MONROE, La. - Georgia Southern scored a touchdown in all three phases of the game, but ULM raced out to a 20-0 lead and never looked back, downing Georgia Southern 44-25 Saturday afternoon at Malone Stadium to hand the Eagles their first conference loss of the season.

Key Moment: Trailing 6-0, Tyler Bass missed his first field goal of the season, hitting the right upright from 26 yards out. One play later, Caleb Evans hit Marcus Green for an 80-yard touchdown to make it 14-0 and the Eagles never threatened again.

GS Play of the Game: Jessie Liptrot picked off a pass in the third quarter and zig-zagged his way back through the ULM defenders, taking it back 57 yards for his first collegiate touchdown.

Key Stat: The Georgia Southern defense had been stingy against the pass all season, giving up an average of just 209 yards per game and four scores through the air. ULM had 280 passing yards and two scores in the first half alone. Evans finished with 337 yards through the air, the most allowed by the Eagles this season.

Key Scoring Plays:

• ULM marched right down the field on the opening drive, scoring on Evans' 5-yard run just over three minutes in, but the kick failed. ULM 6-0
• A play after Bass missed a 26-yard field, Evans hit the speedy Marcus Green on an 80-yard touchdown pass. ULM 13-0
• Green blew by the Eagle secondary again early in the second period, going 69 yards for his second score of the game. ULM 20-0
• Bass got the Eagles on the board with 5:40 left in the first half with a 38-yard field goal. ULM 20-3
• One play after Kenderick Duncan Jr.'s interception, Shai Werts hit Mark Michaud for a 27-yard strike with 1:02 left in the half to cut into the lead. ULM 27-10
• Derrick Gore capped off an 11-play drive midway through the third quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run. ULM 34-10.
• Evans took the Warhawks down the field and scored from 2 yards out with 14 seconds left in the third quarter. ULM 41-18
• Najee Thompson blocked a ULM punt early in the fourth quarter and it was picked up by Benz Josue, who took it in for the score. ULM 41-25

GS Player of the Game: Liptrot took an interception back to the house and forced a fumble while recording four solo tackles.

Up Next: The Eagles (7-2, 4-1) will head back to Allen E. Paulson Stadium to host Troy (6-2, 4-0) on Senior Day next Saturday in a battle for first place in the East Division of the Sun Belt. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+. Tickets are available by going to GSEagles.com/Tickets.