BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – The 2026 WKU Soccer schedule has been announced.
The Hilltoppers are set to play in 16 regular season matches, eight at the WKU Soccer Complex, along with a pair of home exhibitions. WKU will play an eight-game Conference USA schedule beginning in late September, facing Liberty, Sam Houston, Missouri State, Delaware, FIU, Jacksonville State, New Mexico State, and Middle Tennessee.
The 2026 season comes on the heels of a memorable 25th season as the team claimed their fourth conference title, winning the 2025 CUSA Regular Season Championship after finishing with a 9-5-3 record and a 6-0-2 mark in league play. The Hilltoppers finished up 4-0 on the road in conference play, marking the first in the history of the program and were the only team in 2025 that finished with an undefeated road record.
A team that was tabbed to finish ninth in the preseason poll had finished the year at the top of the league standings, which earned head coach Jason Neidell the distinction of CUSA Coach of the Year. For Neidell, it marked the fourth time in his 25-year tenure that he was named the top coach in the league.
WKU scored the game-winning or game-tying goal late in matches on four occasions with all in CUSA play. Makenna Egan struck the go-ahead goal in the 80th minute at Louisiana Tech. The Hilltoppers scored the game-winning goal in the final seconds at Sam Houston. Alyvia Walls notched the go-ahead goal in WKU's 4-3 win at Missouri State. The Hilltoppers scored twice in the final 15 minutes of that match. Then, at home against UTEP, Walls scored in the final 11 seconds to even the score, ultimately ending in a 1-1 draw.
At season's end, Georgia Liapis earned CUSA Midfielder of the Year and All-CUSA First Team. She is the first Hilltopper to earn Midfielder of the Year since Ambere Barnett did so in 2020 and just the second in program history. Egan was named Freshman of the Year, marking the first in program history and earned All-CUSA Second Team in addition to the All-Freshman Team. Maddie Davis and Abby Wiedermann were both named All-CUSA, with Wiedermann earning First-Team and Davis Second-Team. In total, WKU earned eight superlatives, marking the most since joining CUSA and the most since the 2013 season.
The 2026 season unofficially kicks off with two exhibition matches. The Hilltoppers host Murray State on Wednesday, Aug. 5 followed by a preseason tilt with Samford on Aug. 7.
The Hilltoppers welcome Missouri to the WKU Soccer Complex on Thursday, Aug. 14 to open the regular season, marking the first time since 2013 the team has opened the season by hosting a Power Four opponent. WKU will then travel to Indiana State for a Sunday road match with the Sycamores on Aug. 16. The team closes out the August slate with three straight home matches starting with UAB on Thursday, Aug. 20 followed by Ball State (Aug. 23) and Union (Aug. 27).
September opens in Chicago as WKU visits DePaul (Sept. 3) and UIC (Sept. 6.) UIC earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2025. The road swing will continue the following week on Sept. 13 at Lipscomb. The Hilltoppers return home and host a pair of OVC teams in SEMO (Sept. 17) and Lindenwood (Sept. 20) to close out the non-conference schedule.
CUSA play kicks off on Saturday, Sept. 26 at Liberty. WKU will host a pair of CUSA opponents to open play in October with Sam Houston (Oct. 1) and Missouri State (Oct. 4). WKU then takes to the road for back-to-back weekends, visiting Delaware on Oct. 11 and FIU on Oct. 18. WKU will welcome Jacksonville State to the WKU Soccer Complex on Oct. 22 and will close out the home slate against New Mexico State on Oct. 25. The Hilltoppers will visit Middle Tennessee on Nov. 1 for the regular season finale.
The 2026 Conference USA Tournament is set for the week of Nov. 8 and will be hosted by Delaware.
All matches at the WKU Soccer Complex are free to attend.
Follow the Tops: For complete information on WKU Soccer, visit WKUSports.com or follow the program on social media @WKU_Soccer on X and Instagram and @WKUSoccer on Facebook.
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