BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The regular-season champion Western Washington University women's soccer team was well-represented on the 2026 GNAC All-Conference team with 10 award winners.

 

Senior defender Olivia Connell headlined the selections becoming the eighth player in program history to earn the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year award. Connell is joined by first-team award winners freshman forward Madeline Mays, senior midfielder Mie Cairns and sophomore goalkeeper Ellie McGowan.

 

Senior midfielder Jane Hmura and freshman defender Chloe Van Wey were second-team award winners and senior forward Reese Walker, freshman defender Ruby Senffner and sophomore defender Ella Witherspoon earned honorable mention. Witherspoon, a transfer from Cal State Northridge, was voted the GNAC Newcomer of the Year becoming the eighth Viking to earn the honor and the third consecutive season a Western player has been awarded the title.

 

Travis Connell capped the award winners winning his 10th GNAC Coach of the Year award and third straight guiding the Vikings to their third consecutive conference title and fourth in last five years.

 

2026 All-GNAC Selections:

• Olivia Connell (Defensive Player of the Year & First Team)
• Ella Witherspoon (Newcomer of the Year & Honorable Mention)
• Travis Connell (Coach of the Year)
• Madeline Mays (First Team)
• Mie Cairns (First Team)
• Ellie McGowan (First Team)
• Jane Hmura (Second Team)
• Chloe Van Wey (Second Team)
• Reese Walker (Honorable Mention)
• Ruby Senffner (Honorable Mention)

 

Senior Olivia Connell was voted the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and was a unanimous First Team All-GNAC selection. Connell became a three-time all-conference player earning second-team honors as a junior and honorable mention as a sophomore. Connell has started all 19 games and played all 1,710 minutes for the Vikings in 2026, leading one of the top defenses in the country. WWU leads the GNAC and ranks 7th in NCAA Division II with a 0.316 goals against average, conceding just six goals all season. Connell has also scored two game-winning goals for the Vikings. Heading into the GNAC Championships Connell has appeared in 81 career games and played in nearly 7,000 minutes.

 

Senior midfielder Mie Cairns became a three-time First Team All-GNAC selection with a unanimous vote from the conference head coaches. Cairns has started all 19 games in the midfield and earned the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week in early October. The midfielder contributed on six goals with four assists and a pair of goals for eight points. Heading into the postseason Cairns has 84 career caps playing for the Vikings, scoring nine goals with eight assists.

 

Forward Madeline Mays was the lone freshman to land a spot on the 11-player All-GNAC first team. The Oak Harbor native led the Vikings scoring six goals to tie for third-most in the conference. Mays scored all her goals in three games, recording a hat trick against Montana State Billings, a brace vs. Seattle Pacific and the game-winning goal in the regular-season finale vs. Central Washington. Mays appeared in 17 games and was amongst the top offensive contributors in the GNAC ranking 8th in shots (2.12 per game) and shots on goal (1.00 per game).

 

Sophomore Ellie McGowan earned the top goalkeeper spot in the conference with selection as First Team All-GNAC. McGowan started all 19 games and played every minute between the pipes during the season. She authored 14 shutouts to lead the GNAC and ranks third in the nation heading into the postseason. McGowan also led the conference with a .882 save percentage, allowing just six goals in 19 games. McGowan was an honorable mention all-conference selection as a freshman in 2025.

 

Senior midfielder Jane Hmura and freshman defender Chloe Van Wey were voted Second Team All-GNAC for the 2026 season. Hmura started all 19 games in the midfield and showed her versatility also playing key minutes as a defender. The four-year has appeared in 85 career games to tie for 20th-most in program history. Van Wey was a key contributor in her first collegiate season starting all 19 games on one of the top defensive backlines in the nation. Van Wey was also a set-piece specialist with two goals and one assist.

 

Sophomore defender Ella Witherspoon was voted the GNAC Newcomer of the Year. The Cal State Northridge transfer appeared in 18 games, making 16 starts, during her first season at Western while playing in 1,076 minutes. She played the full 90 minutes at center back in conference games vs. Western Oregon and Simon Fraser. Witherspoon is the joins recent Vikings Kyrsten McGuffey (2024) and teammate Reese Walker (2025) to earn the Newcomer of the Year award.

 

WWU rounded out its award winners with three players earning votes to claim Honorable Mention All-GNAC honors. Newcomer of the Year Ella Witherspoon was joined by senior forward Reese Walker and freshman defender Ruby Senffner as honorable mention. Walker was also honorable mention All-GNAC as a junior in 2025 and put together a solid senior season appearing in all 19 games (18 starts) with eight points to tie for third-most on the team (3 goals, 2 assists). Senffner appeared in all 19 games as a freshman, beginning the year as a winger prior to transitioning into a defender.

 

After leading the Vikings to their record 12th conference title, head coach Travis Connell was selected by his peers as the GNAC Coach of the Year for the 10th time. It marks the third award in as many years for Connell, who is in his 24th season leading the women's program. WWU had an undefeated streak of 41 consecutive conference games snapped during the final week of the regular season, a stretch dating to the end of the 2023 season. WWU has won the last three GNAC regular-season titles and 12 since the conference was formed in 2001. Connell's resume is highlighted by national titles in 2016 and 2022 and with a 353-92-56 overall record (.760) and 221-45-32 mark in league play is the winningest women's soccer coach in conference history.

 

A complete listing of the 2026 GNAC Women's Soccer All-Conference team and information on the GNAC Soccer Championships can be viewed online at GNACSports.com.

 

WWU enters the 2026 GNAC Women's Soccer Championships as the No. 1 seed in the four-team tournament after winning the conference regular-season title with a 12-1-1 league record. The Vikings are 14-2-3 overall, ranked No. 7 in the NCAA Division II Coaches Poll, listed No. 2 in the West Region NPI and feature one of the top defenses in the nation with a 0.316 goals against average allowing just six goals in 19 games. Western takes on No. 4 seed Central Washington in the GNAC Semifinal on Thursday with kickoff at 11 am at Interbay Stadium in Seattle. WWU has advanced to play in the GNAC Championships in all 14 years of the event and is 19-4-3 all-time in the conference tournament. More information on the GNAC Soccer Championships can be viewed at GNACSports.com.