Laura Ziegler Named to Lisa Leslie Award Watch List
October 31, 2025 | Women's Basketball
She is one of 20 players named to the watch list that honors the best center in the country
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — University of Louisville senior Laura Ziegler was named to the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List, the Basketball Hall of Fame announced on Friday. Ziegler is one of 20 players on the preseason list that recognizes the top center in college basketball.
This is the third preseason recognition Ziegler has received as she enters her first season with Louisville after transferring from Saint Joseph's. She was named to the Preseason All-ACC team a few weeks ago by the league's coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel. This week, Ziegler was named to the Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and she was one of two (Tajianna Roberts) Louisville players named to the list.
Ziegler is coming off a standout junior season with the Hawks as she led the Atlantic-10 with 10.4 rebounds per game and was second in the conference with 17.5 points per game last season. She ranked third in the country with 8.8 defensive rebounds per game and was fifth nationally with 20 double-doubles. She set the Saint Joseph's program record with 43 points against Loyola Chicago.
Ziegler was a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award following her junior season. She was a two-time Atlantic-10 First Team All Conference honoree and was named the Atlantic-10 Rookie of the Year following her freshman season.
2026 Lisa Leslie Award Candidates*
Lara Rohkohl, BYU
Sakima Walker, Cal
Audi Crooks, Iowa State
Clara Strack, Kentucky
Laura Ziegler, Louisville
Kate Koval, LSU
Ra Shayla Kyle, Miami
Ashley Sofilkanich, Michigan
Tilda Trygger, NC State
Megan Nestor, North Texas
Raegan Beers, Oklahoma
Gracie Merkle, Penn State
Madina Okot, South Carolina
Brooklyn Meyer, South Dakota State
Kennedy Umeh, Stanford
Breya Cunningham, Texas
Lauren Ware, Texas A&M
Lauren Betts, UCLA
Serah Williams, UConn
Aalyah Del Rosario, Vanderbilt
*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2025-26 season.
Fans can support their favorite player by participating in Fan Voting starting today, Friday, October 31. In early February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award will be narrowed to 10, and then in early March, to just five. Later in March, the five finalists will be presented to Leslie and the Hall of Fame's selection committee, where the winner will be selected. The Selection Committee for the Lisa Leslie Award is composed of top women's college basketball personnel, including media members, head coaches, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.
The winner of the 2026 Leslie Award will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the other four members of the Women's Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Award (Point Guard), Ann Meyers Drysdale Award (Shooting Guard), Cheryl Miller Award (Small Forward), and the Katrina McClain Award (Power Forward).
Previous winners of the Lisa Leslie Award are Lauren Betts, UCLA (2025), Cameron Brink, Stanford (2024), Aliyah Boston, South Carolina (2020-23), Megan Gustafson, Iowa (2019), and A'ja Wilson, South Carolina (2018).
For more information on the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award and the latest updates, visit hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophallu and #LeslieAward on X and Instagram.
About the WBCA:
Founded in 1981, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women's and girls' basketball at all levels of competition. The WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers, and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of a diverse community of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players, and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. For more information, visit us online: WBCA.org, follow @wbca1981, or call 1-770-279-8027.
About the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting, preserving, and celebrating the game of basketball at every level – men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches, and contributors, both domestically and internationally. The Hall of Fame museum is home to more than 475 inductees and over 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Nearly 200,000 people visit the Hall of Fame museum each year to learn about the game, experience the interactive exhibits and test their skills on the Jerry Colangelo "Court of Dreams." Best known for its annual marquee Enshrinement Ceremony honoring the game's elite, the Hall of Fame also operates over 150 high school and collegiate competitions annually throughout the country and abroad. For more information on the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum, and events, visit hoophall.com and follow @hoophallu.
Basketball Hall of Fame Media Contact
Nicole Schuermann, Position Sports // mediarelations@positionsports.com
This is the third preseason recognition Ziegler has received as she enters her first season with Louisville after transferring from Saint Joseph's. She was named to the Preseason All-ACC team a few weeks ago by the league's coaches and Blue Ribbon Panel. This week, Ziegler was named to the Naismith Trophy Women's Player of the Year Watch List and she was one of two (Tajianna Roberts) Louisville players named to the list.
Ziegler is coming off a standout junior season with the Hawks as she led the Atlantic-10 with 10.4 rebounds per game and was second in the conference with 17.5 points per game last season. She ranked third in the country with 8.8 defensive rebounds per game and was fifth nationally with 20 double-doubles. She set the Saint Joseph's program record with 43 points against Loyola Chicago.
Ziegler was a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award following her junior season. She was a two-time Atlantic-10 First Team All Conference honoree and was named the Atlantic-10 Rookie of the Year following her freshman season.
2026 Lisa Leslie Award Candidates*
Lara Rohkohl, BYU
Sakima Walker, Cal
Audi Crooks, Iowa State
Clara Strack, Kentucky
Laura Ziegler, Louisville
Kate Koval, LSU
Ra Shayla Kyle, Miami
Ashley Sofilkanich, Michigan
Tilda Trygger, NC State
Megan Nestor, North Texas
Raegan Beers, Oklahoma
Gracie Merkle, Penn State
Madina Okot, South Carolina
Brooklyn Meyer, South Dakota State
Kennedy Umeh, Stanford
Breya Cunningham, Texas
Lauren Ware, Texas A&M
Lauren Betts, UCLA
Serah Williams, UConn
Aalyah Del Rosario, Vanderbilt
*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2025-26 season.
Fans can support their favorite player by participating in Fan Voting starting today, Friday, October 31. In early February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award will be narrowed to 10, and then in early March, to just five. Later in March, the five finalists will be presented to Leslie and the Hall of Fame's selection committee, where the winner will be selected. The Selection Committee for the Lisa Leslie Award is composed of top women's college basketball personnel, including media members, head coaches, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.
The winner of the 2026 Leslie Award will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the other four members of the Women's Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Award (Point Guard), Ann Meyers Drysdale Award (Shooting Guard), Cheryl Miller Award (Small Forward), and the Katrina McClain Award (Power Forward).
Previous winners of the Lisa Leslie Award are Lauren Betts, UCLA (2025), Cameron Brink, Stanford (2024), Aliyah Boston, South Carolina (2020-23), Megan Gustafson, Iowa (2019), and A'ja Wilson, South Carolina (2018).
For more information on the 2026 Lisa Leslie Award and the latest updates, visit hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophallu and #LeslieAward on X and Instagram.
About the WBCA:
Founded in 1981, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women's and girls' basketball at all levels of competition. The WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers, and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of a diverse community of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players, and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. For more information, visit us online: WBCA.org, follow @wbca1981, or call 1-770-279-8027.
About the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is an independent nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting, preserving, and celebrating the game of basketball at every level – men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches, and contributors, both domestically and internationally. The Hall of Fame museum is home to more than 475 inductees and over 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Nearly 200,000 people visit the Hall of Fame museum each year to learn about the game, experience the interactive exhibits and test their skills on the Jerry Colangelo "Court of Dreams." Best known for its annual marquee Enshrinement Ceremony honoring the game's elite, the Hall of Fame also operates over 150 high school and collegiate competitions annually throughout the country and abroad. For more information on the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum, and events, visit hoophall.com and follow @hoophallu.
Basketball Hall of Fame Media Contact
Nicole Schuermann, Position Sports // mediarelations@positionsports.com
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