In a weekend with two first vs. second place matchups, Ohio State (24 points) now stands alone at the top of the Big Ten Women’s Soccer standings, followed by UCLA (22 points) and Michigan State (21 points). Read how we got here.
Ohio State Overtakes First Place
When two of the Big Ten’s best offenses went head-to-head in West Lafayette with conference title implications on the line, it was No. 3 Ohio State that bested red-hot and No. 20-ranked Purdue. The Buckeyes got on the board first in the seventh minute, connecting the dots with a set piece service to a header cross to a header goal for Nette-Nina Hiltunen.
The lead lasted until the 20th minute, when Purdue’s leading scorer Jaiden Anderson beat out three Buckeye defenders and blasted a shot past the keeper by the near post. The teams went into the break knotted at one before Elle Britt’s side-netting laser put Ohio State up 2-1 just two and a half minutes into the second half.
The Buckeyes fended off a slew of Boilermaker chances down the stretch, including a 71st-minute PK that was stopped by keeper Lizzie Rozmajzl in her first career start.
The win gives Ohio State sole possession of the conference lead and pushes Purdue to fifth place. Read more from OSU.
Scoreless Tie Puts Bruins in Second, Drops Huskies to Fourth
No. 14 Washington and No. 11 UCLA delivered in what promised to be a defensive clash in Los Angeles, battling to a 0-0 draw behind a combined eight saves from the goalkeepers. Husky netminder Tanner Ijams surpassed 100 career saves en route to the 20th clean sheet of her career, putting her just one shutout shy of Washington’s all-time record. Her fifth of the night came on a clutch stop in the 90th minute. Read UW’s story.
The Bruins unleashed 11 shots in the second half and outshot the Huskies 15-5 in the contest, but UCLA will need to convert those chances if it hopes to climb in the final stretch of the conference race. Head coach Gof Boyoko said, "We see the goal, we have the box entries, the corners, and multiple crosses; the only thing is we couldn't find the back of the net. But overall, it was a good performance, and I'm proud of the girls." More from UCLA.
Title Race Coming Down to the Wire
There are only three regular season games remaining before the 2026 Big Ten Women’s Soccer Tournament Presented by Allstate. If the conference’s top teams take care of business, the standings should remain as is. But this season has brought plenty of surprises; we’ll see if there are more in store on Thursday:
Find out who comes through heading into the final weekend — Check out the full upcoming schedule.