FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 30, 2026— The Intercollegiate Women’s Soccer Organization for Coaches (IWSOC), in partnership with United Soccer Coaches, announced on Wednesday the NCAA Division I women’s college soccer players named to the 2026 Hermann Trophy Mid-Season Watch List.
The Hermann Trophy is presented annually by the Missouri Athletic Club and is the nation’s highest individual honor, recognizing the National Player of the Year as determined by a vote of Division I head coaches who are members of United Soccer Coaches. The award is named in honor of the late Robert Hermann, the St. Louis, Mo., businessman and soccer executive who founded the National Professional Soccer League — the first professional soccer league in the United States, which later became the North American Soccer League. Hermann was inducted into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame in 2012.
The 2026 mid-season watch list was compiled by members of the Division I Women’s All-America Committee, chaired by Jennifer Rockwood, from a pool of the top-performing players of the first half of the 2026 season. The list was narrowed from 62 players on the preseason watch list to 30. It includes 24 players from the preseason list and six new additions who did not appear on the original list: Jade Bordeleau of NC State, Ava Bramblett of Ohio State, Bella Devey of North Carolina, Kayla Keefer of Oklahoma, Sierra Sythe of Wake Forest and Larkin Thompson of Alabama.
A total of 15 players will be named 2026 Hermann Trophy semifinalists on December 4, at the conclusion of NCAA Division I All-American voting. From that list, head coaches will cast votes and three players will be named finalists. The 2026 recipient will be announced January 8, 2027, in a ceremony at the historic Missouri Athletic Club in downtown St. Louis, Mo.
2026 NCAA Division I Women’s Hermann Trophy Mid-Season Watch List
|
Pos. |
Name |
Class |
School |
Hometown |
|
|
GK |
Azul Alvarez |
Sr. |
Baylor University |
Round Rock, Texas |
|
|
GK |
Valentina Amaral |
Sr. |
Wake Forest University |
Oviedo, Fla. |
|
|
GK |
Victoria Safradin |
Sr. |
University of Virginia |
Eastlake, Ohio |
|
|
D |
Hailey Baumann |
Sr. |
University of Wisconsin |
South Lyon, Mich. |
|
|
D |
Ava Bramblett |
Sr. |
Ohio State University |
Noblesville, Ind. |
|
|
D |
Faith Leyba |
Sr. |
University of Colorado |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
|
|
D |
Cameron Roller |
Sr. |
Duke University |
Sherman, Texas |
|
|
D |
Sierra Sythe |
Jr. |
Wake Forest University |
Long Beach, Calif. |
|
|
M |
Kayla Briggs |
Sr. |
Michigan State University |
Toronto, Ont. |
|
|
M |
Sam Courtwright |
So. |
Duke University |
Dallas, Texas |
|
|
M |
Courtney Jones |
Sr. |
Vanderbilt University |
Orlando, Fla. |
|
|
M |
Charlotte Kohler |
Jr. |
Stanford University |
Woodside, Calif. |
|
|
M |
Victoria Meza |
Jr. |
Texas State University |
San Salvador, El Salvador |
|
|
M |
Sydney Middaugh |
Sr. |
University of South Carolina |
Hesperia, Calif. |
|
|
M |
Joy Okonye |
Sr. |
Brown University |
Lagos, Nigeria |
|
|
M |
Anna Rayhill |
Sr. |
Harvard University |
New Hartford, N.Y. |
|
|
M |
Amanda Schlueter |
Sr. |
Ohio State University |
Union, Ky. |
|
|
F |
Kennedy Bell |
Sr. |
Michigan State University |
Charlotte, N.C. |
|
|
F |
Jade Bordeleau |
Sr. |
North Carolina State University |
Terrabonne, Quebec |
|
|
F |
Alex Buck |
Jr. |
University of Washington |
Medina, Wash. |
|
|
F |
Annabelle Chukwu |
Jr. |
University of Notre Dame |
Ottawa, Ont. |
|
|
F |
Katie Shea Collins |
Jr. |
Duke University |
Gallatin, Tenn. |
|
|
F |
Summer Denigan |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina |
Union, Ky. |
|
|
F |
Bella Devey |
So. |
University of North Carolina |
Draper, Utah |
|
|
F |
Kayla Keefer |
Jr. |
University of Oklahoma |
Bloomsburg, Pa. |
|
|
F |
Hope Leyba |
Sr. |
University of Colorado |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
|
|
F |
Mia Minestrella |
Sr. |
Duke University |
Redondo Beach, Calif. |
|
|
F |
Larkin Thomason |
Sr. |
University of Alabama |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
|
|
F |
Sydney Watts |
Sr. |
Vanderbilt University |
Lenexa, Kan. |
|
|
F |
Taylor Zdrojewski |
Jr. |
Texas Tech University |
Celina, Texas |
|
About MAC Hermann Trophy
The MAC Hermann Trophy is presented annually to the Division I National Players of the Year as voted by Division I college coaches at the end of the regular season. The 2026 recipients will be announced on January 8, 2027, in St. Louis, Mo.
About IWSOC
Founded in 2025, the Intercollegiate Women’s Soccer Organization for Coaches (IWSOC) is a coach-led nonprofit built for college coaches and dedicated to advancing women’s college soccer through leadership, legislative advocacy, and strategic stewardship of the sport. IWSOC serves as the national voice for intercollegiate women’s soccer coaches, supporting more than 30,000 female student-athletes and 3,000 coaches across NCAA Divisions I, II and III. For more information, visit IWSOC.org.
About United Soccer Coaches
United Soccer Coaches is a national membership organization serving coaches and administrators across all levels of soccer, from youth to professional. The organization tabulates and administers the IWSOC DI Top 25 Coaches Poll, along with its own national and regional rankings for collegiate and high school programs throughout the year.
