Coming off a strong performance against No. 1 Stanford on the road in a tie in Palo Alto, the Trojans looked to turn their season around, starting with two Big Ten matchups against Michigan State and Purdue.

A tough 5-0 loss against Michigan State (5-0-2, 1-0 Big Ten) Thursday night in the first conference game sets up a chance for USC (1-4-2, 0-1) to win its first Big Ten match of the year on Sunday.

Following an impressive career-high seven saves, freshman goalkeeper Josie Biehl and the rest of the Trojans are looking to dominate at home this week.

The Trojans came into the Stanford (6-0-1) match looking to find their footing despite being up against the best team in the country. They did just that by giving the Cardinal their first tie of the 2026 season.

Stanford started the game off strong, scoring the first goal in the 36th minute. Still, the Trojans bounced back and were able to notch two goals from both sophomore midfielder Jaiden Rodriguez right before halftime and junior forward Peyton Nakagawara in the early stages of the second half. USC could not hold the lead, however, as the Trojans gave up a late-game goal to end the match 2-2.

This week’s Big Ten home matchups will feature a well-prepared and rested Trojan side that has only played once since Sept. 3. Before the matchup against Purdue, USC hosted Michigan State for the pair’s first meeting on Trojan soil.

Of the two matches this week, Purdue is the more dominant opponent, based on its performance so far in its 2026 campaign, coming into the game without a loss and a perfect 2-0 record in away games.

USC is looking to bolster its winning record against the Boilermakers, in which they are 4-1 in all-time games since their last meeting in 2024.

With the addition of the United States Youth National Team player and freshman defender Savannah Leifried, Head Coach Jane Alukonis has seen bright potential.

“Her composure on the ball, competitive nature and consistency make her someone we know will have a positive impact on our back line,” Alukonis said in an interview after acquiring Leifried.

Leifried, a California native, is just one of the many promising figures on this year’s Trojan squad. After recording a shot on goal against Stanford, the 5-foot-5 defender has shown her promising talent on the big stage.

The start of Big Ten conference play this week will be USC’s first major test to show whether or not it can push for a playoff spot despite the underwhelming season start.

Following the loss to the Spartans, Alukonis is looking to even out the Trojans’ conference play record Sunday. Now in her fifth season as head coach, she will try to reignite the spark from her 2024 Trojan lineup, where she led the team to its best overall record ever and the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

As the leading scorer, junior forward Lily Biddulph will also be essential in realizing USC’s potential as she aims to capitalize on her two-goal, off-the-bench performance that led the Trojans to a 4-0 shutout win against New Mexico State (1-6).

In the second season of operation for Rawlinson Stadium since its grand opening in August 2025, the Trojans have a sub-.500 overall record of (6-6-2). The team will try to turn this around when they take on Purdue in a Big Ten meeting Sunday at 1 p.m. at Rawlinson Stadium.