It’s been nearly a month since Salmon Bay FC were crowned USL W League National Champions, and although it is the offseason for the club, the soccer does not stop for these players. For fans who want to keep following the Salmon Sisters all year long, read the following preview to find out where they will be playing this fall.
Before we take a deep dive into the 2026 college season, let’s take a quick look at the next level. Fans can supports a quadruple of players from Salmon Bay FC’s inaugural 2025 squad who are now playing professionally overseas. Hallie Bergford is playing up top for AC Sparta Praha in Czechia, Sadie Sider-Echenberg is starring in midfield for Kristianstads DFF in Sweden, midfielder Maia Tabion just recently signed for Cerezo Osaka in Japan, and lastly in Ireland we have Fiona Doherty suiting up for Treaty United FC.
The lone player from the 2026 squad to be currently playing professionally is defender Keeley Dockter, who is also the only Salmon Bay FC alumni to play professionally in the United States having signed contracts with both Seattle Reign FC and Sporting Club JAX. The 2025 Salmon Bay FC Team MVP is currently playing for Sporting JAX of the Gainbridge Super League where her season will start this Saturday. More players from the 2026 squad will sign pro contracts in the coming weeks and months, and fans can stay up to date on them via the club social media (@salmonbayfc) or the alumni page on the club website.
Salmon Bay FC’s 2026 squad, like most USL W League rosters, was built around a big core of collegiate players. And just like their brother club Ballard FC, the club prides itself on showcasing local talent that either grew up in the in or around Seattle or play their college soccer locally. Five players from the Salmon Bay roster will play their college soccer in Seattle at either the University of Washington, Seattle University, or Seattle Pacific University.
The trio of Washington Huskies are seniors Samiah Shell, Anna Menti, and Maya Loudd. In addition to winning titles with Salmon Bay FC this past summer, this trio comes off a college season where they won the Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament Titles. Shell was the leading goal scorer in 2025 for Salmon Bay FC and in 2026, she lead the club in assists with seven on the season. Last fall, Shell was one of three huskies to be named to the Big Ten Players to Watch list and rightfully so as she appeared in all 25 matches, made 24 starts and was named the Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player. After starring in midfield for Salmon Bay FC in 2025, Menti dropped back a line for the Salmon Sisters this summer and was immense in defense alongside her center back partner, Alicia Barker. With Kaya Hanson battling injury and Keeley Dockter signing pro midseason, Menti was able to fill a position of need for Salmon Bay FC and help the team have the best defensive record in the NW Division for the second year in a row. In 2025, Menti started in 24 of 25 matches for the Huskies and was named Third Team All-Big Ten. Maya Loudd started next to Menti all year at left back, both for the Huskies and for Salmon Bay FC and she starred the whole time. Last year, Loudd started in 23 matches for the Huskies and earned Third Team All-Region and Second Team All-Big Ten honors. This season, she was named to the preseason Mac Hermann Trophy Defenders to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches. Together, Shell, Menti, and Loudd will look to carry their summer success into the fall and repeat as Big Ten Champions.
Heading to Championship Field, we have the USL W League Final MVP, U’i Kaaihue, starring for Seattle University. Kaaihue starred in attacking midfield for Salmon Bay FC all summer long, being named a Western Conference Standout alongside teammate Ameera Hussen. Kaaihue scored Salmon Bay’s lone goal in the National Semifinal, assisted their lone goal in the National Final, and also scored in all three penalty shootouts in the postseason. As a Redhawk, Kaaihue has already had an amazing four year career at Championship Field, but it will look to expand upon her Seattle University legacy in her fifth and final season this fall. The two-time All-Region and three-time All-Conference midfielder has been named to the Preseason All-WCC team and to the Mac Hermann Midfielders to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches.
Sophie Hanay will continue to play Interbay Stadium this fall with Seattle Pacific University as she heads into her junior season. Since arriving at SPU, Hanay has appeared in all 39 matches for the Falcons and she started in 19 of 20 matches last fall, playing both left back and right back. In addition to playing soccer, Hanay also competes for SPU’s Track & Field team where she was part of an All-GNAC 4×400 outdoor relay team earlier this spring.
As we expand outside of Seattle, there are six more players who will take the field for colleges in either Washington and Oregon this fall.
