Oct. 22, 2009
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The 18th-ranked Purdue women's soccer team defeated Evansville 3-0 Thursday afternoon at the Varsity Soccer Complex as senior co-captain Jessica Okoroafo tied the program's record for career goals scored.
"I'm happy with the energy and attacking mentality we came out with early in the game," head coach Robert Klatte said. "As expected, Evansville set themselves up to make it difficult for us to break them down, and I was really happy that we got some efficient finishing early on. Overall, I thought it was a good performance. We also got timely performances and good minutes out of some kids that haven't seen the field consistently for us throughout the year. I thought they battled and worked and continued to create for us throughout the entire 90 minutes."
Okoroafo scored the second goal of the day for the Boilermakers. In the 19th minute, the Sylvania, Ohio, native pounced on a deflected ball and blasted a shot into the right side of the net from 15 yards out. The goal gave Okoroafo a team-leading seven this season and 34 for her career, which ties her with Lauren Sesselmann for the program's career goals scored record. Okoroafo also broke a tie for second on Purdue's career points list with 83, trailing only the 90-point total recorded by Sesselmann from 2001-05.
Purdue (9-3-3) did not have to wait long to get on the board. In the eighth minute, sophomore Katie Leinert fed the ball to junior Jessica Stellhorn, who crossed it into the box. Alexis Tryba was waiting for the cross and headed the ball into the right side of the net to give the Boilermakers a 1-0 lead. The Carmel, Ind., native scored the fourth game-winning goal of her career, and Stellhorn moved into a tie with Sesselmann for second on Purdue's all-time game-winning assists list with her seventh as a Boilermaker.
Purdue's third and final goal came just 58 seconds after Okoroafo's record-tying score. Senior Katie Seeger took the ball near the end line on the right side of the net. When she went to cross the ball, an Evansville defender tried to clear it back to the right and instead knocked it past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net for an own goal. It was the first own goal given to Purdue since Ohio State knocked a ball into its own net for the game-winning goal in the Boilermakers' 2-1 victory in the quarterfinal round of last year's Big Ten Tournament.
Evansville (5-10) spent almost the entire game playing defense. The Purple Aces only took one shot, which was not on goal, and took zero corner kicks as Purdue tied program records for fewest allowed in all three categories.
Junior Carianne Betts was awarded the start in goal and responded with her first career shutout in just her second career start. The Boilermakers blanked their opponent for the second consecutive game and sixth time this season.
"Alexis' header was fantastic," Klatte said. "We put pressure on them, which created the own goal. Jessica Okoroafo got back on the mark, which is fantastic for her. I'm disappointed that we didn't finish more. I think that's the only thing we walk away from this game feeling, that we have to be more proficient in front of goal. If we do that, I think we are a dangerous, competitive team. We have five games remaining to prove that and win a Big Ten title, which is something we've never done, and put ourselves in fantastic position to head into the NCAA tournament."
The Boilermakers recorded season-high totals in shots, shots on goal and corner kicks. Purdue's 18 shots on goal and 16 corner kicks better the team's previous highs of 16 shots on goal from Sept. 5 vs. Valparaiso and 12 corner kicks in the Oct. 2 game vs. Michigan State, while the 35 shots tie the total recorded against Valparaiso.
Purdue scored first for the 11th time this season and improved to 9-1-1 when tallying the game's first score. The Boilermakers, who hold a 19-6 scoring edge in the first half, have equaled the 2001 team for the third-highest single-season goal total in the first half in program history. Purdue is now 6-1-2 at home this season and has outscored its opponents 19-4 at the Varsity Soccer Complex.
Purdue leads the all-time series with Evansville 2-0 and has outscored the Purple Aces 11-0 in those two matchups. The Boilermakers improve to 8-1 all-time against members of the Missouri Valley Conference, while Evansville falls to 3-18-1 against the Big Ten.
Purdue travels to take on the 19th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Sunday in a game pivotal to both team's Big Ten title aspirations. Kickoff from Jessie Owens Memorial Stadium is set for 1 p.m. ET. Live results can be found at PurdueSports.com.