FARMINGTON, Maine - For the second time this season, University of Maine at Farmington women's basketball star forward Jessica Dow (Saco, Maine) has been named to the New England Women's Basketball Association (NEWBA) First Team of the Week, the organization announced on Tuesday afternoon.
Dow played an integral role in helping push the Beavers to a bid in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship, set to take place at Maine Maritime Academy on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. A win on Saturday would clinch Farmington an automatic bid into the Division III National Tournament, marking their first appearance since 2007.
After leading the Beavers to an 18-7 record during the regular season and securing the third seed in the NAC tournament with a 13-3 mark in conference play, Dow was brilliant in the opening two rounds of the tournament.
In Thursday's NAC quarterfinal, Dow did everything in leading the Beavers to an 80-44 victory over VTSU Lyndon. In just 27 minutes of action, Dow scored 10 points, dished out a season-high eight assists, recorded five steals, and grabbed four rebounds. She shot 5-of-7 from the floor in the game.
After toppling the Hornets on Thursday, Dow and the Beavers advanced to the NAC semifinals, which took place on Sunday. Dow excelled on both ends of the floor. She spearheaded the Beavers' defensive effort, holding Husson University to its second-fewest points in a game this season while limiting the Eagles to just 22.2% shooting from the floor. As a team, Farmington forced Husson into 19 turnovers, with Dow posting six steals as her defensive prowess wreaked havoc. Offensively, Dow finished just two points shy of her season high, tallying 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor. She hit her lone three-point attempt and went 5-of-8 from the free throw line. Dow also recorded six rebounds, two assists, and a block across 34 minutes of action.
Dow finished the week averaging 17.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 5.5 steals while shooting a remarkable 73.9% (14-of-19) from the floor.
