Women's Soccer

Buckeyes Hold Firm, Big Ten Rolls into Conference Play

Ohio State’s ranked win, more milestones set up Thursday’s B1G clashes

From Ohio State’s ranked win in Columbus to Rutgers’ hard-fought in-state rivalry victory, many of the Big Ten women’s soccer squads will carry momentum into conference play on Thursday. Let’s take a look. 

Buckeyes Hold Firm Against Ranked Memphis 

The headliner of the weekend was in Columbus, where No. 8 Ohio State defended home turf with a decisive win over No. 23 Memphis. The Buckeyes dictated tempo early, seizing control in the 15th minute when senior Elle Britt scored off a corner kick. Senior Amanda Schlueter doubled the advantage in the 41st minute, burying a clutch strike to cap off a strong opening half. 

Ohio State continued to control play in the second, with Britt scoring her second goal of the game in the 69th minute to give the Buckeyes a 3-0 lead. While the Tigers got one back, Ohio State held on to advance to 4-0-1 on the season and 2-0-1 in ranked games. 

Notables, across the conference: 

  • Rutgers picked up its first win of the season over in-state foe Princeton, defeating the Tigers 4-2. Freshman Lilia Calvert had a brace, including the clutch game-winner with under seven minutes left. Read the full recap here. 

  • Six different players found the net for No. 16 Wisconsin in a 6-2 win over Central Michigan. It was the most goals in a match for the Badgers since 2018, which came against Hofstra in the NCAA Tournament. Read the full recap here. 

  • In Blacksburg, the Illinois defense stood tall in a 1-0 shutout victory over Virginia Tech. Goalkeeper Izzy Lee had nine saves — including this insane deflection — in her fourth clean sheet of the year, while Ryleigh Wood’s first career goal served as the difference. Check out more from the shutout here. 

Conference play opens up on Thursday night, with all 18 teams in action. Here’s a few we’re keeping an eye on: 

  • Illinois welcomes No. 16 Wisconsin to Champaign. We’ll see if Lee and the lockdown Illini defense (shutouts in three of last four games) can tame the Badgers (13 goals in last three games). 

  • After Penn State goalkeeper Mackenzie Gress had a career-high 10 saves against Virginia Tech, the Nittany Lions head to Columbus to face No. 8 Ohio State. 

  • Undefeated after the non-conference slate, No. 4 Michigan State travels west to open conference play against USC. 

  • Reigning Big Ten Champion Washington hosts Maryland at Husky Soccer Stadium to begin its conference title defense. 

Check out the full schedule here as conference play begins. 

Photo via ohiostatebuckeyes.com