Michigan State University Athletics
Bell, Briggs Named to Hermann Midseason Watch List
9/30/2026 1:07:00 PM | Women's Soccer
East Lansing, Mich. -- Spartan senior standouts Kennedy Bell (Charlotte, NC) and Kayla Briggs (Toronto, Ontario) have been named to the 2026 Hermann Trophy Mid-Season Watch List. Â The Intercollegiate Women's Soccer Organization for Coaches (IWSOC), in partnership with United Soccer Coaches, announced the mid-season honorees on Wednesday (Sept. 30). Â
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.Â
For the second year in a row, both Bell and Briggs are atop MSU's scoring table, and have helped guide the Spartans to a No. 2 national ranking. Â Bell owns a 6-5-17 scoring line, ranking fourth in the Big Ten in both goals and points and tied for third in assists. Â Briggs is tied with Bell with five assists, her five goals ranks sixth in the league, and her four game-winners is third in the B1G and sixth nationally. Â Bell (36th) and Briggs (61st) are also nationally ranked in total points, and share the No. 34 spot nationally in total assists. Â
The duo are among five Big Ten athletes to make the list - Ohio State also has two midseason honorees,and Washington one. MSU is one of six schools to place two on the list, and Duke leads the way with four. Â
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 along with six midseason additions.
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.
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
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GK -- Azul Alvarez  (Sr., Baylor / Round Rock, Texas)
GK -- Valentina Amaral (Sr., Wake Forest / Oviedo, Fla.)
GK -- Victoria Safradin  (Sr., Virginia / Eastlake, Ohio)
D -- Hailey Baumann  (Sr., Wisconsin / South Lyon, Mich.)
D -- Ava Bramblett  (Sr., Ohio State / Noblesville, Ind.)
D -- Faith Leyba  (Sr., Colorado / Phoenix, Ariz.)
D -- Cameron Roller  (Sr., Duke / Sherman, Texas)
D -- Sierra Sythe  (Jr., Wake Forest / Long Beach, Calif.)
M -- Kayla Briggs  (Sr., Michigan State / Toronto, Ont.)
M -- Sam Courtwright  (So., Duke / Dallas, Texas)
M -- Courtney Jones  (Sr., Vanderbilt / Orlando, Fla.)
M -- Charlotte Kohler  (Jr., Stanford / Woodside, Calif.)
M -- Victoria Meza  (Jr., Texas State / San Salvador, El Salvador)
M -- Sydney Middaugh  (Sr., South Carolina / Hesperia, Calif.)
M -- Joy Okonye  (Sr., Brown / Lagos, Nigeria)
M -- Anna Rayhill  (Sr., Harvard / New Hartford, N.Y.)
M -- Amanda Schlueter (Sr., Ohio State / Union, Ky.)
F -- Kennedy Bell  (Sr., Michigan State / Charlotte, N.C.)
F -- Jade Bordeleau  (Sr., North Carolina State / Terrabonne, Quebec)
F -- Alex Buck (Jr., Washington / Medina, Wash.)
F -- Annabelle Chukwu  (Jr., Notre Dame / Ottawa, Ont.)
F -- Katie Shea Collins  (Jr., Duke / Gallatin, Tenn.)
F -- Summer Denigan  (Sr.,  North Carolina/ Union, Ky.)
F -- Bella Devey (So., Â North Carolina/ Draper, Utah)
F -- Kayla Keefer (Jr., Â Oklahoma / Bloomsburg, Pa.)
F -- Hope Leyba (Sr., Â Colorado / Phoenix, Ariz.)
F -- Mia Minestrella  (Sr., Duke / Redondo Beach, Calif.)
F -- Larkin Thomason  (Sr.,  Alabama / Scottsdale, Ariz.)
F -- Sydney Watts  (Sr., Vanderbilt / Lenexa, Kan.)
F -- Taylor Zdrojewski  (Jr., Texas Tech / Celina, Texas)
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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.Â
For the second year in a row, both Bell and Briggs are atop MSU's scoring table, and have helped guide the Spartans to a No. 2 national ranking. Â Bell owns a 6-5-17 scoring line, ranking fourth in the Big Ten in both goals and points and tied for third in assists. Â Briggs is tied with Bell with five assists, her five goals ranks sixth in the league, and her four game-winners is third in the B1G and sixth nationally. Â Bell (36th) and Briggs (61st) are also nationally ranked in total points, and share the No. 34 spot nationally in total assists. Â
The duo are among five Big Ten athletes to make the list - Ohio State also has two midseason honorees,and Washington one. MSU is one of six schools to place two on the list, and Duke leads the way with four. Â
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 along with six midseason additions.
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.
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
 Â
GK -- Azul Alvarez  (Sr., Baylor / Round Rock, Texas)
GK -- Valentina Amaral (Sr., Wake Forest / Oviedo, Fla.)
GK -- Victoria Safradin  (Sr., Virginia / Eastlake, Ohio)
D -- Hailey Baumann  (Sr., Wisconsin / South Lyon, Mich.)
D -- Ava Bramblett  (Sr., Ohio State / Noblesville, Ind.)
D -- Faith Leyba  (Sr., Colorado / Phoenix, Ariz.)
D -- Cameron Roller  (Sr., Duke / Sherman, Texas)
D -- Sierra Sythe  (Jr., Wake Forest / Long Beach, Calif.)
M -- Kayla Briggs  (Sr., Michigan State / Toronto, Ont.)
M -- Sam Courtwright  (So., Duke / Dallas, Texas)
M -- Courtney Jones  (Sr., Vanderbilt / Orlando, Fla.)
M -- Charlotte Kohler  (Jr., Stanford / Woodside, Calif.)
M -- Victoria Meza  (Jr., Texas State / San Salvador, El Salvador)
M -- Sydney Middaugh  (Sr., South Carolina / Hesperia, Calif.)
M -- Joy Okonye  (Sr., Brown / Lagos, Nigeria)
M -- Anna Rayhill  (Sr., Harvard / New Hartford, N.Y.)
M -- Amanda Schlueter (Sr., Ohio State / Union, Ky.)
F -- Kennedy Bell  (Sr., Michigan State / Charlotte, N.C.)
F -- Jade Bordeleau  (Sr., North Carolina State / Terrabonne, Quebec)
F -- Alex Buck (Jr., Washington / Medina, Wash.)
F -- Annabelle Chukwu  (Jr., Notre Dame / Ottawa, Ont.)
F -- Katie Shea Collins  (Jr., Duke / Gallatin, Tenn.)
F -- Summer Denigan  (Sr.,  North Carolina/ Union, Ky.)
F -- Bella Devey (So., Â North Carolina/ Draper, Utah)
F -- Kayla Keefer (Jr., Â Oklahoma / Bloomsburg, Pa.)
F -- Hope Leyba (Sr., Â Colorado / Phoenix, Ariz.)
F -- Mia Minestrella  (Sr., Duke / Redondo Beach, Calif.)
F -- Larkin Thomason  (Sr.,  Alabama / Scottsdale, Ariz.)
F -- Sydney Watts  (Sr., Vanderbilt / Lenexa, Kan.)
F -- Taylor Zdrojewski  (Jr., Texas Tech / Celina, Texas)
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Players Mentioned
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