Four Spartans Earn All-Region Honors

East Lansing, Mich. -- Four Michigan State soccer players have earned United Soccer Coaches All-Region honors, as announced by the coaches association on Tuesday, Dec. 2. Senior Maggie Illig (Troy, Mo.), and juniors Kennedy Bell (Charlotte, NC) and Kayla Briggs (Toronto, Ontario) earned First Team All-Region designation, while redshirt junior Emerson Sargeant (Hartland, Mich.) was a Second-Team selection.

The four players match MSU's four selections in 2024, and also MSU's school-record three first-team picks (five overall) from 2022. In 2024, MSU had one player on each of the four All-Region teams. In 2022, MSU had three first team picks and two additional on the second team.

MSU recently completed its season with several program-best historical marks. The Spartans compiled a 15-4-6 overall record, the second-most wins and most ties. The Green & White also advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight for the first time ever, and also drew three home games at DeMartin Stadium as a No. 2 seed. MSU was picked a program-best No. 12 in the preseason United Soccer Coaches poll, and will likely finish with its best-ever final poll result after its appearance in the national quarterfinals.

Illig All-Region

Illig repeats as an All-Region pick - she earned Second Team honors a in 2024. The senior anchor of the Spartan defense was the most decorated Spartan in the preseason, as she was on a trio of watch lists: she was selected for the 2025 Hermann Trophy Watch List while also being named among the Big Ten Player to Watch and Uninted Soccer Coaches Defender to Watch. Illig started all 25 games at center back, and the Spartan defense posted a 1.15 GAA in front of a pair of first-year keepers, allowing one goal or less 21 times in 25 games. She also compiled a career best offensive portfolio with three goals (which matched her career total from her first three years) and seven points. She was selected for First Team All-Big Ten honors, while also maintaining exceptional work in the classroom: she is a three-time Academic All-Big Ten pick and has earned College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District honors twice.

Bell All-Region

MSU's top offensive performers also earned All-Region kudos. Big Ten Forward of the Year Bell was a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection, leading the Conference in goals (11), and points (29), while also tying for the team lead in assists (7, T-second, B1G). She is 34th overall nationally in points and 39th in goals - while more than tripling her career offensive totals in the process. Starting 24 of 25 games, Bell opened the scoring for the MSU season on Aug. 14 at Colorado, and assisted on the final goal in the Elite Eight game at Stanford (Nov. 28). Along the way, she earned a spot on the Hermann Trophy Midseason Watch List. Bell, who earned her undergraduate degree at Maryland before enrolling at MSU last summer, also earned Academic All-Big Ten and CSC Academic All-District designation.

Briggs All-Region

Briggs, like Bell, had career-best offensive numbers in East Lansing this fall. The Toronto native was second to Bell on the team in points (23), tied for first in assists (7, second Big Ten), and tied for second in goals (8, T-eighth, B1G). She ranks 24th nationally with five game-winning goals, and she is the only player in the Big Ten to convert multiple penalty kicks (2). She started all 25 games in the Spartan midfield, and was second on the team in minutes played (2015, 81 per game.) She went the full 90 minutes or more in 10 of MSU's 25 games.

Sargeant All-Region

Sargeant is a Second Team All-Region pick, and had a triumphant return to the field after an injury ended her 2024 season in its fifth match. Starting all 25 games for the Spartans, she had a slow offensive start to the 2025 season, producing one assist in the first 10 contests; in the final 15 games of the season, she delivered eight goals and two assists. Overall, she surpassed her previous career bests with eight goals (T-eighth, B1G) and 19 points (T-ninth, B1G). Her OT heroics vs. UCLA in the Big Ten semifinal delivered her team-best fourth game-winning score of the season (T-sixth, B1G). She earned First Team All-Big Ten honors after earning Second Team honors as a sophomore in 2023, and also earned a spot on the Big Ten All-Tournament Team. She is also a standout in the classroom - she earned a selection to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team and earned Academic All-Big Ten honors for the third time in her career.

United Soccer Coaches All-America honors will be announced on Friday, Dec. 5.

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Players Mentioned

Kennedy Bell

Kayla Briggs

Maggie Illig

Emerson Sargeant

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