UWEC Athletics Hall of Fame
Anna Talbot, a defender, was the WIAC Player of the Year in 2007 when she also earned NSCAA All-American third-team honors. She helped the Blugolds go unbeaten in WIAC play for three consecutive seasons including the most successful campaign in school history in 2006. If, as the saying goes, defense wins championship, then Talbot was a major cog in UWEC’s only three conference championships in 2005, 2006 and 2007 and became the first defender to be named WIAC Player of the Year. Those three seasons saw the most success achieved by a Blugold women’s soccer team in the 34-year history of the program as of 2022. The Blugolds produced an overall record of 56-8-7, a conference record of 21-0-3 and a conference tournament record of 8-0. The Blugolds also played in their first three NCAA tournaments, splitting six games and advancing to the third round in 2006. How well did those three Blugold teams perform? In 2005, they outscored their opponents 40-13 while finishing 15-3-5. The following year, they set school and conference records for wins with 23 and for shutouts with 18. That year, they outscored their opponents, 64-10. In 2007, they outscored their foes, 61-12, and finished 18-2-2. All of this occurred with Talbot as a midfield defender. As a senior in 2007, Talbot was All-Conference, WIAC Player of the Year, NSCAA All-Region First Team, NSCAA All-American Third Team and NSCAA Scholar All-American First Team. She also served as co-captain and received team awards for MVP and Practice Player of the Year.
In 2008, Talbot was a Blugold Super Six winner, received the Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities & Colleges award, UWEC’s Outstanding Senior Award, and was an NCAA Woman of the Year nominee. In 2012, she was named to the WIAC’s All-Centennial team for women’s soccer. Talbot played her high school soccer in Apple Valley, Minnesota at Eastview High School where she was team captain and All-State honorable mention. She was also a member of Eastview’s Dance Team State Champions in High Kick.
Talbot earned both a bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences & Disorders and a master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology from UWEC in 2008 and 2010, respectively. At the time of her induction, she was a speech language pathologist in the Eau Claire Area School District, serving at Roosevelt Elementary School. Talbot has served as a volunteer and board member for her husband's non-profit, Jesus Fit Inc. She has coached her boys' U12 and U7 soccer teams and taught a co-ed kids hip hop class. She has helped chaperone youth group trips, leadership retreats, and vacation bible school camps. At the time of her induction, she and her husband Bryan were the parents of three children.
