NCAA-II Women's Soccer Central Regional Tournament First Round
Match 21: No. 4 Central Missouri (14-2-4) vs. No. 5 UMary (13-3-3)
Friday, Nov. 13 | Noon | Topeka, Kan. (Yager Stadium)
Live Video | Live Stats | Buy Tickets

2026 Jennies Soccer Roster | 2026 NCAA-II Central Regional Info | Full 2026 NCAA-II Bracket

---

Scene Setter

• Fourth-seeded University of Central Missouri Jennies Soccer (14-2-4) is set to take on the fifth-seeded UMary Marauders (13-3-3) in the opening round of the NCAA-II Central Regional Tournament on Friday, Nov. 13, at noon at Yager Stadium in Topeka, Kan., on the Washburn University campus. 
• This marks Central Missouri's 16th consecutive and 19th overall appearance in the NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Tournament. 
• UCM is coming off a 2-0 loss to No. 16-ranked Pittsburg State in the MIAA tournament semifinals on Friday, Nov. 6, in Wichita, Kan. 
• Through 20 matches, the Jennies are paced offensively by sophomore midfielder Coryn Jespersen (4 G, 13 A, 21 Pts., 41 Shots, .098 shot percentage, 22 SOG, .537 SOG percentage, 3 game-winning goal) and senior forwards Mikayla Ernst (9 G, 18 Pts., 53 shots, .170 shot percentage, 28 SOG, .528 SOG percentage, 4 game-winning goals) and Hadley Lockhart (8 G, 2A, 18 Pts., 38 shots, .211 shot percentage, 21 SOG, .553 SOG percentage, 1 game-winning goal). Senior goalkeeper Kristen Wright (14-2-4, 7 GA, 0.37 goals-against average, 64 SV, .901 save percentage, 10 shutouts, 4 combined shutouts, 179 shots faced, 1,723:15 minutes) leads UCM between the posts.
• Through 20 matches, the Jennies are second in the MIAA in goals scored (44) and third in goals allowed (7). Individually, Coryn Jespersen leads the MIAA and is seventh in NCAA Division II with 13 assists. She is tied for fourth in the conference with 21 points and tied for fifth with three game-winning goals. Mikayla Ernst is tied for second with four game-winning goals and tied for third with her nine goals, and Hadley Lockhart is tied for eighth with her eight goals. Kristen Wright is third in goals-against average at 0.37, shutouts per game (.500), and saves (.901 save percentage). 

UCM in the NCAA Tournament

• Central Missouri is making its 19th overall and 16th consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament starting Friday in Topeka, Kan.
• UCM is 25-14-3 overall in 18 tournament showings. 
• In first-round matches, the Jennies are 13-5-0.
• UCM has won six regional titles and one national championship (2017) in program history.

Series History vs. UMary

• Friday's first round showdown against the Marauders will be meeting number seven in the all-time series going back to 1995. The Jennies lead the series, 5-0-1. UCM and UMary last met in 2023, with the Jennies posting a 3-1 win over the Marauders in Bismarck, N.D. Central Missouri and UMary have met once in the NCAA tournament, with UCM tallying a 2-1 victory in the first round in 2007. 

All-MIAA Honors Abound for Jennies

• Eight University of Central Missouri Jennies Soccer student-athletes garnered All-MIAA Women's Soccer honors for their performances on the soccer pitch during the 2026 regular season, it was announced by the conference on Friday, Oct. 30. Defenders Gracie Knight and Ryann Clark, midfielder Coryn Jespersen, and forward Mikayla Ernst were named First Team All-MIAA; goalkeeper Kristen Wright, midfielder Hazel Douglas-Trotman, and forward Hadley Lockhart received Second Team All-MIAA recognition; and midfielder Aspen Patterson earned Third Team All-MIAA accolades.

2026 MIAA Weekly Honors

• MIAA Offensive Athlete of the Week: Coryn Jespersen, Sept. 15, Sept. 29, Oct. 20; Mikayla Ernst, Oct. 6
• MIAA Goalkeeper of the Week: Kristen Wright, Sept. 1, Oct. 20

Record Watch

• Coryn Jespersen is already second in Jennies single-season history with her 13 assists this season. She is three assists shy of tying the program's single-season record of 16, set by Kassie Newsom in 2021. 
• Kristen Wright is third in career saves with 294 in 84 career contests. 

