Baylor’s Callie Conrad (offensive), BYU’s Brynnli Tolbert (freshman), Kansas’ London De Fini (defensive) and Utah’s Anna Soloman (goalkeeper) captured Big 12 soccer’s first set of weekly honors for their performances during opening week of the 2026 season.
Conrad helped the Bears secure a 2-0 start to the season for the first time since 2019, following wins against then-No. 10 Arkansas and Texas A&M. The senior tallied a goal in each contest, which included the game-winning goal against the Razorbacks. The upset at Arkansas was BU’s first top 10 win since 2021. This is second weekly accolade for the 2026 Big 12 Preseason Team honoree. The victories earned the Bears the No. 6 slot in this week’s IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches Poll, which is BU’s highest ranking in program history.
Tolbert registered the game-winning goal in the 60th minute for BYU in the season opener at then-No. 9 UCLA. The goal was the freshman’s only shot in the game in her 57 minutes of action on the pitch. The victory marked the Cougars’ first win at UCLA since 1998 and marked the team’s fourth-straight season with an opening top-25 win. BYU’s win escalated the Cougars to No. 9 in the national poll after being voted 26th in the preseason edition.
De Fini led the KU backline to two back-to-back shutouts. The Jayhawks opened the season with a 2-0 victory over Utah State, the projected winners of the Pac-12 this season, only allowing the Aggies to tally three opportunities on goal. De Fini then recorded five points in the team’s record-tying goal scoring performance, registering a goal and dishing out three assists. De Fini earned national recognition to TopDrawerSoccer’s Team of the Week, as she collected her first Big 12 honor. KU enters the week at No. 12 in the poll, which is the team’s highest ranking since head coach Nate Lie took over the program in 2024.
Solomon became the first Ute since 2015 to open the season with back-to-back shutouts as she held Weber State and Utah Valley scoreless. She tallied two saves against the Wildcats before tying her career game-high of four saves against the Wolverines. The two clean sheets were the Oregon transfer’s first shutouts since 2024, which placed her in Utah history as the fourth Ute keeper to post a perfect save percentage through the first two matches of a season. She is the first Ute to capture the Conference’s award for goalkeepers since Utah joined the league in 2024.
Six Big 12 teams are ranked in the IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches Poll with No. 6 Baylor, No. 9 BYU, No. 12 Kansas, No. 15 TCU, No. 17 Colorado and No. 22 West Virginia. It is the first time since the 2023 season that the league has garnered two top 10 teams and matches last season’s final poll with five teams ranked within the poll’s top 17 slots.
Week Two action for Big 12 teams begins Wednesday with BYU traveling to Wisconsin, with all 16 teams playing games Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Big 12 Soccer Players of the Week – Aug. 19
Offensive: Callie Conrad, Baylor
Defensive: London De Fini, Kansas
Goalkeeper: Anna Solomon, Utah
Freshman: Brynnli Tolbert, BYU