2025 Herald-News Girls Soccer Player of the Year: Lincoln-Way East’s Ellie Fiegl

Sometimes picking a Player of the Year is easy. One individual stands alone in their dominance over the rest.

Sometimes, however, narrowing the list down still results in four or five worthy candidates. That was the case with the 2025 Herald-News Girls Soccer Player of the Year.

The list of players deserving of the honor was quite lengthy. Plainfield North sophomore Ilyana Barriball scored 33 goals, most in the area for a 3A team. Providence Catholic’s Maggie Wolniakowski was her conference’s MVP with 23 goals and 15 assists as the Celtics made the 2A supersectional. Throw a dart at Lincoln-Way Central’s roster and you could find an MVP candidate.

In any year, any of them would be deserving, including this season. In the end, however, the decision was made and Ellie Feigl is the 2025 Herald-News Girls Soccer Player of the Year in a photo finish.

Feigl, a Lincoln-Way East senior, had excellent statistics with 22 goals and nine assists. But it goes beyond just numbers.

Barriball had more goals, but she did it as the focal point of the offense. Feigl scored 22 sharing the load. Lincoln-Way Central had worthy choices, but Lincoln-Way East beat them three times and advanced to the 3A supersectional round, further than any other team in the area. Wolniakowski had a slight edge in numbers for another supersectional team, but Feigl did it at the 3A level.

In other words, Feigl was the best player on the best team in the area. That’s what helped inch her ahead of the competition.

“It’s such an honor,” she said. “This is such a blessing and I’m so thankful to my team and coaches that helped me get to this point. ... I’m just very honored and humbled to be accepting of these accolades.”

Again, while 22 goals is impressive, what made it stand out even more was that she had a pair of teammates in Adelyn Thomas (22 goals) and Elizabeth Burfeind (10 goals) who also hit double digit scoring numbers. She finishes her career at Lincoln-Way East second all-time in career goals with 57.

She also finishes with 19 career assists, showing her ability to involve others as well as scoring on her own. Her numbers this season earned her Southwest Suburban Conference Player of the Year, IHSSCA All-State and IHSSCA All-Midwest.

She did all that for a team that went 18-4-1 and advanced to the 3A supersectional round before losing to eventual state champion O’Fallon. On a team with two other Division I soccer commits, it could be hard to stand out. For Feigl, having great players around her even better.

“We knew we were going to be strong coming into the season because we had a lot of talented girls,” Feigl said. “Getting to be a team leader on a team full of leaders helped me push past what I thought I would achieve this season. Being surrounded by so many good players was definitely motivation to be better overall.”

In addition to the stats, honors and accolades, Lincoln-Way East coach Michael Murphy pointed out that Feigl’s vocal presence was a big factor in the Griffins’ success. On a team with 10 seniors, she was one of three captains, with Murphy referring to her as “the leader of leaders.”

“I think I’ve always been a natural born leader,” Feigl said. “I’ve always been one of those people that likes encouraging people and motivating people. I think my personality kind of lends itself to being that kind of player. I stepped into that role this season more than I have in the past. ... Getting to step into that role definitely meant a lot to me this season.”

According to Murphy, that leadership and attitude wasn’t isolated to the field or the locker room. He consistently praised Feigl’s character as the main reason she was deserving of being named Player of the Year along with her ability in the clutch.

“So many players from around the area had great seasons,” he said. “I think what set her apart was that she’s a very high-character individual. She stepped up a lot in the games that we needed her, too.”

Feigl will now head to Division I Missouri State where she’ll continue her soccer career. She referred to playing D-I soccer as a dream she’s had for a long time. She leaves behind a team that will return a ton of talent with the goal of making even further next year.

She thinks Lincoln-Way East will be just fine as long as they remember one thing.

“Work hard even when no one is watching,” she said. “That’s the heart of where my success has come from. Surround yourself with people and coaches that believe in you, believe in yourself, and there’s really no limit to what you can achieve.”