NORTH ATTLEBORO, Mass. – Saint Anselm senior guard Tatum Forbes was named Women's Basketball Player of the Year on Wednesday afternoon, as the Northeast 10 Conference announced its All-Conference honors for the 2025-26 season. 

Forbes becomes the second straight player from Saint Anselm to win Player of the Year, following her former teammate Melanie Hoyt, who earned the award in 2024-25. She led all NE10 players this season in scoring (18.3 points per game) and assists (5.1 per game). 

Joining Forbes among major award winners was Adelphi's Lauren Beberman - the NE10 blocks and steals leader - as Defensive Player of the Year, Southern Connecticut's Tish Blackwood as Rookie of the Year and Bentley's C White repeating as Coach of the Year. 

Bentley and Southern Connecticut both had a league-high four players selected to All-Conference teams, while also tying for a league-best five overall selections among All-Conference and All-Defensive honorees.

Forbes started every game for Saint Anselm this season, averaging over 34.0 minutes per game across 23 contests. In addition to being the second consecutive Hawks' player to win Player of the Year, she is the fourth to win it in the past six seasons (Peyton Steinman in 2022, Shannon Ryan in 2020). Forbes led the NE10 in scoring and assists, while also ranking seventh in rebounding (7.1 per game). She had 13 games this season with 20 or more points. Nationally, she is in the top 20 in Division II in assists per game. 

Beberman was a defensive specialist for Adelphi this season, as she led all NE10 players in blocks (45), blocks per game (1.9), steals (72) and steals per game (3.0). She is the first player in NE10 history to lead the conference in blocks and steals in the same season, as she led Adelphi to having a top five scoring defense in the league (55.8 points per game). Beberman had 11 games this season with multiple blocks and steals. She is the first Adelphi player to win Defensive Player of the Year since Emily Miccile in 2021-22. 

Blackwood had a remarkable freshman campaign for Southern Connecticut, which landed her Rookie of the Year, All-Conference Second Team and All-Rookie Team honors. An eight-time NE10 Rookie of the Week selection, Blackwood led the conference in rebounding (9.3 per game) and double-doubles (11), while ranking fifth in field goal percentage (47.3) and 16th in scoring (11.3 points per game). She becomes the first Southern Connecticut player to win Rookie of the Year since Jackie Beathea in 2012-13. 

C White repeated as Coach of the Year after leading Bentley (21-3, 17-1 NE10) to its third-consecutive regular season title and the top seed in the NE10 Championship. Ranked ninth in the latest WBCA Division II national poll and first in the most recent NCAA Division II East Region rankings, the Falcons look for their fifth-straight NE10 Championship title under White's leadership. During her five seasons at the helm for Bentley, the program has an overall record of 122-30 (.803) and is 81-18 (.818) in NE10 play. 

The semifinals of the NE10 Women's Basketball Championship, presented by Visit Central Florida, are scheduled for Thursday night. Top-seeded Bentley plays No. 5-seeded Saint Michael's, while No. 2-seeded Southern Connecticut hosts No. 6-seeded Southern New Hampshire. Please visit Championship Central for all broadcast information. 

Player of the Year: Tatum Forbes, Saint Anselm
Defensive Player of the Year: Lauren Beberman, Adelphi
Rookie of the Year: Tish Blackwood, SCSU
Coach of the Year: C White, Bentley

FIRST TEAM
Chelsea Reeves, AIC
Teagan Curran, Assumption
Niya Morgen, Bentley
Ciara Collins, Pace
Tatum Forbes, Saint Anselm
Rheyna Steinauer, SCSU

SECOND TEAM
Keyvanna Bennett, AIC
Kayana Armbrister, Bentley
Jayla Tyler, Saint Michael’s
Tish Blackwood, SCSU
Meghan Gordon, SNHU

THIRD TEAM
Victoria Morales, Adelphi
Julia Elie, Bentley
Cassidy Yeomans, Bentley
Elise MacNair, Saint Anselm
Hope Fox, SCSU
Jillian Martin, SCSU

ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Lauren Beberman, Adelphi
Christina Sanchez, Adelphi
Thai Davis, Assumption
Laura Johnson-Shedd, Assumption
Julia Elie, Bentley
Jayla Tyler, Saint Michael’s
Hope Fox, SCSU
 
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
Madison Handrahan, Assumption
Cherish Bryant, Bentley
Emily Mennillo, Franklin Pierce
Anisa Akinola, Pace
Tish Blackwood, SCSU

ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 10 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete.

Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
 
Fans can subscribe via this link to follow NE10 NOW on FloSports this season.  The partnership between the NE10 and FloSports works to provide funds back to the athletic departments of the Northeast 10 Conference in support of student-athletes while promoting the league on a national platform.