Nov. 6, 2008
IOWA CITY, Iowa - The Purdue women's soccer team lived to fight another day in the Big Ten Tournament, as they withstood strong winds and a desperate Ohio State side to record a 2-1 first round victory.
Redshirt junior defender Sylvia Forbes not only provided a tough presence on the outside of Purdue's back line, but also led the Boilermakers with four shots. She even put in the game-winning score, but the tally was credited as an own goal because it deflected off the Buckeye defense.
Senior Felicia Schroeder got the scoring started early for Purdue, knocking in her eighth goal of the season in the 5th minute. Junior Katie Seeger kept the ball in the Ohio State penalty box off a Purdue corner and was able to feed a pass into Schroeder, who took the shot from six yards to give the Boilermakers a 1-0 lead.
Buckeye Paige Maxwell knotched her eighth goal of the year in the 19th minute. Ohio State took a corner from the left-side of Purdue's goal and goalkeeper Jenny Bradfisch could not corral the ball. There was a scrum in front and Maxwell came away with the tap in.
Just six minutes later, Forbes nearly tallied her first goal of the season. She unleashed a hard shot from 16 yards and the ball deflected off a Buckeye defender. Ohio State keeper Lauren Robertson did not have time to account for the change of direction and Purdue was up 2-1.
The Boilermakers have now beaten Ohio State in seven straight matches, including three in a row at the Big Ten Tournament. Purdue also improved their 2008 record to 10-0-0 when they score at least two goals and 12-0-3 when they score first.
In their last meeting with Minnesota (19-2-0, 8-2-0), the Boilermakers (12-6-3, 5-3-2) fell 0-1 in double overtime when the Golden Gophers tallied the game-winner with 1:30 left on the clock. It could be another low scoring affair tomorrow, as the weather forecast is for highs in the 30s with strong wind and a chance of rain and snow.
The match will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network. Coverage starts at 2:00 p.m. ET.