STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford sophomore goalkeeper Caroline Birkel and junior midfielder Charlotte Kohler are among the players named to the 2026 Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch List on Wednesday, it was announced by The Intercollegiate Women's Soccer Organization for Coaches (IWSOC), in partnership with United Soccer Coaches.
A Cardinal player has claimed four of the last nine MAC Hermann trophies, with Jasmine Aikey earning the honor last season. Andi Sullivan won the award in 2017, followed by Catarina Macario becoming a back-to-back winner in 2018 and 2019. Kelley O'Hara was the first Stanford player to win the MAC Hermann Trophy at the conclusion of the 2009 season. O'Hara was followed by Christen Press (2010) and Teresa Noyola (2011) to bring Stanford's total to seven winners.
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.
Birkel, a preseason All-ACC selection, was ranked No. 20 on TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Top 100 Players list and was selected Preseason Best XI second team according to the publication. Birkel was named United Soccer Coaches All-Region third team, ACC Goalkeeper of the Year, TopDrawerSoccer Freshman Best XI first team, All-ACC first team and All-ACC Freshman team a year ago. The native of St. Louis, Mo. started every match in goal last year as a freshman, logging 1,953 minutes with 47 saves and three shutouts while combining on six more clean sheets. She averaged .92 goals against and a .701 save percentage.
Birkel has started all three matches this season, guiding the Cardinal to three conseuctive shutouts to open the year.
Kohler was the No. 8 player in the nation headed into the season according to TopDrawerSoccer, was named to the Preseason Best XI first team, and earned a spot on the preseason All-ACC squad alongside Birkel. Kohler was named United Soccer Coaches All-America third team, TopDrawerSoccer Best XI third team, All-ACC second team and ACC All-Tournament a year ago. The native of Woodside, Calif. managed at least a point in 19 of the 25 matches last season and contributed five game-winners - including the clinchers to defeat No. 1 Virginia and No. 7 Florida State. She converted the winning PK in Stanford's 5-4 shootout victory over No. 2 Notre Dame to capture the ACC Tournament title and led the nation in assists with 17. Kohler also ranked third on the team in points with 41 (12 goals and 17 assists).
So far this season, Kohler has scored in all three matches while totaling three goals and two assists.
The 2026 watch list was compiled by members of the Division I Women's All-America Council from a pool of returning 2025 All-Americans and First Team All-Region players. 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 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List | Â | |||
|
Name |
Class |
School |
Hometown |
 |
|
Valentina Amaral |
Sr. |
Wake Forest University |
Oviedo, Fla. |
|
|
Azul Alvarez |
Sr. |
Baylor University |
Round Rock, Texas |
|
|
Kennedy Ball |
Sr. |
University of Arkansas |
Lookout Mountain, Ga. |
|
|
Kennedy Bell |
Sr. |
Michigan State University |
Cornelius, N.C. |
|
|
Hailey Baumann |
Sr. |
University of Wisconsin |
South Lyon, Mich. |
|
|
So. |
Stanford University |
St. Louis, Mo. |
||
|
Kayla Briggs |
Sr. |
Michigan State University |
Toronto, Ont. |
|
|
Alex Buck |
Jr. |
University of Washington |
Medina, Wash. |
|
|
Sofia Bush |
Sr. |
University of Iowa |
Marion, Iowa |
|
|
Bella Carapazza |
Sr. |
Texas A&M University |
Tarpon Springs, Fla. |
|
|
Caroline Castans |
Sr. |
University of Kansas |
Flower Mound, Texas |
|
|
Annabelle Chukwu |
Jr. |