In Washington, Amelia Severn is going into her junior year at Gonzaga. Severn has had a remarkable first two seasons at Gonzaga. As a freshman, she led the team in assists with seven while being named WCC Honorable Mention and making the All-WCC Freshman Team. Then as a sophomore she was First Team All-WCC and the only sophomore on the First Team All-West Region Team. This summer for Salmon Bay FC, Severn scored the first goal of the season for the Salmon Sisters before being sidelined the rest of the summer with injury. Heading into 2026, Severn was named a PAC-12 Conference Top Player to Watch by TopDrawerSoccer (TDS), to the PAC-12 Preseason Impact List, to the Mac Hermann Midfielders to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches, and is ranked 83rd on the TDS Preseason Top 100 list.
Also in Washington is winger Jaylee Reynolds who is going into her sophomore season at Central Washington University. Reynolds had a great freshman season with the Wildcats as she appeared in every match, scored four goals, assisted once, and earned Honorable Mention All-GNAC Recognition.
Heading south to Oregon, we have three players at the University of Portland: Aliyah Dockter, Blayke Warner and Jillian McBride. After her older sister graduated last spring, Aliyah is the lone Dockter left at UP as she heads into her senior year with the Pilots. Aliyah has played in 53 of a possible 56 matches for Portland across her first three seasons as a Pilot. She started 16 of 19 matches last fall on her way to earning Second Team All-Region and All-WCC Honorable Mention honors. This season expectations are high as Aliyah has been named to the Preseason All-WCC team and to the Mac Hermann Midfielders to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches. Warner is heading into her first collegiate season with the Pilots after starting in goal for six matches this summer for Salmon Bay FC, leading the team to a (4-1-1) record over that span. McBride missed out on the 2026 Salmon Bay season due to injury but played for the club in 2025 and looks set to return to action this fall with the Pilots as a junior. The former WCC All-Freshman Team member led Salmon Bay FC in assists in 2025 and will look to return back to that form this fall.
The last player in Oregon is Maya Courtenay, who will be suiting up for Western Oregon University this fall. Courtenay played her freshman season at Sonoma State in 2024 but after the school cut its athletic department, she was forced to transfer. Last fall at Western Oregon, Courtenay played in 19 of 21 matches as a sophomore and will look to be an every-match starter in 2026.
As we continue down the west coast, there are four Salmon Sisters playing in the state of California this fall. Campbell Carroll is at the University of California, Berkeley (Cal) this fall while both Eleanor Morrissey and Lauder Headrick will be playing for the University of Southern California (USC), and lastly Milly Bray is now a sophomore at Stanford University. Carroll was an intern for both Salmon Bay FC and Ballard FC this summer as an ACL injury kept her from playing in 2026. However, Carroll played for Salmon Bay FC in their inaugural season in 2025 and will be back with Cal this fall. Carroll had a breakout freshman season for the Bears in 2024, playing in 20 matches while being named to the TDS Midseason Top 100 Freshman List. Ahead of the 2025 season, Carroll was named an ACC Breakout Candidate by TDS, but unfortunately she suffered her ACL injury after just six matches. Now, Carroll looks to bounce back with the Bears in 2026.
In Los Angeles, the USC duo of Morrissey and Headrick are looking to have a Hollywood season in 2026. Morrissey has played in 34 of a possible 40 matches across her first two seasons with the Trojans, making 14 total starts. After starting in over half the team’s matches as a sophomore, Morrissey will aim to be an every-match starter in 2026. Alongside Morrissey in midfield is Headrick who heads into her sophomore season after a great summer with Salmon Bay FC where she scored the first home goal of the season.
Bray and the Stanford Cardinals will be looking to get back to the College Cup, and this time win it all. Last summer, Bray became (and still is) the youngest goalscorer in Salmon Bay FC history, scored the club’s first-ever goal away from home, and the club’s first competitive goal from open play. Then as a freshman with Stanford in the fall she played in 15 of 25 matches while scoring once and assisting twice for the ACC Regular Season and Tournament Champions. Now as a sophomore, Bray will look to make her first collegiate start and become a mainstay in midfield.
Now we’ll head over to the Mountain Time Zone where we’ve got two more Salmon Sisters playing their trade with Rachel Reitz at Utah State and Malli Rude at the University of Montana. Reitz has won back-to-back Mountain West Tournament Championships with the Utah State Aggies, and this year she will be looking for another Conference Title. However, this year Reitz and the Aggies will be competing in the PAC-12 where they are the preseason favorites to win the Conference.
Rude is coming off a freshman season with Montana where she played in 11 of 20 matches for the Big Sky Regular Season and Tournament Champions. With Salmon Bay FC alum Chloe Seelhoff graduating from Montana earlier this spring, Rude and the rest of her teammates will look to replace that offensive production so that the Grizzlies can repeat as Big Sky Champions yet again.
