EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women's soccer team opens the 2026 campaign on Thursday, traveling to West Lafayette to battle Purdue. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. CT.
Building on Success
- Evansville looks to build off a 2025 campaign that saw the Aces finish with seven wins, their highest win total since 2021
- The Aces scored 20 goals in 2025, the most they have scored in a season since scoring 22 in 2021
- One of the highlights of the 2025 campaign came on August 28, when the Aces took down Purdue 2-1 to capture their first win over a Power-4 opponent since 2008
All-Conference Aces
- Evansville returns three players who earned All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 2025
- Taylor Johnson was a Third Team All-Valley pick in 2024 and a Second Team All-Valley selection in 2025
- On Tuesday, Johnson was selected to the Preseason All-MVC Team
- Johnson took her game to the next level in 2025, posting single season career-highs in games played (16), starts (16), assists (3), points (9), shots (18), shots on goal (13), and minutes played (1,034)
- Johnson scored three goals on the year, ranking second on the team
- Brielle LaBerge enjoyed a breakout campaign as a sophomore in 2025 to land on the All-MVC Third Team, starting all 16 matches while playing 1,422 of a possible 1,440 minutes
- While serving as an anchor of the Evansville defense, LaBerge was also one of the top offensive threats in the conference, finishing the regular season second in the MVC with five assists and first in assists per game at 0.31
- LaBerge also added a goal to finish the year with eight points, while placing eight shots on target
- Lily Kytasaari landed on the MVC All-Freshman Team following a stellar debut season with the Purple Aces
- Playing in all 16 matches with one start, Kytasaari logged 498 minutes and scored two goals, becoming one of four Aces to score multiple goals on the season
- With the nod, Kytasaari became Evansville's first All-Freshman team selection since Hailey Autenrieb in 2021
Series History
- Thursday marks the sixth all-time meeting between Evansville and Purdue
- Purdue leads the all-time series 4-1, but the Purple Aces won the most recent meeting with a 2-1 victory in Evansville last season
- Evansville is seeking their first-ever win in West Lafayette
Scouting Purdue
- Purdue finished last season with a 6-10-3 record and a 3-7-1 mark in Big Ten play
- In the Big Ten preseason poll, the Boilermakers were picked 13th
Follow Along
Thursday's match will be streamed live on Big Ten Plus. Live stats are available at GoPurpleAces.com.
