By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications
PORTLAND, Ore. – It’s an even tie at the top of the 2026 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women’s soccer preseason poll, with Simon Fraser and Western Washington each receiving 60 points and four first-place votes to headline the list.
Technically, it is the same result as last year’s GNAC Championships title game, with the teams playing to a
scoreless draw before SFU claimed the hardware in a penalty-kick shootout. With Western Washington entering the season the winner of back-to-back GNAC regular-season titles and Simon Fraser having won three consecutive conference tournament crowns, the coaches poll voting indicated how difficult the task of separating the sides is.
| 2026 GNAC Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches Poll |
| Rank |
Team (1st Place Votes) |
Points |
2025 Record |
2025 GNAC Record (Finish) |
| T1 |
Western Washington (4) |
60 |
14-1-7 |
11-0-3 (1st) |
| T1 |
Simon Fraser (4) |
60 |
14-3-5 |
9-2-3 (2nd) |
| 3 |
Seattle Pacific |
45 |
8-5-7 |
6-3-5 (4th) |
| 4 |
Western Oregon |
37 |
11-5-5 |
8-2-4 (3rd) |
| 5 |
Central Washington |
31 |
4-7-6 |
2-7-5 (6th) |
| 6 |
Northwest Nazarene |
26 |
5-11-2 |
4-8-2 (5th) |
| 7 |
Montana State Billings |
18 |
3-15 |
2-12 (8th) |
| 8 |
Saint Martin's |
11 |
2-12-4 |
1-9-4 (7th) |
| Points awarded on an 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. |
The United Soccer Coaches
preseason rankings, which were released on Aug. 4, listed Western Washington at No. 18 and Simon Fraser at No. 24. The 2026 regular season kicks off on Thursday, with all eight GNAC teams in action on the opening weekend of the campaign. The complete 2026 GNAC women’s soccer schedule can be
viewed online here.
It has been almost three years since Western Washington has lost a conference match. The two-time NCAA Division II national champions (2016 & 2022) went 11-0-3 in league play last fall for their second consecutive undefeated conference slate, as they ran away with the league title on 36 points. WWU’s last loss in a regular-season conference contest was 2-0 against No. 20 Seattle Pacific on Nov. 2, 2023. In total, WWU carries a 29-match unbeaten streak in conference play into the 2026 campaign.
The Vikings went 14-1-7 overall last season, including an unbeaten 8-0-2 record on their home pitch. WWU’s season came to an end in heartbreaking fashion, with a 6-5 penalty-kick defeat at the hands of Azusa Pacific after a 1-1 draw in the opening round of the NCAA West Region Championships. WWU enters the 2026 season with a 19-match unbeaten streak intact. Beginning his 24th season leading the program,
Travis Connell is the winningest women’s soccer coach in conference history. Since taking over in the fall of 2003, he holds a record of 339-90-53 (.758) overall and has gone 209-44-31 (.790) in conference contests. The Vikings’ 11 regular-season crowns and six conference tournament titles are the most among the GNAC schools and last year he was voted by his peers as GNAC Coach of the Year for the ninth time.
Reaching its pinnacle the last few seasons, Simon Fraser won its first-ever GNAC Championships title in 2023 and backed it up by repeating in both 2024 and 2025. The Red Leafs added to their historic rise at the end of last season, picking up their first-ever NCAA tournament win with a 3-2 result against Western Oregon in the opening round. Another successful campaign came to a close with a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Cal Poly Pomona in the second round.
SFU went 14-3-5 overall last year and was 9-2-3 in conference play for a second-place finish with 30 points. Red Leaf men’s soccer alumnus
Carlo Basso begins his fourth season in charge on Burnaby Mountain, having compiled a record of 36-12-14 (.694) overall and a league record of 22-10-10 (.643) since taking over in 2023. SFU will be on the hunt for its first-ever GNAC regular-season title.
Checking in third in the preseason poll with 45 points was Seattle Pacific, which went 8-5-7 overall and 6-3-5 in conference play for a fourth-place finish in 2025. The Falcons kept their streak of participating in all 13 GNAC Championships tournaments since the event was founded in 2012 intact, with their season concluding with a 2-1, double-overtime loss to the Vikings in the semifinals. SPU is led by
Arby Busey, who begins his 12th season as head coach. He has gone 117-51-31 (.666) overall and 77-25-24 (.706) in conference play, securing two GNAC regular-season crowns and one conference tournament title. SPU’s 10 regular-season titles and three conference tournament wins are second to WWU. The Falcons also delivered the 2008 NCAA Division II national championship title to the GNAC – the conference’s first-ever women’s soccer national crown.
Occupying the fourth spot in the preseason poll was Western Oregon, which claimed 37 points. The Wolves earned their third consecutive trip to the conference tournament last season, going 8-2-4 in league play for 28 points and the No. 3 seed. Going 11-5-5 overall, WOU also made its first-ever NCAA women’s soccer appearance where its season concluded with the narrow defeat against the Red Leafs.
Nate Ulness is the new head man in Monmouth, replacing Kacey Bingham who led the team for seven years.
Central Washington will be on the hunt for an improved record this fall, as it was selected fifth in the preseason poll with 31 points. The Wildcats went 4-7-6 overall in 2025 and finished sixth in the league table with 11 points on a 2-7-5 conference record. The first conference tournament berth since the 2019 campaign will surely be among the goals for this year’s CWU side.
John Hawks is back for his second season leading the team.
After a fifth-place finish in the GNAC standings last season, Northwest Nazarene was slated just behind Central Washington with 26 points for sixth place in the preseason rankings. The Nighthawks went 5-11-2 overall and 4-8-2 in conference play in
Jenny Jaggard’s first season leading the team in 2025. NNU last advanced to the GNAC Championships in 2022 and will be in search of its third overall conference tournament berth.
Wrapping up the preseason poll were Montana State Billings in seventh with 18 points and Saint Martin’s in eighth with 11 points. The Yellowjackets went 3-15 overall and 2-12 in conference play last fall to finish eighth, while the Saints were 2-12-4 overall and 1-9-4 in league games to finish seventh.
Abiye Jack starts his fourth season as head coach of the Yellowjackets while
Scott Ford begins his second season leading the Saints. MSUB last made the conference tournament in 2015 and has three all-time berths, while the Saints will hold optimism for their first-ever GNAC Championships spot.
The 14-game conference schedule begins Sept. 17 with the top-four teams in the regular-season standings earning spots in the
2026 GNAC Women’s Soccer Championships. This year’s conference tournament runs Nov. 5-7 at Interbay Stadium and is hosted by Seattle Pacific University. All contests hosted by GNAC schools will air live on the GNAC Network, with single-match and season-long purchase packages
available online here.
The winner of the GNAC Championships tournament earns the conference’s automatic berth into the 2026 NCAA West Region Championships, which run Nov. 12-15 on campus sites. The 2026 Division II NCAA Women’s Soccer Championships are Dec. 3-5 at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.