Women's Basketball

MIAC announces 2025-26 women’s basketball awards

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its women's basketball awards for the 2025-26 season on Wednesday.
 
Concordia sophomore forward Maya Metcalf was selected as the recipient of both the MIAC Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year awards, while Saint Mary's first-year Ayla Olson received MIAC Rookie of the Year honors, and Concordia head coach Kim Wagers was celebrated as the MIAC Coach of the Year.
 
Metcalf (West Fargo, N.D. / Sheyenne) was selected as both the MIAC Offensive Player of the Year and MIAC Defensive Player of the Year for women's basketball. The Concordia forward averaged 17.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per MIAC game and ranked among the top five in the conference in both categories. Metcalf is the first individual to receive both the Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year awards since the MIAC Player of the Year honor was split into two separate awards in 2022-23. She is the second Cobber in the last three seasons to be named MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, and the first Concordia player in program history to be named MIAC Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Olson (New York Mills, Minn. / New York Mills) was named MIAC Women's Basketball Rookie of the Year after averaging 17.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game in conference play to rank among the top ten in each category during her debut season. Olson also came up big down the stretch, eclipsing 25 points in three of the Cardinals' final five games of the regular season to lock up a top-four seed in the MIAC Playoffs. Olson is the second consecutive Cardinal to be named MIAC Women's Basketball Rookie of the Year, joining teammate and 2025 recipient Brianna Nusbaum.
 
Wagers (seventh season) received MIAC Women's Basketball Coach of the Year honors for the second time in her career after guiding the Cobbers to the program's first regular-season title since 2013. Concordia went 16-2 in MIAC games and was a perfect 9-0 at home in league contests during the regular season. Wagers previously received the award following the 2022-23 campaign.
 
In addition to the individual awards, 18 players were named All-Conference, and seven received honorable mention distinction. All awards were nominated by and voted on by the 12 MIAC head women's basketball coaches, and only statistics from regular-season MIAC contests were considered for conference honors; any nominated player not selected as All-Conference but still receiving votes from at least three coaches was named honorable mention.
 
Two players – Bethel senior forward Elly Schmitz and St. Catherine junior guard Hattie Fox – received All-MIAC honors for the third time in their careers, landing them among just 78 women's basketball players in recorded MIAC history to be named to at least three All-Conference teams.
 
The MIAC also announced the annual All-Playoff Team for women's basketball, which recognized the top nine performers from the conference tournament, as selected by playoff-participant head coaches.
 
| 2025-26 MIAC Women's Basketball Awards |