First-year head coach Ieshia Small Gainey has been named the NSAC Coach of the Year in Women’s Basketball after leading Apprentice to the conference championship.

Gainey took over the program in 2025 after serving as assistant coach. She immediately changed the culture and turned the struggling program around, guiding the Lady Builders to a 14-9 overall record and 5-0 in NSAC play, the top seed in last month’s conference tournament, then winning their first league title in program history.

Gainey came to Apprentice after playing five seasons internationally, including in China, Hungary, Ukraine and Poland. She played her college ball at Maryland, where she was selected the Big 10 Sixth Player of the Year in 2018. As a high school senior in Tallahassee, Florida, she was ranked No. 19 overall by ESPN HoopGurlz and No. 3 at the wing position.

Congratulations to Ieshia Small Gainey, the NSAC Coach of the Year!