Any hardware-worthy squad is going to have a superstar.

Leena Powell could be the Bruins’.

“When I watch the World Cup, when I’ve got my No. 10 – Kylian Mbappé – I can tell everybody I can start dancing because I know that man’s going to do something,” said coach Gof Boyoko. “Leena, she’s my Lamine Yamal, she’s my Mbappé – my go-to player – and I need her to impact the game.”

The sophomore forward scored in the 25th minute to pave the way for No. 21 UCLA women’s soccer’s (5-3-1, 2-1 Big Ten) 1-0 upset over No. 5 Ohio State (6-1-1, 2-1) at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Thursday.

Powell set new season highs with 83 minutes played and five shots against the Buckeyes, the latter tying her career-high.

“I had a conversation with Gof,” Powell said. “He called me in. I’ve been in a little slump, and he was just like, ‘We believe in you.’ And knowing that the coaches have 10 toes behind me at all times, it just gave me so much confidence to just go out and play.”

A year after the forward’s 30 shots all failed to find the back of the net in her freshman campaign, Powell already has two goals just 13 shots into her sophomore season.

“She’s the hardest worker, she’s the biggest advocate for you,” said sophomore goalkeeper Daphne Nakfoor. “She’s such an incredible player, and she was able to go and show what she does every day at practice.”

Nakfoor did more than her fair share as well Thursday. After her seven-save performance proved for naught in UCLA’s 1-0 loss to top-ranked Michigan State on Sunday, the former Big Ten All-Freshman honoree put up five saves to shut out a previously undefeated Ohio State.

The Bruin defense made Nakfoor’s job much easier by limiting the Buckeyes to just seven shots – a season-low for the squad that entered Thursday averaging 16 per game.

Ohio State came closest to tying the affair in the evening’s final 20 seconds.

Buckeye defender/forward Anika Poremba put a ball up in the air near the Bruin goal with teammates midfielder Ava Greco and defender Ava Bramblett in pursuit.

Though Greco’s header would get past Nakfoor, a foul against the Buckeyes would allow the Bruin goalkeeper to ice the game – and junior defenders Paloma Daubert and Abby Gemma blocked Greco’s attempt for good measure.

“As soon as that ball went up in the air, I was like, ‘Oh, boy, this is going to be a doozy,’” Nakfoor said. “I knew I just had to make first contact, and I was able to do that. … As long as the ball stayed out of the back of the net, it didn’t matter what happened to me.”

Greco contributed all but three of Ohio State’s shots and all but two of its shots on goal.

The Buckeyes were shut out for just the second time this season and were held scoreless in a loss for the first time since last year’s Big Ten tournament.

Still, UCLA’s offense also proved to rely on a single player, with everyone besides Powell recording just three shots and zero on goal – a trend Boyoko knows is not sustainable, even if the forward continues to rise.

“I’m trying to make them come out of their shell because there’s more,” Boyoko said. “Hopefully I don’t have (only) one star, but we need to have a player we can talk about at the end of the game.”