Greg Hess enters his seventh season as head coach of the UALR women’s soccer team in 2007, looking to build on the continued improvement the Trojans have seen under his watch. A standout collegiate player at the University of New Mexico, Hess returned the Trojans to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in 2006 and followed that up by bringing in the top recruiting class in school history for the 2007 season.
 
The 2006 campaign marked the Trojans’ second Sun Belt Tournament appearance under Hess, with the first coming in 2003. On the heels of that success, Hess signed the No. 5 recruiting class in the Sun Belt, according to Soccer Buzz Magazine.
 
During his time at UALR, Hess has coached three All-Sun Belt selections as well as the 2002 Freshman of the Year (Marsha Stewart) and the 2006 Newcomer of the Year (Heather Pittman). His players have succeeded in the classroom as well, with his squad annually ranking among the top programs at UALR in team grade point average.
 
His commitment to recruiting dedicated student-athletes is evident in Stewart, who earned ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District honors in 2003 and 2004, and graduated as the league’s all-time saves leader. Stewart was also awarded with the Sun Belt’s Post Graduate Scholarship in 2006, while Jayme Butts was given the league’s Female Sporting Behavior Award.
 
Hess, 31, graduated from the University of New Mexico, where he earned numerous All-Western Athletic Conference honors and graduated as the school record holder for single-season and career shutouts. As a senior at New Mexico in 1997, Hess earned All-WAC honors after leading the Lobos to 13 wins, with nine shutouts, off a 0.99 goals against average.
 
Hess currently ranks second in UNM history with 15 career shutouts, and fourth in both career wins (29) and career saves (201). Upon graduating, he went on to play one year of professional soccer before beginning his coaching career.
 
Hess grew up in Alamogordo, N.M., and began playing soccer when he was six years old. He played club soccer for 12 years before college and was a four-year varsity letterwinner at Alamogordo High School. He also played in the Olympic Development Program for three years. 
 
Hess is the son of Michael and Pamela Hess of Evergreen, Ala. He has one brother, Brian, 33, who is a flight instructor in the Navy for F-18s.