ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— Heading into the 2026 soccer season and the first year under Head Coach Karley Nelson, New Mexico was voted third in the Mountain West Preseason Coaches’ Poll, as released on Wednesday.
The Lobos received 82 points behind two first-place votes, the second-most first-place votes among the 11 MW teams, of which four received at least one first-place vote. UNM finished one point behind Wyoming, with the Cowgirls receiving one first-place vote, with Air Force selected as the preseason favorite with seven first-place votes and 96 points. Grand Canyon rounded out the four teams receiving a first-place vote with 79 points and picked fourth.
Following the top four were Colorado College (59), Hawai’i (50), UNLV (44), UC Davis (37), UTEP (27), Nevada (25) and San José State (23).
In addition, the MW released the preseason watch list with veteran leaders Fiona Jenkins, Nicole Anderson and Alysa Whelchel representing the Lobos. The trio are entering their fourth season with the Lobos and are coming off of productive 2025 seasons.
A forward from San Diego, California, Anderson has appeared in 53 matches with 43 starts in her first three seasons at UNM. Last season, she started 18 matches and led the Lobos with 19 points behind eight goals and three assists, tying for the team lead in goals and tied for third in assists. Against MW opponents, Anderson recorded four goals, also a team high, and tied for the team high with three assists, for a team-high 11 points. She led the Lobos with 40 shots, 16 on goal, and recorded a brace against Nevada which also included the game-winning goal.
Anderson earned Mountain West All-Conference Second Team last season.
A constant on defense, Jenkins has appeared in 49 matches with 46 starts in her first three seasons. The Fort Collins, Colorado native played the full time eight times last season and played 80 or more minutes in 12 of the 15 matches she appeared in. In the 2025 season opener, Jenkins set the program record for most assists in a match with three and registered an assist in five of the first six matches of the season.
From Torrance, California, Whelchel anchors the midfielder group with an appearance in 51 matches and 36 starts over the previous three seasons including starting all 19 matches in 2025. Whelchel had her best season last season with six goals and 15 points and scored the game-winning goal against Grand Canyon. Her 15 points was third on the team as was her six goals, while her three assists had her tied for third.
UNM returns 21 players from a season ago while adding eight newcomers with 10 underclassmen and 19 upperclassmen on the roster.
The Lobos open the 2026 season at home against Northern Arizona on Aug. 20 at 7 p.m. The match, as well as all home and MW matches will be streamed on the MW+ this season, while admission to home matches will be free. Fans can sign up for MW+ at https://golobos.com/watch.
MW Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Team (1st place votes) | Points |
| 1. Air Force (7) | 96 |
| 2. Wyoming (1) | 83 |
| 3. New Mexico (2) | 82 |
| 4. Grand Canyon (1) | 79 |
| 5. Colorado College | 59 |
| 6. Hawai'i | 50 |
| 7. UNLV | 44 |
| 8. UC Davis | 37 |
| 9. UTEP | 27 |
| 10. Nevada | 25 |
| 11. San José State | 23 |