Sept. 11, 2009

Box Score

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The seventh-ranked Purdue women's soccer team was defeated 2-1 by third-ranked Stanford on Friday at Buck Shaw Stadium in the opening game of the Santa Clara Classic.

"I thought we put in a huge effort against a fantastically talented team," head coach Robert Klatte said. "The goal we created was a combination of players doing what we want them to do and being in the right place. It was disappointing to give up the second goal in the manner that we did. From my vantage point, it certainly was a close call. At the same time, our challenge coming away from this game is we can compete with any team in the country, but we have to get better on the ball and create more chances than we did today."

In easily the warmest conditions Purdue (5-1-0) has faced this season, which featured a temperature of 89 degrees at the start and very little cloud cover throughout, the Boilermakers played the first game featuring two top-10 teams in program history.

The game started just like Purdue's other game with a top-10 opponent this season as senior Sylvia Forbes launched a shot off the opening kick. Unlike at then-sixth-ranked Texas A&M, when Forbes tied the NCAA record for the fastest goal scored, this time the goalkeeper knocked the ball over the crossbar for a Purdue corner kick. The Boilermakers created multiple chances on goal from that corner but were unable to score.

Purdue took another corner kick less than three minutes later, and sophomore Kellie Phillips knocked it from the left side of the goal across to fellow sophomore Katie Leinert past the right post. Leinert headed the ball back into the middle, where Okoroafo was waiting and headed it into the back of the net to give the Boilermakers a 1-0 lead at the 3:28 mark. The Boilermakers have scored first in all six games this season and have outscored their opponents 12-3 in the first half.

The goal pulled Okoroafo within one score of the school record for career goals. The Sylvania, Ohio, native has scored 33 goals as a Boilermaker, including six this season, and her next goal will tie her with Lauren Sesselmann for the record. Okoroafo also is one point away from moving into a tie with Annette Kent for second on the program's all-time points list.

Stanford (6-0-0) evened the score in the 17th minute when Kelly O'Hara blasted a shot from just inside the penalty box. Goalkeeper Jenny Bradfisch got her left hand on the shot but could not halt the ball's momentum enough to keep it out of the goal.

The game-winning goal came on a penalty kick that was awarded to Stanford in the 73rd minute after a long chase for a ball that had rolled inside the box. O'Hara stepped up and put it into the bottom left corner of the net and gave the Cardinal the lead for the first time in the game.

Bradfisch made five saves, many of which should find time on the highlight reels. Purdue's back line of Sylvia Forbes, Liz Secue and Remi Gibba, which played the entire 90 minutes, also had its fair share of runs halted and shots blocked in front of the goal.

The only other Purdue team to start a season 5-0-0 also lost to the third-ranked team in the country in the sixth game of the season. In 2000, it was a 4-1 loss at Nebraska that halted the longest season-opening winning streak in program history.

Purdue wraps up its Santa Clara Classic schedule Sunday when it faces Santa Clara at 4:30 p.m. ET. Live results can be found at PurdueSports.com.

Purdue Boilermakers