University of Notre Dame |
Ottawa, Ont. |
|
|
Katie Shea Collins |
Jr. |
Duke University |
Gallatin, Tenn. |
|
|
Erin Connolly |
Sr. |
University of Wisconsin |
Clayton, Mo. |
|
|
Sam Courtwright |
So. |
Duke University |
Dallas, Texas |
|
|
Summer Denigan |
Sr. |
University of North Carolina |
Union, Ky. |
|
|
Izzy Engle |
Jr. |
University of Notre Dame |
Edina, Minn. |
|
|
Samantha Erbach |
Jr. |
Florida State University |
Lebanon, Ohio |
|
|
Bella Field |
Jr. |
University of Arkansas |
Leawood, Kan. |
|
|
Ava Galligan |
Sr. |
Louisiana State University |
Ashburn, Va. |
|
|
Millie Greer |
Sr. |
University of Iowa |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
|
|
Liv Grenda |
Jr. |
University of Dayton |
Perkasie, Pa. |
|
|
Sierra Giorgio |
Sr. |
University of South Alabama |
Vaughan, Ont. |
|
|
Kaya Hanson |
Sr. |
Georgetown University |
Seattle, Wash. |
|
|
Ashley Henderson |
Sr. |
Florida State University |
Memphis, Tenn. |
|
|
Jace Holley |
Jr. |
University of Colorado |
Fort Collins, Colo. |
|
|
Courtney Jones |
Sr. |
Vanderbilt University |
Orlando, Fla. |
|
|
Annika Jost |
Jr. |
United States Air Force Academy |
Temecula, Calif. |
|
|
Lucy Kesler |
Jr. |
Brigham Young University |
American Fork, Utah |
|
|
Ai Kitagawa |
Jr. |
University of Memphis |
Itami City, Japan |
|
|
Kameron Kloza |
Sr. |
University of Texas-San Antonio |
San Antonio, Texas |
|
|
Jr. |
Stanford University |
Woodside, Calif. |
||
|
Abby Kudla |
Jr. |
University of Memphis |
Strongsville, Ohio |
|
|
Ashlynn Kulha |
Sr. |
Old Dominion University |
Holly Springs, Miss. |
|
|
Ginny Lackey |
Jr. |
James Madison University |
Bolton, England |
|
|
Finley Lavin |
Sr. |
University of Memphis |
Jarrettsville, Md. |
|
|
Izzy Lee |
Sr. |
University of Illinois |
Western Springs, Ill. |
|
|
Anna Leschly |
So. |
Dartmouth College |
Brookline, Mass. |
|
|
Faith Leyba |
Sr. |
University of Colorado |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
|
|
Hope Leyba |
Sr. |
University of Colorado |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
|
|
Hailey Longwell |
Jr. |
University of North Carolina-Wilmington |
Coraopolis, Pa. |
|
|
Victoria Meza |
Jr. |
Texas State University |
San Salvador, El Salvador |
|
|
Sydney Middaugh |
Sr. |
University of South Carolina |
Hesperia, Calif. |
|
|
Mia Minestrella |
Sr. |
Duke University |
Redondo Beach, Calif. |
|
|
Joy Okonye |
Sr. |
Brown University |
Lagos, Nigeria |
|
|
Kate Plachy |
Jr. |
Saint Mary’s College of California |
El Dorado Hills, Calif. |
|
|
Julia Quinonez |
Jr. |
Pepperdine University |
Torrance, Calif. |
|
|
Anna Rayhill |
Sr. |
Harvard University |
New Hartford, N.Y. |
|
|
Ellie Rebmann |
Sr. |
Auburn University |
Libertyville, Ill. |
|
|
Grace Restovich |
Jr. |
University of Notre Dame |
St. Louis, Mo. |
|
|
Kennedy Roesch |
Jr. |
Northwestern University |
San Diego, Calif. |
|
|
Cameron Roller |
Sr. |
Duke University |
Sherman, Texas |
|
|
Victoria Safradin |
Sr. |
University of Virginia |
Eastlake, Ohio |
|
|
Emerson Sargeant |
Sr. |
Michigan State University |
Hartland, Mich. |
|
|
Amanda Schlueter |
Sr. |
Ohio State University |
Union, Ky. |
|
|
Amelia Severn |
So. |
Gonzaga University |
Shoreline, Wash. |
|
|
Izzi Stratton |
Jr. |
University of North Carolina |
Alpine, Utah |
|
|
Drew Stover |
Sr. |
University of Wisconsin |
Frisco, Texas |
|
|
Hannah Tate |
Sr. |
University of Texas |
Omaha, Neb. |
|
|
Ellie Walbruch |
Sr. |
Brigham Young University |
Highland, Utah |
|
|
Ava Westlund |
Sr. |
University of Minnesota |
Arden Hills, Minn. |
|
|
Sydney Watts |
Sr. |
Vanderbilt University |
Lenexa, Kan. |
|
|
Taylor Zdrojewski |
Jr. |
Texas Tech University |
Celina, Texas |
|