FARMINGTON, Maine — The Maine Women's Basketball Coaches Association (MWBCA) announced its All-State, All-Rookie, and major award winners for the 2025-26 season on Monday, with a pair of Beavers earning recognition. Junior forward Jessica Dow (Saco, Maine) was named to the All-State Second Team for the second consecutive year, while first-year forward Lilly Gray (Benton, Maine) earned a spot on the All-State Rookie Team.
For Dow, the MWBCA All-State Second Team honor is the latest in a string of accolades following the conclusion of the season. Over the past month, she has been named the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Defensive Player of the Year, selected to the NAC First Team All-Conference, and earned D3Hoops.com Region 1 All-Region Second Team honors.
Dow enjoyed one of the best seasons of her career, all while averaging 26.4 minutes per game—the fewest of her three collegiate seasons. Through 29 games, she averaged 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 2.9 steals per contest. She was also highly efficient, shooting 45.5 percent from the field, a team-best 34.6 percent from three-point range, and 72.1 percent from the free-throw line.
A fierce competitor, Dow delivered some of her strongest performances against top competition. Against the five other NAC teams that qualified for the playoffs—VTSU Lyndon, Thomas, SUNY Cobleskill, Husson, and Maine Maritime—she averaged 16.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 3.2 steals per game, while shooting 44.3 percent from the field and 7-for-14 from beyond the arc. In the 13 games in which she played 30 or more minutes, Dow averaged 18.5 points per game.
Dow also elevated her play down the stretch. Over the final 12 games of the season, she averaged 15.9 points per game, including 17.0 points per game on 69.0 percent shooting during the NAC Tournament, helping lead the Beavers to their first NAC Championship and NCAA Tournament berth since 2007 and being named the NAC Tournament Most Valuable Player.
Gray earned All-Rookie Team honors following a strong freshman campaign in which she averaged 6.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while shooting 49.7 percent from the field and 71.4 percent from the free-throw line. She was named NAC Rookie of the Week twice during the season.
Gray appeared in 28 games and made her collegiate debut against Fisher College on November 15 at the Spartan Classic, hosted by VTSU Castleton. She made an immediate impact, recording a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 7-for-9 from the field.
She reached double figures six times during the season, including a career-high 23-point performance on the road against SUNY Delhi. In that game, Gray played 20 minutes, shooting 11-for-14 from the field and adding seven rebounds in the Beavers' 74-44 victory.
During a weekend trip to Vermont on February 6-7, when the Beavers faced VTSU Johnson and VTSU Lyndon, Gray averaged 13.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while shooting 50.0 percent from the field in a pair of wins. Her performance earned her a second NAC Rookie of the Week honor.
The full list of MWBCA All-State award winners is as follows:
MWBCA Player of the Year
Jaycie Christopher – University of Southern Maine
MWBCA Rookie of the Year
Layla Facchiano – Saint Joseph's College
MWBCA Coach of the Year
David Chadbourne – University of Southern Maine
MWBCA First Team All-State
Jaycie Christopher, Sr. – University of Southern Maine
Elsa Daulerio, Sr. – Bates College
Abby Quinn, Jr. – Bowdoin College
Katie Olenik, Jr. – Colby College
Grace Kinum, So. – Bowdoin College
MWBCA Second Team All-State
Lucy Wiles, So. – University of Southern Maine
Sarah Hughes, Jr. – Bates College
Saige Evans, So. – Husson University
Elisabeth Stapelfeld, Sr. – St. Joseph's College
Jessica Dow, Jr. – UMaine Farmington
Addison Forry, So. – Maine Maritime Academy
All-Rookie Team
Layla Facchiano, Fr. – St. Joseph's College
Sophia Carnes, Fr. – Husson University
Payton Collins, Fr. – Bowdoin College
Claire Gaetani, Fr. – Bates College
Izzy Morelli, Fr. – University of Southern Maine
Lilly Gray, Fr. – UMaine Farmington
