TicketsCINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati women's soccer team has officially opened preseason practice and is preparing for its fourth season competing in the Big 12 Conference.
The Bearcats will host Evansville in an exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 8 at 4 p.m. before officially opening the 2026 season against Eastern Kentucky on Wednesday, Aug. 12 at 7 p.m. inside Gettler Stadium.
All Cincinnati home matches at Gettler are free to attend and will be streamed nationally on ESPN+. The promotional schedule can be found here.
The Bearcats’ 2026 schedule consists of a total of 18 matches, including nine home contests and nine away matches.
Following its season opener, Cincinnati will travel to Illinois on Thursday, Aug. 20.
The Bearcats return home to face Bowling Green on Aug. 23 before embarking on a three-match road swing against Ball State (Aug. 30), Central Michigan (Sept. 3) and Northern Kentucky (Sept. 6).
Cincinnati then returns to Clifton to host Eastern Illinois on Sept. 13 before opening Big 12 play against Kansas on Sept. 18.
The Bearcats head back on the road for a three-match trip through Texas, facing Texas Tech (Sept. 24), Baylor (Sept. 27) and TCU (Oct. 2). Cincinnati then returns home for three consecutive matches against Utah (Oct. 8), BYU (Oct. 12) and Houston (Oct. 16).
UC travels to Orlando to face UCF on Oct. 22 before hosting Kansas State on Oct. 25. The Bearcats close out the regular season with a trip to Colorado on Oct. 30 before hosting West Virginia in their home finale on Nov. 5.
The Bearcats will look to return to the Big 12 Tournament, having qualified for the tournament in two of head coach Erica Demers' first three seasons. The top eight teams atop the standings at the conclusion of league play will advance to the tournament, held Nov. 9-14 at a site to be announced at a later date.
Cincinnati returns five starters from last season, including Anna Barber, who started every match (19), along with Emma Gioffre (18 starts) and Carly Oubs (16 starts). Four of UC's 12 returners appeared in double-digit games for the Red & Black.
While the Bearcats will miss starting goalkeeper Camryn Miller, they return their main defensive line, featuring Gioffre, Oubs, and Christa Gibbons.
The Bearcats welcome eight freshman and six transfers to the 2026 roster. Cincinnati's freshman class includes Molly Kubistek, Joelle Bader, Braelyn Even, Brooklynn Schomaker, Rhegan Coombs, Jade Dubois, Allysia Iaquinto and Vanessa Kaminski-Roth.
Transfers Brylee Borgman (Central Michigan), Vanessa Manoil (Daytona State), Amber Branum (Wright State), Katelyn Jamie (DePaul), Tiana Campbell (Concord) and Ally Gilbert (Rhode Island) also join the Bearcats.
Transfers Borgman, Manoil, Branum, Jamie, Campbell and Gilbert bring experience to the 2026 crew and look to make a big impact on the field.
Borgman, a 5-foot-9 goalkeeper, played in 13 matches, starting in 11 for the Chippeawas, where she recorded 70 saves and over 1,000 minutes last season.
Manoil, a 5-foot-9 midfielder, played in 20 matches starting in 17 for the Falcons where she recorded three, goals, seven assists and 13 points.
Branum, a 5-foot-6 defender, played in a total of 50 matches starting in 39 at her time at Wright State recording one goal, five assists and 32 shots.
Jamie, a 5-foot-5 forward, started in 15 matches for DePaul last season recording a hat trick versus Chicago State.
Campbell, a 5-foot-8 forward, started in 19 matches for the Mountain Lions leading the MEC in goals with 16, recording 36 points, 84 shots, and four assists last season.
Gilbert, a 5-foot-6 defender, played and started in all 18 matches for Rhode Island where she recorded 1,666 minutes.
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