As we keep moving east, it is time for our only stop in the central time zone for Riyah Pandher at Alabama A&M University. Pandher is heading into her sophomore season with the Bulldogs after playing in 14 of 19 matches as a freshman. After a Salmon Bay summer where she won a National Championship, Pandher will look to be a key figure for the Bulldogs in 2026.
Heading all the way to the east coast, there is one more player who will be down on the southern border this fall with Maya Hindson at the University of South Florida. Hindson is heading into her junior season after racking up 35 appearances in her first two seasons at South Florida playing alongside Sider-Echenberg in midfield. After scoring her first collegiate goal and starting in about half the matches in 2025, Hindson should be a consistent starter in 2026 for the Bulls.
As we go north up the East coast, there are two more players in the Mid-Atlantic region with Anica Carpenter at Elon University and Ginny Lackey at James Madison University. Carpenter is a junior goalkeeper who is going into her first fall with Elon after spending two years at Seattle University. The Seattle Academy graduate played in one match for Salmon Bay FC this summer, a 3-1 home victory over FC Olympia.
Lackey is also heading into her junior year this fall and in just two years at James Madison, she has collected a whole career’s worth of accolades. She is a Mac Hermann Award Semifinalist, two-time All-American, two-time Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year, two-time All-Region, and two-time First Team All-Conference. After leading Salmon Bay FC in goals in 2026 with eight in just ten regular season matches, Lackey is headed for another great collegiate season and has been named the Preseason Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year, to the Mac Hermann Forwards to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches, and is ranked 30th on the TDS Preseason Top 100 list.
Now we head to the Northeast contingent where five Salmon Bay FC players are represented across five different institutions. In the ACC, forward Ava Uribe is playing for Syracuse University. In the Big East, defenders Kaya Hanson and Morgan Mooney are representing Georgetown University and the University of Connecticut (UConn) respectively. And lastly in the Ivy League, midfielder Caroline Studebaker will suit up for Harvard University while defender Andie Miller will play for Yale University.
Uribe is heading into her graduate season with Syracuse University. She played in Salmon Bay FC’s season-opening victory against FC Olympia, before missing the rest of the summer through injury. The three-time USL W NW Division Champion should be back playing for the Orange this fall where she will look to get back to the form of fall 2024 where she started in every match but one, scoring two goals and assisting four times.
Hanson is primed for a stellar senior season at Georgetown after a breakout year last fall. The three-time Big East Regular Season Champion will look to win her fourth straight title this fall with the Hoyas and will also have her eyes on a second career Big East Tournament Title. Last fall, Hanson earned Second Team All-Region, Second Team All-Big East, and Big East All-Tournament Team honors after starting in all 23 matches for the Hoyas. This year, Hanson was named a Big East Conference Top Player to Watch by TDS, the Big East Preseason Defender of the Year, and to the Mac Hermann Defenders to Watch List by the United Soccer Coaches.
Also in the Big East is UConn’s Morgan Mooney. Mooney took a redshirt year in 2025 and will now look to make her collegiate debut this fall after helping Salmon Bay FC win a National Title over the summer.
Mooney will not be the only Salmon Bay player in Connecticut this fall as Yale’s Andie Miller will join her. Miller started in all 15 matches for the Bulldogs as a junior in 2025, and looks set for another big year at the back as a senior this fall.
Joining Miller in the Ivy League is Caroline Studebaker, who is going into her sophomore season with Harvard. As a freshman, Studebaker played in 11 of 14 matches and scored her first collegiate goal against Boston University. After a great summer with Salmon Bay, Studebaker will aim to start her first college match this fall and become a key figure in midfield for Harvard.
That’s a wrap for the Salmon Bay FC college players. However, we must mention the two players still in high school who made huge contributions to Salmon Bay FC’s National Championship this past summer.
Goalkeeper Natalie Gram is a rising senior at Mount Si High School this year and will look to win a second straight State Championship after starting three matches for Salmon Bay FC this summer. Salmon Bay FC won all three matches in which Gram started, with Gram only allowing one goal across the three starts. Gram is committed to Gonzaga University where she will join Severn in 2027.
Defender Kaya Singh is a rising senior at Kennedy Catholic High School. It was ultimately Singh’s foot which delivered Salmon Bay FC the National Championship as she scored the winning penalty against Vermont Green FC on that magical Saturday night at Interbay Stadium. Singh is committed to the University of Portland where she will join some of her Salmon Bay FC teammates in 2027.
And that is that for the Salmon Bay FC 2026 fall preview. Check in on your favorite players as they represent the Salmon Bay well this school year.
Written by Max Dresbach
