Sept. 4, 2010
The Purdue soccer team knocked off the Cal State Fullerton Titans 2-1 on Friday night at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Calif.
"I thought we worked hard and had a good performance tonight," head coach Robert Klatte said. "We pressured the ball and posed some problems for their keeper, but she played well in the first half. I think it was a good performance, but we can be better. There were some moments where we were too open in the back where we still need to develop, but I am happy with our effort. I was glad we were able come away with a win."
Purdue (3-1-1) found the back of the net early as Alexis Tryba scored her first goal of the season in the 8th minute. The play started off of the Boilermakers' first corner kick of the game. Kellie Phillips lofted the ball into the box where it was knocked around to the top of the 18-yard line. From there, the ball was deflected to the left goal post where Katie Leinert headed it to Tryba on the right post before she was able to put it past the Titans' keeper.
Cal State Fullerton (1-2) came right back in the 21st minute. Sophomore Brisa Gonzalez was able to beat a diving Carianne Betts after she received a deflected pass inside the penalty box. She worked her way to goal and found the back of the net to tie the score at one.
In the 30th minute, the Boilermakers struck again. Hadley Stuart made a deep run into the penalty box before she was brought down from behind. The Titans were called for a foul and a penalty kick was awarded to Purdue.
The Boilermakers called upon Liz Secue to take the kick. The senior captain stepped up and ripped a shot past the goalkeeper to make the score 2-1. Secue's goal, the first of her career, proved to be the game-winner as it was the final tally of the game.
The win extended the Boilermakers' unbeaten streak to four games including two consecutive victories. It also gave Purdue a 1-0 series advantage over the Titans.
The Boilermakers return to action on Sunday for their final game of the Under Armour Invitational. They are set to play the Southern California Trojans at 2 p.m. ET from Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Calif.