Women's Soccer raises CCIW Regular Season Trophy
©Steve Woltmann

Women's Soccer

Women’s Soccer No. 1 Seed Heading into CCIW Tournament

Contact: Taiah Gallisath-Poklop, Associate Director of Athletics Communication, 630-637-5302

Nov. 3, 2026 – The North Central College women's soccer team completed a dominant regular season to earn the top seed in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin Tournament as the Cardinals vie for their fourth straight CCIW title. North Central's road back to the championship begins Wednesday, Nov. 4 at home against fourth-ranked Wheaton College.

Back on Top

The Cardinals completed a 14-0-1 regular season record while going 7-0-1 in conference play, marking the program's first unbeaten regular season in program history. North Central was awarded the CCIW Regular Season Champions title outright for the second consecutive season and the third time in its history and looks to make another run for a CCIW Tournament title for the fourth straight year.

Setting the Stage

As the top seed in the tournament, North Central received a bye to the semifinal round as did No. 2 seed Elmhurst University. The Cardinals are set to host fourth-seed Wheaton College on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 7:30 p.m. at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. Wheaton advanced to the semifinal after defeating No. 5 seed North Park 1-0 on Saturday, Oct. 31. North Central and Wheaton will meet in the tournament just two weeks after seeing each other in the regular season where the Cardinals claimed a 3-1 win against the Thunder at home. 

In other CCIW semifinal action, Elmhurst hosts sixth-seed Carroll University on Wednesday after Carroll advanced via a 2-0 win over third-seed Illinois Wesleyan University in the quarterfinals. 

The CCIW Championship match is slotted for Saturday, Nov. 7 to be hosted by the highest remaining seed after Wednesday's contests. 

Conference Accolades

North Central reeled in a league-leading seven All-CCIW selections. Reese Anderson, Madison DeVriendt, and Lauren Richards were named to First Team while Baylee Burbidge, Claire Georgees, Victoria Jaimes, and Kara Waishwell earned Second Team honors. 

Burbidge was also voted the CCIW Freshman of the Year, making her the third Cardinal in program history to earn the distinction while head coach Andrew Gamarra and his staff earned CCIW Coaching Staff of the Year. 

Player Watchlist

Anderson has stepped up to lead the Cardinal offense this season as the junior forward has scored a team leading 17 points on seven goals and three assists. Anderson ranks third in the CCIW in both points and goals this season.

Senior captain DeVriendt has served as North Central's top playmaker this season, with a team-leading five assists, a mark that is good for fourth in the CCIW standings. She has also added four goals through 15 starts. 

Burbidge, Georgees, Sissi Loza, and Lily Mayer have all proved to be crucial pieces to the Cardinals' success this season. Georgees and Loza have both recorded multiple-goal games, with Georgees coming against Wheaton in the regular season matchup. Georgees and Loza each have five goals on the year while Mayer has four and Burbidge has three. Georgees and Burbidge each have one assist on their statlines. 

Lauren Richards and Carly Campbell have anchored North Central's backline all season, limiting its opponents to just 12 goals compared to the Cardinals offensive putting away 39 on the year. While the Cardinals are averaging nearly 18 shots per game, North Central's defense is allowing just eight shots per game on average. 

Emma Megerle has stepped in to defend the net this season, appearing in 13 games with 10 starts. She has recorded 37 saves on a .771 clip and has earned three combined shutouts this season. 

On the Horizon

North Central's semifinal bout with Wheaton is set for Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 7:30 p.m. following the North Central men's contest with Wheaton at 5 p.m. in Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. The winner of Wednesday's semifinal will face the winner of the Elmhurst/Carroll game on Saturday, Nov. 7 in the CCIW Championship. The championship game will be hosted by the highest remaining seed, with the champion earning the conference's automatic qualifier bid to the NCAA Tournament set to begin Nov. 14-15. 
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Players Mentioned

Reese Anderson

#10 Reese Anderson

F
5' 7"
Junior
Carly Campbell

#19 Carly Campbell

D
5' 8"
Junior
Madison DeVriendt

#17 Madison DeVriendt

M
5' 3"
Senior
Victoria Jaimes

#26 Victoria Jaimes

M/F
5' 1"
Junior
Emma Megerle

#1 Emma Megerle

GK
5' 6"
Sophomore
Lauren Richards

#4 Lauren Richards

D
5' 3"
Senior
Northern Illinois University
Kara Waishwell

#20 Kara Waishwell

M
5' 6"
Sophomore
Lily Mayer

#5 Lily Mayer

M
5' 5"
Freshman
Claire Georgees

#11 Claire Georgees

M
5' 4"
Freshman
Baylee Burbidge

#33 Baylee Burbidge

M
5' 7"
Freshman
Sissi Loza

#99 Sissi Loza

M
5' 3"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Reese Anderson

#10 Reese Anderson

5' 7"
Junior
F
Carly Campbell

#19 Carly Campbell

5' 8"
Junior
D
Madison DeVriendt

#17 Madison DeVriendt

5' 3"
Senior
M
Victoria Jaimes

#26 Victoria Jaimes

5' 1"
Junior
M/F
Emma Megerle

#1 Emma Megerle

5' 6"
Sophomore
GK
Lauren Richards

#4 Lauren Richards

5' 3"
Senior
Northern Illinois University
D
Kara Waishwell

#20 Kara Waishwell

5' 6"
Sophomore
M
Lily Mayer

#5 Lily Mayer

5' 5"
Freshman
M
Claire Georgees

#11 Claire Georgees

5' 4"
Freshman
M
Baylee Burbidge

#33 Baylee Burbidge

5' 7"
Freshman
M
Sissi Loza

#99 Sissi Loza

5' 3"
Sophomore
M