GORHAM, Maine – Senior Cole Brennan (Sussex, N.J./ Pomfret School), senior Kadin Ilott (Kenora, Ontario) and junior Ethan MacDuff (Lloydminster, Alberta) of the University of Southern Maine Huskies' men's ice hockey team have earned 2026 College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District honor. Ilott is now a three-time honoree, MacDuff is a two-time honoree, and Brennan is being honored for the first time of his career. All are receiving the honor as part of the At-Large program which covers USM-sponsored sports of field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, golf, and wrestling.
 
To be eligible for Academic All-District recognition, student-athletes must be at least a sophomore academically and athletically with a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or higher. For ice hockey, the student-athlete also must have competed in 90 percent of the institution's games played or must have started in at least 66 percent of the institution's games. For goalies, a student-athlete must have started at least 50 percent of an institution's games.
 
Brennan, a defenseman and one of the team's captains, had a breakout senior season with career-highs in assists (12) and points (14). His 12 assists tied for the most on the team. He played in all 26 games for the Huskies and ranked second in blocked shots with 32. In his career, Brennan compiled 115 blocked shots, four goals, 14 assists and 18 points in 82 games. A two-time New England Hockey Conference All-Academic and one-time Little East Conference All-Academic Team selection, Brennan earned his degree in Finance.
 
Ilott, another defenseman who also reached 100 career blocked shots during the season, recorded three goals and seven assists in 25 games this season. He also led the team in blocked shots with 37. In addition to reaching the 100 blocked shots milestone, Ilott reached the 100 career games mark. He ends his career with 10 goals, 28 assists and 38 points. Now a three-time Academic All-District honoree, Ilott recently graduated with a degree in Computer Science. His additional academic accolades include three William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete awards, two NEHC Academic All-Conference placements and a LEC All-Academic Team selection.
 
MacDuff, a forward and team captain, tied with Brennan for the team lead in assists with 12 and added five goals of his own. One of the team's top centers, MacDuff won 142-of-279 faceoffs (51.1%). He had multiple points in three games with a season-high of three on a goal and two assists in a 6-5 overtime win over Keene State. MacDuff has 14 goals and 21 assists over the course of 72 career games. A two-time William B. Wise Scholar-Athlete, MacDuff was named to the NEHC All-Academic Team in 2024-25 and the LEC All-Academic Team in 2025-26. He is majoring in Electrical Engineering.