Women's Soccer
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- PLW@athletics.wisc.edu
- Sport:
- Women's Soccer
One of the most accomplished women’s college soccer head coaches in the country, Paula Wilkins, the winningest coach in Wisconsin program history, enters her 20th season as head coach of the Badgers in 2026.
With a pair of College Cup semifinal appearances and 17 NCAA Tournament berths, Wilkins has established Wisconsin as one of the Big Ten’s most consistent programs. In 19 seasons at the helm in Madison, she has guided the Badgers to sustained success while building a strong culture within the program.
Wilkins enters the 2026 season with a 217-112-63 record at Wisconsin and a 336-131-74 career record. She ranks second in Big Ten history with 336 career coaching wins and eight Big Ten regular-season titles, in addition to three Big Ten Tournament championships.
The 2025 season saw Wisconsin finish 14-6-2 overall and 6-3-2 in Big Ten play, its best conference showing since 2019. The Badgers advanced to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals after a 3-0 victory over Iowa in the quarterfinals and earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Wisconsin defeated Western Michigan in the opening round before falling to Baylor in the second round. Eight Badgers earned All-Big Ten honors, including first-team selections Erin Connolly and Hailey Baumann. Goalkeeper Drew Stover earned third-team honors after recording 10 shutouts.
In 2024, Wilkins guided Wisconsin to a 10-6-5 record and the program’s fifth Sweet 16 appearance under her direction. The Badgers earned an NCAA Tournament berth for the 16th time under Wilkins and advanced through the first two rounds before falling to Stanford in the Sweet 16.
Wilkins became the winningest coach in program history during the 2020-21 season with a 1-0 win over Iowa. That season, Jordyn Bloomer earned her second consecutive Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year award and was named a second-team All-American.
The 2019 season was one for the history books as the Badgers went undefeated in conference play for the first time in two decades, posting a 10-0-1 ledger and claiming the Big Ten regular-season championship outright. Wilkins earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors for the seventh time in her career, while Jordyn Bloomer, Camryn Biegalski and Dani Rhodes all earned All-America honors. Bloomer was named Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year, Biegalski earned Big Ten Defender of the Year honors and Rhodes was named Big Ten Forward of the Year. Wisconsin advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive season and reached the Sweet 16 for the second straight year.
In 2018, Wilkins guided Wisconsin to a 14-4-4 record and another NCAA Tournament appearance. The Badgers advanced to the Sweet 16
