Nittany Lions Kick off Final Regular Season Road Trip at Purdue Thursday
Penn State visits Boilermakers in penultimate regular season road test of 2025
Penn State at Purdue
7-5-3 | 3-3-2 B1G
5-8-3 | 2-5-1 B1G
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Penn State women's soccer prepares for its penultimate road matchup in Big Ten Conference competition as the Nittany Lions kick off a two-match weekend in the state of Indiana with a contest against the Purdue Boilermakers. Kickoff from Folk Field on Thursday, October 16, is slated for 7 p.m. (ET), with streaming available to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices.
Follow the Action
For fans of the Nittany Lions unable to attend Thursday evening’s Big Ten Conference matchup in West Lafayette, Penn State’s contest against the Boilermakers will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices. Declan Little and Kayla Helman will call the action live from the Folk Field Press Box. Click the link here to be redirected to the live stream of the broadcast and sign in with credentials for access. Live stats provided by Purdue University and StatBroadcast are available here.
KICKIN’ IT
Despite dealing with a pair of one-goal deficits, Penn State was able to force a 2-2 draw against the Oregon Ducks last Sunday, October 12. PSU racked up 22 total shot attempts, their second time doing so in the last three matches. PSU also cracked 20 shots or more in a match for the third time this season, with all three of those opportunities coming during Big Ten Conference competition. The Nittany Lions won the battle on the shot chart by a 22-10 differential and picked up a 6-3 victory in terms of on-target attempts. Penn State also secured a win in the corner kick competition for the third match in a row and matched its season-high in the statistic by winning an 8-2 victory in that category. Redshirt senior midfielder Julia Raich led the way for the Nittany Lions against Oregon, picking up her fourth goal of the 2025 season to match her single-season career high in the statistic. Raich has now produced the highest scoring season in her collegiate career, racking up 12 points on four goals and four assists this year as one of the program’s three captains. Sophomore defender Bella Ayscue also picked up her second goal of the campaign and third as a collegiate athlete, converting on her first penalty kick attempt at the college level. The second-year Nittany Lion is responsible for the first successful conversion from the spot this year in Happy Valley.
The Nittany Lions continue to be led on the field by sophomore forward Aubrey Kulpa, who boasts 22 total points split between eight points and six assists. Redshirt senior midfielder Riley Gleason has also been a key contributor to Penn State's success on the campaign, with the Mission Viejo, California, native providing a career-best nine helpers this season. In goal, redshirt junior goalkeeper Mackenzie Gress has been opportunistic in her opportunities, amassing 34 saves thus far with a goals-against average of 1.32. As a team, Penn State has made a name for itself as one of the best facilitating teams in women's college soccer. PSU ranks first in the Big Ten Conference in both total assists (33) and assists per match (2.20) while ranking 16th and 28th nationally in those respective categories. Penn State's scoring offense continues to produce at a high level, ranking third in the B1G with 2.00 goals per match while ranking second in the league in total points with 93.
Next Up: Purdue
BATTLING THE BOILERMAKERS
Under the direction of 14-year head coaching veteran and second-year skipper Richard Moodie, the Purdue Boilermakers enter Thursday night's matchup against the Nittany Lions boasting a 5-8-3 overall record coupled with a 2-5-1 start in Big Ten Conference competitions. Moodie helped lead the Boilermakers to a seven-win season in his first campaign at the helm last year in West Lafayette, picking up three B1G victories along the way. The Boilermakers got out to a competitive start in Big Ten competition, picking up an upset ranked victory over Wisconsin in 2-1 fashion on the road before dropping one-goal fixtures to Iowa and Maryland. Purdue notched its second B1G win in 3-0 fashion over Oregon but is winless in each of the last four. On an individual basis, the Boilermakers are anchored by a pair of double-digit scorers in Irene Campo and Chiara Singarella, with the duo scoring 14 and 13 points, respectively. Both Campo and Singarella own six goals, while Emilia Deppe and Allyssa Turner own four helpers each. In goal, Emily Edwards boasts 55 saves and a 1.08 GAA.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State and Purdue prepare to square off for the 24th time in program history this Thursday evening in West Lafayette, with the Nittany Lions leading the all-time series by a 19-1-3 overall record. The Nittany Lions and Boilermakers first met in the 1999 campaign following the introduction of the Purdue program a year earlier in 1998. PSU's last victory came in 2021. The Blue & White have been on a dominant run against the Boilermakers, with Penn State going unbeaten in the last 18 matchups. Over the last four seasons, the Nittany Lions have booked a trio of victories with one draw. The last PSU win on October 17, 2021, finished in a 2-1 result on Jeffrey Field in Happy Valley. Purdue's only win in the series came on Folk Field on September 26, 2003, a 3-1 upset victory in West Lafayette. The most recent meeting of the two sides came on October 12, 2023, with the Nittany Lions and Boilermakers battling to a scoreless draw at Folk Field. Then-graduate goalkeeper Katherine Asman notched her sixth shutout of the season while the team racked up an impressive 22-8 differential in total shots. PSU also logged wins in shots on goal (8-4) and corners (8-2).
Follow the Nittany Lions
Visit GoPSUSports.com for more information on Penn State women’s soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion women’s soccer team on X and Instagram @PennStateWSOC, in addition to the team’s Facebook page at /PSUWomensSoccer.
The 2025 Penn State women's soccer season is presented by Highmark.