UTEP Miners

Kathryn Balogun, who enjoyed record-setting seasons as the women’s soccer head coach at Texas Southern University over five years, was named head coach at UTEP on Dec. 10, 2018.

In her third season at UTEP in 2021, Balogun guided the Miners to wins over Incarnate Word, NM State, UTSA and Western Kentucky. 

Balogun oversaw the Miners for the first four games of the 2020 season that was moved to spring of 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. She led UTEP to a 3-1 victory against NM State to improve her to 2-0 in the Battle of I-10. The Miners also battled Utah State to a scoreless draw before Balogun went on maternity leave. 

UTEP went on to finish the year with assistant coach Stewart Givens serving as interim head coach. Cayman Tamez and Tessa Carlin were named to the All C-USA third team, making it the first time since 2003 that the Miners had multiple underclassmen earn all-league honors.

She made an immediate impact in her first year at the helm of the Miners, guiding them to a record of 10-7-3 in 2019. It was the first double-digit win total at the school in three years. The Miners also went 5-4-1 in C-USA action to punch their ticket to the league championships for the first time since 2016. Furthermore, it marked the first winning season in league play since an effort of 6-2-2 in 2014.

Under her tutelage the Orange and Blue proved to be a very strong defensive squad in 2019. UTEP posted seven shutouts while limiting six other opponents to only one goal. The seven blankings ranked tied for sixth on the program’s single-season list. 

She directed UTEP to a record of 6-3-2 at home, but more impressive was the effort of 4-4-2 on the road. It was the best road record since 2016. Included in the road victories was a 3-2 win at Marshall (9/26), marking the program's first road win in the series in 11 years. UTEP also posted a double-overtime triumph at I-10 rival NM State (9/12).

Individually Lauren Crenshaw was a second-team All C-USA honoree, while Tessa Carlin snared a spot on the C-USA All-Freshman team.

Prior to joining the Miners, under Balogun’s leadership, Texas Southern pitched eight shutouts during the 2014 season, scored 33 goals during the 2015 campaign and combined to post a sparkling 31-13-6 record in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, while advancing to the league tournament every year. In each of her last two years (2017-18), TSU lost to the eventual tournament champion on penalty kicks in the SWAC semifinals. Texas Southern finished 8-1-1 in league play in 2016.

The Tigers achieved the highest RPI in school history and posted school records for shutouts, goals scored and assists during the Balogun era.

Her first team All-SWAC players at TSU were midfielder Marlyn Campa (2015), defender Briana Norwood (2017 & 2018) and midfielder Kayla Smith (2017). In 2017, goalkeeper Tammy Syron was named the SWAC Freshman of the Year.

Off the field, Balogun worked to elevate the Tigers’ team grade point average more than a full point to 3.3 while graduating 100 percent of her student athletes. She also fundraised over $20,000 annually for the program.

Balogun previously served as an assistant coach at Alabama State (2011-13), a graduate assistant coach at Auburn University-Montgomery (2010-11), and an associate coach at Darlington Soccer Academy in Rome, Ga. (2008-10). Her stint at Auburn-Montgomery helped produce a top-25 team national ranking. While at Alabama State, she was appointed the NSCAA Assistant Coach of the Year for the Central Region (2013). The Lady Hornets won their first Eastern Division championship with an undefeated regular season league mark, and advanced to the first conference championship match in school history.

She also worked as an Assistant Athletic Trainer and Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach at Alabama State. Balogun was one of the founding assistant directors of the Proprioception Endurance Balance Agility (PEBA) strength and conditioning program during her time with Darlington Soccer Academy. She also has experience coaching with the Alabama Olympic Development Program.

She played at Campbell University in Buies Creek, N.C., where she was a four-year starter from 2004-08. A three-time captain with the Camels, Balogun earned multiple second team All-Atlantic Sun Conference honors. She was a member of conference regular season and tournament title teams and played in the NCAA Championships in 2005. She also played for the Hampton Roads Piranhas, a United States W-League team located in Virginia Beach, Va.

She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Athletic Training from Campbell in 2008, and added a Masters of Education in Sports Management from Auburn University Montgomery in 2012. She was a Dean’s List student throughout her academic career and was named to the Atlantic Sun Conference All-Academic Team. Balogun is a member of the United States Soccer Federation, the National Soccer Coaches Athletic Association and the United Soccer Coaches.

The Kathryn Balogun Career Head Coaching Record