CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Mid-American Conference announced its 2026 Women's Soccer All-MAC teams, Forward of the Year, Midfielder of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year on Friday, as voted on by the league's head coaches.
Western Michigan’s Lewis Robinson was named MAC Coach of the Year for the fourth year in a row and Broncos redshirt junior Tessa Fagerson was named Forward of the Year.
Kent State’s Samantha Miller took home Midfielder of the Year, while Western Michigan’s Kailah Newcomb earned Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Buffalo’s Lexie Thompson picked up Goalkeeper of the Year recognition for the third straight year and Kent State’s Lila Simon rounded out the Speciality Awards by being named the Freshman of the Year.
Robinson earned his fourth consecutive MAC Coach of the Year award after guiding Western Michigan to a 10-4-4 overall record and an 8-2-1 mark in conference play. Since taking over the program in 2022, Robinson has established the Broncos as one of the MAC's premier programs, leading WMU to three consecutive regular season championships and back-to-back tournament titles in 2024 and 2025. His fourth straight honor further solidifies his sustained success at the helm of the Brown and Gold.
Fagerson was the leader of a Bronco offense that scored 3 or more goals in 7 of their final 10 matchups, while out scoring MAC opponents 29-9 in conference play. Tied for the MAC lead in goals scored overall, Tessa scored six of her eight goals in conference play and quadrupled her output from her last season. Starting every game for WMU, the highlight of her season came at Ohio, where her 2 goals and 1 assist lead the Broncos to a 3-2 victory after being down 2-0 at halftime.
Miller has been a reliable source of the offense all season long in her senior campaign at the midfield position. In 18 games and 17 starts, she has been able to produce 15 points off of five goals and five assists(tied for 2nd in the conference). That included a stretch of two goals and four assists throughout the final four games of the regular season. Throughout the season, she also led the team in shots-on-goal with 21. Miller was also a key piece in a Flashes defense that allowed just 1.2 goals per game.
Newcomb was named the MAC Defensive Player of the Year after anchoring a Western Michigan back line that allowed just 16 goals in 18 games. Newcomb started all 17 games she appeared in, logging 1,446 minutes while helping the Broncos hold opponents to just 8.9 shots per game. Her consistent defensive presence played a key role in WMU's 10-4-4 overall record and 8-2-1 MAC campaign
Lexie Thompson is the only player in MAC history to win Goalkeeper of the Year in three straight seasons and is the first Bull to win a specialty award in consecutive seasons. The Bulls have now won Goalkeeper of the Year in four of the last five years. The Levittown, NY native leads the MAC and ranks third in the nation with 10 shutouts while also leading the league in save percentage (.818) and recording a 0.89 goals against average with 72 saves in 18 starts this season. Thompson ranks first in program history in career goals against average (0.75), is third in shutouts (31) and fourth in wins (32).
Simon has had a breakout season for the Golden Flashes, leading the conference with five game-winning goals by a wide margin. She is also tied for first in conference goals heading into the final game with six. Her seven goals lead the team that has been on a hot streak with a five-game unbeaten streak. Her highlight game of the season came against Miami as she scored the only two goals in a 2-0 win over the Red Hawks. She has also produced a shots-on-goal percentage of 53.3% with 30 shots and 16 shots-on-goal. Simon has played in all 17 games for the blue and gold this season while starting in 13.
The MAC Women's Soccer Championship will take place on Saturday, Nov. 7-Friday, Nov. 13 at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus, Ohio, marking the second straight year the championship will be played at a neutral site.
Quarterfinal action opens as No. 3 Kent State takes on No. 6 Ball State at 1 pm ET before No. 4 Miami and No. 5 Bowling Green face off at 5 pm ET.
The semifinals are set for Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 1 and 5 pm ET as the top-seeded Western Michigan Broncos and second-seeded UMass Minutewomen received first-round byes.
The winner of each semifinal match will advance to the championship, which is scheduled for 7:30 pm ET on Friday, Nov. 13.
All five matches of the 2026 MAC Women’s Soccer Championship will be live on ESPN+. Tickets are now available at Ticketmaster for the entirety of the event.
For more information on the 2026 MAC Women’s Soccer Championship, please visit the Championship Central page.
In addition, the All-MAC First Team & Second Team was announced, as well as the All-Freshman squad.
2026 MAC Women's Soccer Postseason Specialty Award Winners
Coach of the Year: Lewis Robinson, Western Michigan
Forward of the Year: Tessa Fagerson, Western Michigan
Midfielder of the Year: Samantha Miller, Kent State
Defensive Player of the Year: Kailah Newcomb, Western Michigan
Goalkeeper of the Year: Lexie Thompson, Buffalo
Freshman of the Year: Lila Simon, Kent State
All-MAC First Team
Forward: Millie Cook, Miami
Forward: Tessa Fagerson, Western Michigan
Forward: Lila Simon, Kent State
Forward: Kaiya Stewart, Western Michigan
Midfielder: Emme Butera, Bowling Green
Midfielder: Samantha Miller, Kent State
Midfielder: Kayla Perfect, Miami
Midfielder: Meredith Vance, Western Michigan
Defender: Amelia Deren, UMass
Defender: Taylor Green, Bowling Green
Defender: Kailah Newcomb, Western Michigan
Goalkeeper: Lexie Thompson, Buffalo
All-MAC Second Team
Forward: Nia Hislop, UMass
Forward: Jordanne Oberhaus, Akron
Forward: Morgan Spitler, Toledo
Midfielder: Eva Blatz, Buffalo
Midfielder: Monica Curry, UMass
Midfielder: Minah Syam, Bowling Green
Defender: Christie Fransen, Eastern Michigan
Defender: June Mullen, Western Michigan
Defender: Sophia Penegor, Miami
Defender: Abby-Lee Sanogo, Toledo
Goalkeeper: Ella Holland, Eastern Michigan
Goalkeeper: Kate Pallante, Ball State
All-Freshman Team
Annalyse Bauer, Eastern Michigan
Averie Bierker, Miami
Coltie Carson, Miami
Meaghan Cochrane, Ohio
Monica Curry, UMass
Callee DalBon, Akron
Camryn Huhn, Western Michigan
Gracie Lynn, Western Michigan
Reese Lynn, Western Michigan
Ella Miller, Eastern Michigan
Anna Kate Robillard, Ball State
Simone Sharpless, Western Michigan
Lila Simon, Kent State
