Baylor’s women’s soccer program is sending a clear message before the 2026 season even kicks off: the Bears have real star power at every level.
Goalkeeper Azul Alvarez, forward Callie Conrad and midfielder Olivia Hess were all named to the Big 12’s 2026 Preseason All-Big 12 Team, the conference announced Monday afternoon. It’s the first time Baylor has placed three players on the preseason team, and the most selections the program has ever had in one year.
Alvarez heads into her third season with the Bears after earning United Soccer Coaches Goalkeepers to Watch list recognition. Her 2025 season was a big one by any measure: 12 shutouts, 97 saves and 2,082 minutes played, all while posting a .820 goals allowed average that landed among the program’s top single-season marks. She was also a 2025 All-Region selection.
Conrad is back for her fourth collegiate season after stacking up honors in each of the last two years. She made the All-Big 12 Freshman Team in 2023 and followed that with second-team all-conference recognition last season.
In 2025, the Mansfield native started every match, scored four goals and added two assists. She also put together 31 shots, 15 of them on goal, and delivered the game-winner against Iowa State in Baylor’s final of three straight 3-0 wins in Big 12 play.
Hess is the other Baylor name on the list after a strong freshman campaign that set the stage for a preseason nod as a sophomore. She started all 23 matches in 2025, scored three goals and added two assists.
Two of those goals were game-winners, coming against Mississippi State in the home opener and at Kansas State. She finished the year with 21 shots on goal among her 38 attempts.
The preseason recognition comes with Baylor also slotting seventh in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, behind TCU, Colorado, Kansas, West Virginia, Texas Tech and BYU. The Bears earned 153 points and matched their highest preseason ranking since being picked seventh in 2020, 2021 and 2022, while also setting the top preseason projection of the Michelle Lenard era.
The Big 12’s preseason team now includes 22 players, with additional selections added when ties require it. That format has been in place for the league’s third year of recognizing a larger preseason group, after previously naming 11 players annually from 2000 through 2023.
Baylor opens the 2026 season with an exhibition at SMU on Aug. 8 at 7 p.m. in Dallas. The regular season starts on the road against SEC opponent Arkansas on Aug. 12.
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