2026 Women's Soccer Preseason Poll & Team (.pdf) | 2026 Schedule
Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara have been selected as co-favorites to capture the 2026 Big West women's soccer title, as voted on by the league's 12 head coaches. Four programs received at least one first-place vote in the tightly contested preseason poll.

Defending Big West champion Cal Poly (10-3-9, 6-2-2 BW) and 2025 Championship runner-up UC Santa Barbara (13-5-5, 5-2-3 BW) each collected 100 points to share the top spot. The Mustangs earned a poll-high five first-place votes, while the Gauchos received four.

Cal State Fullerton (14-3-3, 6-2-2 BW) landed just behind the co-favorites in third with 98 points and one first-place selection. Big West newcomer Utah Valley (14-5-3, 9-0-1 WAC) garnered the remaining two first-place votes and 95 points, earning a fourth-place finish slightly behind the Titans.

UC Irvine (8-5-7, 5-2-3 BW) sits in fifth with 76 points, followed closely by newcomer California Baptist (10-9-4, 6-3-1 WAC) in sixth with 75 points. Long Beach State (5-8-5, 2-4-4 BW) collected 72 points to take seventh in a close margin at the middle of the pack. 

2025 regular-season champion CSUN (8-7-5, 6-1-3 BW) was voted eighth. UC San Diego (5-6-8, 3-3-4 BW) landed in ninth with 45 points, followed by Cal State Bakersfield (8-9-2, 5-4-1 BW) in 10th with 33. UC Riverside (0-16-2, 0-9-1 BW) earned 22 points to take 11th, while new member Sacramento State (6-11-1, 2-5-1 Big Sky) rounds out the 2026 preseason coaches' poll with 18 points.

Coaches also voted on an 11-member Preseason All-Big West Team featuring standout student-athletes from across the conference. California Baptist, Long Beach State and Utah Valley led all programs with two selections apiece.

Representing defending champion Cal Poly is forward Annika Smith, who started all 22 matches and finished the 2025 campaign with seven goals, four assists and 18 points as The Big West's Offensive Player of the Year in 2025.

Long Beach State placed forwards Radisson Banks and Cherrie Cox on the preseason squad. Banks earned All-Big West Second Team recognition after producing four goals and five assists for 13 points across 18 matches. Cox recorded five goals and two assists for 12 points despite appearing in just 10 contests and returns with 2023 Big West Offensive Player of the Year recognition.

Defender Emily Caughey represents UC Santa Barbara after appearing in 22 matches and contributing two goals and an assist in 2025. The All-Big West Second Team selection helped the Gauchos advance to the Championship Final, scoring a game-winning goal in the first round of postseason play. 

Utah Valley's first Big West preseason team selections are midfielder Josie Clawson and defender Mia Owens. Clawson earned All-WAC Second Team honors after registering five goals and five assists for 15 points across 22 matches. Owens was named the WAC Defensive Player of the Year after starting all 22 contests, logging 1,794 minutes and contributing one goal and two assists while helping the Wolverines record seven shutouts.

Fellow newcomer California Baptist is represented by midfielder Anja Jestrovic and goalkeeper Mikayla O'Brien. Jestrovic paced the Lancers with eight goals, eight assists and 24 points across 22 appearances, while O'Brien collected 88 saves and six shutouts en route to 2025 WAC Goalkeeper of the Year honors.

The preseason team also features midfielder Camryn Cruz of Cal State Fullerton, defender Hailey Clingan of UC Irvine and defender Sydney Lipkin of CSUN. Cruz started all 20 matches and produced six goals and an assist for 13 points. Clingan made 19 starts across 20 appearances, logging 1,712 minutes while helping the Anteaters record eight shutouts. Lipkin started all 20 contests and played 1,798 minutes for a Matador defense that registered nine clean sheets and allowed just 16 goals.

The 2026 Big West Women's Soccer Championship begins Wednesday, Nov. 4, with first-round matches hosted by the higher seeds. The top six teams will qualify for the postseason, with the top two seeds receiving first-round byes. Semifinal action is slated for Saturday, Nov. 7, with each matchup hosted by the higher seed. The Championship final will follow on Saturday, Nov. 14, with the highest remaining seed serving as host. The winner will earn The Big West's automatic berth into the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship.

Action across The Big West kicks off Wednesday, Aug. 12, while conference play begins Wednesday, Sept. 23. The regular-season slate concludes Saturday, Oct. 31.

Select regular-season contests are slated for broadcast on ESPN+. Please check The Big West's listings for upcoming matchups and additional information.

2026 Big West Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
Rank	Institution	Points
T-1.	Cal Poly	100 (5)
T-1.	UC Santa Barbara	100 (4)
3.	Cal State Fullerton	98 (1)
4.	Utah Valley	95 (2)
5.	UC Irvine	76
6.	California Baptist	75
7.	Long Beach State	72
8.	CSUN	58
9.	UC San Diego	45
10.	Cal State Bakersfield	33
11.	UC Riverside	22
12.	Sacramento State	18

- First-place votes in parentheses


 

2026 Big West Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Team
Student-Athlete	Year	Position	Institution	Hometown
Radisson Banks	Senior	Forward	Long Beach State	Bakersfield, Calif.
Emily Caughey	Senior	Defender	UC Santa Barbara	Woodland Hills, Calif.
Josie Clawson	R-Junior	Midfielder	Utah Valley	American Fork, Utah
Haley Clingan	Junior	Defender	UC Irvine	Huntington Beach, Calif.
Cherrie Cox	Senior	Forward	Long Beach State	Torrance, Calif.
Camryn Cruz	Senior	Midfielder	Cal State Fullerton	Long Beach, Calif.
Anja Jestrovic	Senior	Forward/Midfielder	California Baptist	Belgrade, Serbia
Sydney Lipkin	Junior	Defender	CSUN	Bothell, Wash.
Mikayla O'Brien	Fifth	Goalkeeper	California Baptist	Fontana, Calif.
Mia Owens	Senior	Defender	Utah Valley	San Clemente, Calif.
Annika Smith	Senior	Forward	Cal Poly	Scottsdale, Ariz.