ADRIAN, Mich. — The Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) has announced its 2025-26 women's hockey all-conference and all-freshmen teams, along with the season's major awards.
The Co-Players of the Year are
Riley Johnson from Adrian and
Mackaylan McGown from Concordia Wisconsin.
Johnson, a senior forward, led the league with 38 points, 17 goals and 21 assists. She led a high-powered Adrian offensive attack that led the conference in scoring at 5.67 goals per game. The Farmington, Mich., native also had a game-winning goal, four power-play markers, a short-handed score and was +36 on the ice. Her efforts helped the Bulldogs claim the Kronschnabel Cup for 10th time in program history. Johnson also recorded a league-best two hat tricks and her +36 on ice performance was tied for first. In addition, she had the second most faceoff wins (254) and the third best faceoff winning percentage (.618). Johnson finished conference play with 10 multi-point games.
“It’s a huge honor, and I’m grateful to share it with my teammates and coaches," Johnson said. "It means a lot to be part of this program and everything we’ve worked for this season.”
McGown, a junior forward, tallied 26 points, 14 goals and 12 assists. The Inver Grove Heighs, Minn., native helped guide the Falcons to their best finish in a NCHA season with a second-place finish (16-1-1). Her leadership also helped the program achieve new heights with a program record 20-game winning streak and a program record 22 wins in regular season play. McGown led the league with 263 faceoff wins and a .635 faceoff winning percentage. She was also +25 on the ice and had a league-high-tying four game-winning goals. McGown recorded seven multi-point games, including six in the second half of the season.
"This award means everything to me," McGown said. "It is truly a testament to our team and how hard we have worked all season. I am so grateful for my teammates and my coaches. I owe it all to them. I also want to say a big thank you to my family, especially my parents and my sister. They are my biggest support system. All of these people mean so much to me, and I would not be here without any of them."
The league head coaches voted
Abby Hansberger, a forward from Concordia Wisconsin as the NCHA Freshman of the Year.
Hansberger, who was also selected as All-NCHA, recorded the second-most points (32) and assists (19) in league play, to go along with 13 goals. The Elk River, Minn., native scored a pair of game-winning goals, had a hat trick and was +29 on the ice. She had the most points, goals and assists recorded by any freshman in the league. Throughout league play, Hansberger had 12 multi-point games.
"It is truly an honor to be named NCHA Freshman of the Year," Hansberger said. "It is incredibly rewarding to see all the hard work and dedication pay off. I am so grateful for my teammates and coaches who push me to be better every day, I would not be in this position without their support. My family means the world to me, and their constant encouragement has made this achievement even more special."
The 2025-26 Coach of the Year, as voted on by NCHA head coaches, is
Steve Fabiilli from Concrodia Wisconsin.
Fabiilli, claiming the honor for the first time in his career, has guided the Falcons to their best season in program history. They finished second in NCHA play, the highest in program history, behind a 16-1-1 record. Concordia Wisconsin reached a No. 12 ranking in the USCHO poll, which was the highest in program history, four different times. During conference games they outscored the opposition by a 74-33 margin. From November 7 through February 6, Concordia Wisconsin won a program-record 20 games. During NCHA play, the ranked second in goals (4.11), third in goals allowed (1.83), fourth in power-play percentage (.184), fourth in penalty-kill percentage (.862), and second in faceoff winning percenage (.586).
"It’s a huge honor to be named Coach of the Year," Fabiilli said. "Our conference has a great group of coaches who are doing an unbelievable job with their programs. Any individual award in a team sport cannot happen without being surrounded by outstanding people. We have a great staff, Hannah Nelson, Eric Everson and Rebecka Boehlke, who put in a tremendous amount of work on and off the ice with recruiting and providing support for our players. I am also incredibly thankful and grateful to be coaching amazing athletes who have raised the bar for our program. They are a fantastic group to be around. They are hard working, fun and truly care about the program and each other. I am happy for their success."
All honors and awards were nominated and voted on by NCHA head coaches.
NCHA Co-Player of the Year: Riley Johnson, Adrian; Mackaylan McGown, Concordia Wisconsin
NCHA Freshman of the Year: Abby Hansberger, Concordia Wisconsin
NCHA Coach of the Year: Steve Fabiilli, Concordia Wisconsin
2025-26 NCHA Women's Hockey All-Conference Team
Forward: Courtney Ben (St. Peters, Mo.), Adrian
* 2024-25 All-NCHA
Forward: Abby Hansberger (Elk River, Minn.), Concordia Wisconsin
Forward: Riley Johnson (Farmington, Mich.), Adrian
*2024-25 All-NCHA
Forward: Mackaylan McGown (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.), Concordia Wisconsin
* 2024-25 All-NCHA
Forward: Natalie Meeder (Woodbury, Minn.), Dubuque
Forward: Makayla Spejcher (Green Bay, Wis.), Concordia Wisconsin
Defense: Parker Beyer (Appleton, Wis.), Adrian
Defense: Brenna-Grace Dittmer (Chatham-Kent, Ontario), Concordia Wisconsin
Defense: Claire Healy (Wausau, Wis.), St. Norbert
Defense: Paige Pomerleau (Lewiston, Maine), Adrian
Defense: Ella Spies (Fond du Lac, Wis.), Marian
Goalie: Jillian Traver (Plainfield, Ill.), Marian
Goalie: Kiera Stack (Marshfield, Mass.), Adrian
* Extra defense due to tie in voting
2025-26 NCHA Women's Hockey All-Freshman Team
Forward: Abby Hansberger (Elk River, Minn.), Concordia Wisconsin
Forward: Maddy Loe (Petoskey, Minn.), Adrian
Forward: Natalie Meeder (Woodbury, Minn.), Dubuque
Defense: Sophia LaColla )Brighton, Mich.), Adrian
Defense: Elizabeth Sturgeon (Livonia, Mich.), Adrian
Goalie: Lily Peterfeso (Stillwater, Minn.), Lake Forest