans off the board.
 
Aug. 31 – Detroit Mercy 1 vs BGSU 2:
Senior Karsen Murray scored her second goal of the season off a long-range missile strike as Detroit Mercy came up short to visiting Bowling Green, 2-1, on Thursday night at Titan field. Senior Jazmine Scott made four saves in goal.
 
During the first half, both teams connected on long-range goals as Bowling Green (2-2) took a 1-0 lead off a kick from Lacee Bethea from about 20 yards out in the 11th minute. Just five minutes later, Murray got the ball in space at the 30-yard line, took a touch, and fired the ball from the 25-yard line that beat BGSU goalkeeper Lili Berg to the upper right 90 for the equalizer.
 
Aug. 27 – Detroit Mercy 1 at St. Bonaventure 1:
Sobh posted her first collegiate goal as Detroit Mercy played St. Bonaventure to a 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon at the Tom 80' and Michelle Marra Athletics Field Complex. The Titans ended their up-state New York road swing with consecutive draws to move to 0-1-3 on the season. Scott made two saves in goal while graduate student Hailey Matthews paced the Titans with two shots.
 
In the 28th minute of the first half, Detroit Mercy made the most of a St. Bonaventure (0-1-3) defensive miscue. The Titans applied pressure on the ball causing a Bonnine defender to play the ball back to Sobh who took the turnover and flicked it over the outstretched arms of goalkeeper Chiara Gottinger who was slightly off her line giving the Titans a 1-0 lead.
 
Aug. 24 – Detroit Mercy 0 at Canisius 0:
Senior Jazmine Scott made four saves to record her fourth career shutout as Detroit Mercy played Canisius to a 0-0 draw on Thursday night at Demske Sports Complex. Sophomore Sophia Blankenship posted four of the Titans' six total shots on goal. Sophomore Abbey also accounted for two shots on goal as Detroit Mercy (0-1-2) outshot Canisius (0-1-2) 11-5 overall.
 
In the first half, senior Erica Toupin had the best scoring chance for the Titans as she got past a defender and fired a shot that hit the crossbar in the 35th minute. UDM continued the offensive pressure adding six more shots in the second half but couldn't get on the board.
 
Aug. 20 – Detroit Mercy 2 vs Morehead State 5:
Senior Erica Toupin posted her first goal of the season as Detroit Mercy dropped a 5-2 decision to visiting Morehead State on Sunday afternoon at Titan Field. Sophomore Sophia Blankenship almost got Detroit Mercy on the board just two minutes into the game as she ripped a shot past Morehead State keeper Erin Gibbs but the ball hit the crossbar.
 
In the 16th minute, sophomore Soraya Puerto-Khalil drove the ball deep down the right side and put pressure on a Morehead defender. She turned and fired a cross that was directed into the back of the net by a second Morehead defender for an own goal moving the Titans ahead 1-0.
 
Aug. 17 – Detroit Mercy 3 vs Central Michigan 3:
With time winding down in the 88th minute, junior Ashley Bates connected on a header off a pinpoint feed from senior Paige Myers to give Detroit Mercy what appeared to be the game-winning goal. However, Central Michigan was able to connect on the equalizer off a free kick with just 11 ticks on the clock to escape Titan Field with a 3-3 draw in the season opener on Thursday night.
 
Senior Gabby Ketola got things going for the Titans (0-0-1) just five minutes into the game as she fired a missile from just outside the box past CMU (0-0-1) keeper Shivani Battaglia for a 1-0 lead.
 
Detroit Mercy was not done as senior Karsen Murray delivered another goal off a header from a perfect free kick feed from junior Danica Paesano to take a 2-0 lead into the half.