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Penn State women's soccer closes a three-match homestand with a primetime kickoff against the Purdue Boilermakers at 7 p.m. (ET) on Saturday at Jeffrey Field. The program will honor those who have battled breast cancer during the Play for Her match. Fans can watch from home on B1G+.
Penn State and Purdue rank among the conference leaders in points heading into Saturday night with the Boilermakers tying for first place in the Big Ten with 12 points. The Nittany Lions are not far behind with 10.
The Blue & White checked in at No. 30 in the latest RPI rankings, while Purdue was ranked No. 62.
Penn State boasts the fourth-most goals per match in the Big Ten with two per contest and is fourth in the league in goal differential with an average margin of victory of 1.30 goals.
In just Big Ten competition, the Blue & White tie for the lowest goals allowed total at two through five matches. The team is also second in shots (75) and corner kicks (35) in league play.
Penn State took down USC in a 1-0 result on its home pitch on Sept. 27. In the victory, the Nittany Lions, led by a stout back line, did not concede a single shot. It was the first time PSU held a Big Ten opponent without a shot since October 20, 2000 against Ohio State.
Junior forward Aubrey Kulpa registered her fifth goal of the season, 20th of her career, in the first half. She received a throw in from sophomore defender Hannah Jordan inside the box before sending a rocket off her left foot into the top left corner of the net.
Jordan's assist was her first of the season as she became the 10th Nittany Lion to tally multiple goal contributions after she scored a goal against Bucknell earlier in the season.
Kulpa currently sits inside the top six of the Big Ten rankings for goals (5), shots on goal (18) and shots per match (3.20). Through five B1G matches, she ties for second with three goals, tied for third with 17 shots and third in shots on goal at nine.
Redshirt senior goalkeeper Mackenzie Gress has established herself as one of the top netminders in the Big Ten. In five conference contests, Gress is tied for second with three shutouts, second in save percentage (0.875) and second in goals against average (0.40).
PREVIEWING PURDUE
Purdue enters Saturday night's contest at 10-1-1 overall, currently in a four-way tie for the top spot in the Big Ten with a 4-1-0 conference record and 12 points.
The Boilermakers have won four-straight dating back to September 13, with all four wins coming against Big Ten opponents. Their lone conference loss came against then-No. 16 UCLA on September 10 in a 2-1 decision.
Three of Purdue’s conference wins have come in shutout fashion, outscoring opponents 11-1 during their winning streak.
The Boilermakers' offense leads the nation with 45 total goals and 24.25 shots per match while holding their opponents to just five total goals on 7.417 shots per match. The team boasts the best goal differential in the country at +40.
Forward Jaiden Anderson leads Purdue and the Big Ten with 10 goals on 51 shots in her first season with the Boilermakers after transferring from USC. The junior has also contributed five assists, totaling a conference-leading 25 points.
Five additional players have registered multiple goals and assists on the season. McKenzie Carle ranks second on the team with 18 points, tallying 8 goals and 2 assists.
Sophomore Krystina Wolf has started 11 of 12 matches in goal, recording 30 saves and a 0.882 save percentage. She has collected six shutouts, tied for the second-most among Big Ten keepers. Wolf earned Co-Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Week honors after two shutouts a week ago.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State and Purdue have matched up 24 times since 1999 with the Nittany Lions holding a substantial, 20-1-3 lead in the series.
The Blue & White have not lost to the Boilermakers since 2003, winning 17 of the last 19 matchups.
PSU owns a 10-0-1 mark at Jeffrey Field against the Boilermakers. The two sides last met in Happy Valley during the 2021 season, a 2-1 triumph for the Nittany Lions.
The last two contests between the teams have been low scoring, with a 0-0 tie in 2023 and a 1-0 Penn State win last season. Purdue has scored more than one goal in a match against Penn State just three times.