Spartans Earn Top Spot in B1G Preseason Poll

East Lansing, Mich. -- The Big Ten preseason women's soccer poll and Players to Watch for the 2026 season were released by the Conference office on Monday, (Aug. 3). The Spartans have been selected as the favorite to win the regular season, based on the vote of the 18 B1G coaches. In addition, Spartan seniors Kennedy Bell (Charlotte, NC), Kayla Briggs (Toronto, Ontario) and Bella Najera (St. Charles, Ill.) have been designated among Players to Watch in the Big Ten for the upcoming campaign.

MSU earns its highest-ever preseason ranking from the Conference coaches after finishing second a year ago; the Spartans also played in the Big Ten Tournament championship game, falling in penalty kicks. MSU draws six of the other eight teams projected to be in the top half of the Big Ten table in its 2026 schedule. A difficult slate is no new concept to the Green & White, who played the toughest schedule in Division I a year ago and finished with a 14-4-6 record and a trip to the program's first-ever NCAA Elite Eight. MSU has reached the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament in each of the last four seasons as well as earning back-to-back Big Ten regular-season titles in 2022 and 2023. Head coach Jeff Hosler begins his sixth season in East Lansing this fall.

A total of nine teams on MSU's 2026 slate were in the NCAA Tournament a year ago, including four of MSU's six non-conference foes. Additionally, six opponents finished the season in the final national polls. MSU's non-conference games include the season opener against NCAA qualifier Xavier, an August 23 trip to North Carolina, an Aug. 30 rematch at DeMartin against last year's Sweet 16 opponent Colorado, and a Sept. 4 game at Notre Dame, the presumptive No. 1 team in the preseason national polls.

2026 WSOC Players to Watch

Bell, the reigning Big Ten Forward of the Year, headlines the returners for MSU. She is joined on the Players to Watch list by fellow All-American Briggs and three-time All-Big Ten selection Najera. The trio were the top three scorers for the Spartans a year ago, each with 21 points or more.

The Spartans return 47 goals and 36 assists from last year's offense that ranked first in the Big Ten and 18^th nationally. Ten starters are back for MSU, including four of MSU's five All-Big Ten selections a year ago. In addition to the Players to Watch, Emerson Sargeant (Hartland, Mich.) was a First Team All-Big Ten pick with a 19-point season, and senior Renee Watson (Toronto, Ontario) contributed 13 points in 2025. The Spartan roster will receive an influx of new talent from the No. 8 recruiting class and 12^th-ranked portal class by Top Drawer Soccer. Four of MSU's incoming freshmen are top-100 recruits.

Michigan State gives local fans a sneak peek at the 2026 squad this Wednesday (Aug. 5) when it holds its Green & White exhibition at DeMartin Stadium at 7:30 pm. The regular season begins on Wednesday, Aug, 12 when the Spartans host Xavier.

2026 Big Ten Women's Soccer Preseason Poll

Michigan State
UCLA
Washington
Wisconsin
Ohio State
Penn State
USC
Northwestern
Illinois
Iowa
Michigan
Nebraska
Purdue
Minnesota
Rutgers
Indiana
Maryland
Oregon

2026 Big Ten Women's Soccer Players to Watch
Izzy Lee, 5th-Yr., GK, Illinois
Cayla Jackson, Jr., F, Illinois
Emma Yee, Jr., F, Illinois
Emily Grahan, So., F, Indiana
Piper Coffield, R-Sr., Indiana
Aleyna Quinn, R-Jr., F, Indiana
Elle Wildman, So., MF, Iowa
Sofia Bush, Sr., MF, Iowa
Millie Greer, Sr., D, Iowa
Mckinley Heaven, So., F, Maryland
Faith Luckey, Sr., GK, Maryland
Lisa McIntyre, Sr., MF, Maryland
Ella Jablinskey, Jr., F, Michigan
Campbell Jewell, Sr., D, Michigan
Ellie Fife, Jr., D, Michigan
Kennedy Bell, Sr., F, Michigan State
Kayla Briggs, Sr., MF, Michigan State
Bella Najera, Sr., MF, Michigan State
Sarah Martin, R-Jr., GK, Minnesota
Caroline Birdsell, R-Jr., F, Minnesota
Taylor Heimerl, Sr., D, Minnesota
Ella Rudney, Sr., F, Nebraska
Kayma Carpenter, Sr., F/D, Nebraska
Ella Guyott, Sr., D, Nebraska
Kennedy Roesch, Jr., F, Northwestern
Megan Norkett, Sr., F, Northwestern
Keira Kemmerly, So., MF, Northwestern
Amanda Schlueter, Sr., MF, Ohio State
Ava Bramblett, Sr., D, Ohio State
Ava Greco, Jr., MF, Ohio State
Carly Cormack, Jr., MF, Oregon
Ellie Felt, So., F, Oregon
Lauren Kenny, Sr., D, Oregon
Molly Martin, Sr., MF, Penn State
Mackenzie Greess, Sr., GK, Penn State
Aubrey Kulpa, Jr., F, Penn State
Irene Campo, Sr., MF, Purdue
Jaiden Anderson, Jr., F, Purdue
Megan Santa Cruz, Sr., MF, Purdue
Gabriela Gil, R-Jr., MF, Rutgers
Olivia Bodmer, R-Sr., GK, Rutgers
Ashley Baran, Sr., F, Rutgers
Olivia Woodson, Sr., F, UCLA
Leena Powell, So., F, UCLA
Grace Shank, So., MF, UCLA
Annabel Austen, Gr., GK, USC
Mary Cochran, Gr., MF, USC
Alyssa Parsons, Fr., F, USC
Alex Buck, Jr., F, Washington
Tanner Ijams, R-So., GK, Washington
Lucy Newlin, 5th-Yr., MF, Washington
Hailey Baumann, Sr., D, Wisconsin
Kiara Gilmore, So., D, Wisconsin
Drew Stover, Sr., GK, Wisconsin

Michigan State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Kennedy Bell

Kayla Briggs

Bella Najera

Emerson Sargeant

Renee Watson

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