Last Time Out: No. 2 Jennies Drop MIAA Semifinal Contest to No. 3 Pittsburg State, 2-0

• The No. 2-seeded University of Central Missouri Jennies Soccer Team fell to the No. 3-seeded and 11-ranked Pittsburg State Gorillas, 2-0, in the MIAA Women's Soccer Tournament Semifinals on Friday afternoon, Nov. 6, at the Scheels Stryker Sports Complex.
• The Gorillas gained a 1-0 lead in the 29th minute when Sammie Edwards bent a shot from the left side of the pitch into the top right corner of the net for the goal.
• Pitt State doubled its advantage to 2-0 in the 81st minute after Makenna Herrick netted a shot from close range into the back of the net.
• For the match, the Gorillas outshot the Jennies, 24-9, including an 8-4 advantage in shots on goal. Pittsburg State also bested Central Missouri in corner kicks, 5-3.
• UCM goalkeeper Kristen Wright (14-2-4) suffered the loss between the posts after giving up two goals while making six saves in 90 minutes.
• Kylie Richardson had three shots and two shots on goal, leading the Jennies offensively.

Home Sweet Home

• Dating back to the 2016 season, the Jennies are 98-9-6 at the South Recreation Complex. During that span, UCM has surrendered just 74 goals.
• All-time at the South Recreation Complex, UCM is 173-19-13 under head coach Lewis Theobald and 237-40-14 in overall program history. The Jennies have compiled undefeated home records five times.
• The 2026 season will mark a new era for Jennies Soccer at the South Recreation Complex, as UCM will play on a new, state-of-the-art turf playing surface that was installed during the summer of 2026. 

Head Coach Lewis Theobald
Lewis Theobald, now in his 19th year, has transformed the Jennies Soccer program into one of the premier programs not only in the MIAA but also in NCAA Division II.

The 11-time MIAA and five-time region Coach of the Year has an impressive 333-59-35 record. He recorded more wins in his first three seasons than any other coach in school history and is the all-time winningest coach in both Jennies soccer and MIAA women's soccer history. He brought home the program's first-ever National Championship in the 2017 season.

Theobald enters the 2026 season as the winningest active coach in Division II women's soccer with an .822 winning percentage, among coaches with at least five years on the sidelines. He is also the all-time D-II leader among coaches with at least 10 years and is fifth all-time in all NCAA Divisions. 

During his tenure, Theobald has coached 23 All-Americans in Mikayla Ernst, Ashleigh Martin, Andree Orcutt, Lindsay Edmonds, Julia Kristensen, Kassie Newsom, Caroline Cole, Ana Dilkes, Emily Eldridge, Baylie Edwards, Randi Fernsler, Allysa Gann, Kayla Hamner, Julie Ireland, Becky Lackey, Cindy Lackey, Abby Rhodes, Alyssa Rhodes, Jada Scott, Carly Stanley, Jenna Stones, Makayla Toth and Megan Woolley and has led 63 players to All-Region status. He also coached Dilkes, a goalkeeper, to a National Player of the Year honor during the 2017 season.

He has coached 156 All-Conference players, including Most Valuable Players Melanie Hall, Kayla Shain and two-time Player of the Year Alyssa Rhodes; Offensive Players of the Years Carly Stanley, Julie Ireland, Jada Scott, Kassie Newsom and Julia Kristensen; Freshmen of the Year Alyssa Rhodes, Stanley, Hannah Pyle, Alexis Robbers, Nicki Wisnasky, Caroline Cole, Julia Kristensen and Izzy Joyce; Defenders of the Year, Emily Eldridge, Allysa Gann, Cindy Lackey and Abby Rhodes; two-time Goalkeeper of the Year Lindsey Johnson and four-time Goalkeeper of the Year Ana Dilkes.

A 1999 graduate of the University of Kansas, Theobald received his bachelor's degree in education with a concentration in physical education.

On the Horizon

• With a win on Friday, the Jennies would advance to the NCAA-II Central Regional Second Round and would face the winner of the No. 1 Washburn vs. No. 8 SWOSU first-round contest on Sunday, Nov. 15, at 3 p.m. in Topeka, Kan.