GORHAM, Maine – Sixty University of Southern Maine student-athletes were announced as part of the 2025-2026 Little East Conference All-Academic Team for winter sports. Students from all six of Southern Maine's Little East Conference sponsored teams have representatives on the academic squad: women's and men's indoor track & field, women's and men's ice hockey, and women's and men's basketball.
To be named to the All-Academic Team, a student-athlete must be at least in sophomore standing in the classroom, have a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or higher through the previous semester, and have been at their current institution for at least a full academic year.
Among the nine Little East Conference institutions, Southern Maine ranks fourth for the most student-athletes to achieve the academic distinction while competing in all six of the eight of the LEC spring championship sports (Southern Maine does not sponsor men's or women's swimming, and Huskies' wrestling does not compete in the Little East Conference).
The Huskies' 2026 Little East Conference Champion Women's Indoor Track & Field team had 16 student-athletes represented on the list, while the men's outdoor track & field team had 12 to lead the way in total student-athletes named. Southern Maine's 2026 women's indoor track & field championship was the programs sixth consecutive championship, and 25
th overall out of 28 available titles.
Huskies' women's basketball which claimed both the 2026 Little East Conference regular season and tournament championship placed eight student-athletes on the academic list, while the men's basketball team, which earned its most in-conference wins in program history (11), had two of its members honored.
Eleven members of the Huskies' women's ice hockey team, which finished third in the LEC regular-season standings and advanced to the semifinals of the conference tourney, were recognized, and the men's program had 10 members honored for academic excellence following its best winning-percentage season since 2007-08
Twenty-eight different University of Southern Maine majors are represented by the Huskies' Winter Sport All-Academic Team roster with Exercise Science (10), Nursing (8), Biology (4), and Health Sciences (4) leading the way. Other popular majors include Marketing, Cyber Security, Mechanical Engineering, Economics, and Finance.
Thirteen of the 60 members of the Little East Conference Winter Sport All-Academic team were also recognized with post-season honors from the LEC after their respective competition season. Among the program highlights are 2026 Little East Conference Field Athlete of the Year and NCAA National Champions senior
Zoe Barnes (New Gloucester, Maine/Gray-New Gloucester) a member of the women's indoor track and field program and nursing student. Senior
Michael D'Amico (Belgrade Lakes, Maine), who is earning his degree in Cyber Security, earned All-LEC honors in the pole vault and was one of five Huskies to earn USTFCCCA All-Region honors, registering his award in the heptathlon.
Sophomores
Lucy Wiles (Glenburn, Maine/Hampden Academy) and
Dakota Shipley (Bath, Maine/Brunswick) highlighted the women's basketball program. Wiles earned first team All-Little East Conference honors, and was recognized as an All-Region athlete by both the New England Women's Basketball Association (NEWBA) and D3hoops.com, while Shipley was chosen as the LEC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Both Shipley and Wiles are Nursing students.
Graduate student
Madison Chagnon (St. Albans, Vermont/Rice Memorial) and senior
Audrey Donahue (Timberlea, Nova Scotia/Kimball Union) were two of five Huskies to earn LEC post-season honors. Chagnon, who is pursuing her Master's degree in Education Psychology, led USM in goals and points, while Donahue, a Health Sciences major, scored five goals and had nine assists as a member of USM's defense.
Senior
Thomas Whelan (Bronx, NY/Fordham Prep) finished his career as a member of the men's basketball team as a three-time All-LEC guard earning first team honors in 2025-26 and went on to earn National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-District honors.
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