Michigan State senior forward Kennedy Bell (24), Michigan State senior midfielder Emerson Sargeant (19), and Michigan State senior midfielder Kayla Briggs (9) celebrate after scoring during the Michigan State vs. Colorado women's soccer game at DeMartin Stadium in East Lansing, Mich., on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026.
No. 2 Michigan State Women’s Soccer senior forward Kennedy Bell and senior midfielder Kayla Briggs were named to the 2026 Hermann Trophy Mid-Season Watch List by the Intercollegiate Women's Soccer Organization for Coaches (IWSOC) and United Soccer Coaches on Wednesday.
The Hermann Trophy, presented by the Missouri Athletic Club, is the highest individual honor in college soccer. It recognizes the national player of the year, voted on by NCAA Division I head coaches.
The midseason 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. Both Bell and Briggs were on the preseason watch list, along with senior midfielder Emerson Sargeant, who was not named a midseason honoree.
Fifteen players will be named as 2026 Hermann Trophy semifinalists in early December, and then three finalists will be chosen. The 2026 recipient will be announced on Jan. 8, 2027, in a ceremony at the Missouri Athletic Club in downtown St. Louis, Missouri.
Bell has 6 goals and 5 assists this season, while Briggs has 5 goals and 5 assists. Bell is ranked fourth in the Big Ten in both goals and points and is tied for third with Briggs in assists. Briggs’ 5 goals rank sixth in the league, and her 4 game-winning goals rank third in the Big Ten and sixth nationally.
Bell and Briggs are also nationally ranked in total points, with Bell at 36th and Briggs at 61st. Last season, Bell and Briggs were both All-Big Ten, All-Region and second-team All-Americans.
Bell and Briggs are two of five Big Ten players on the list, along with Ohio State's Amanda Schlueter and Ava Bramblett and Washington's Alex Buck.
Bell is the second Spartan to make the watch list more than once. She was named to the midseason list in 2025, while Laura Heyboer was on the watch list in 2008, 2009 and 2010, and was a finalist in 2008. She is the only Spartan to be named as a finalist.
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