The Athenaeum

Tag: AUS

  • Fourth Place Finish for Axewomen at AUS Championship Meet

    Fourth Place Finish for Axewomen at AUS Championship Meet

    FREDERICTON, N.B. – The Axewomen cross country team finished the AUS championship in fourth place in the team standings – only three points away from a third-place medal win. The championship women’s race was 8km as opposed to the standard 6km race.

    Topping the Axewomen’s performance was fourth year runner Madalyn Higgins who finished seventh among stiff competition. Higgins’ seventh place 31:22.00 finish was good enough to earn her a place as an AUS All-Star.

    Teammates Jessica Armstrong and Nicole Skinner finished twelfth and thirteenth respectively, with times of 32:15.00 and 32:16.00. Higgins, Armstrong and Skinner all qualified for the U SPORTS championship hosted by Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont.

    “Considering we didn’t race any 8 kms before the AUS, Acadia did very well. I believe after racing today and changing some strategy we would get closer to silver medal,” noted head coach Ralph Williams.

    “The season was too short to get a momentum going. Acadia is a very fit team. They needed more racing I’m very proud of what the team did this season,” added Williams.

    “Three athletes out of 7 team runners have qualified to go to the U SPORT championships with 4th runners within a few seconds of making the cut. Pretty impressive considering the top 3 teams had only three in the top 14 as well,” concluded Williams.

    Higgins was also the recipient of the AUS Student-Athlete Community Service Award.

    AUS Women’s Cross Country:

    • Athlete of the Year:  Jade Roberts, Memorial
    • Rookie of the Year:  Lauren Lowther, Dalhousie
    • Student-Athlete Community Service Award:  Madalyn Higgins, Acadia
    • Coach of the Year:  Rich Lehman, Dalhousie

    2019 AUS CROSS COUNTRY ALL-STARS: WOMEN

    Jade Roberts, Memorial (2nd year – Twillingate, N.L.)
    Jane Hergett, StFX (3rd year – Port Williams, N.S.)
    Catherine Thompson, Dalhousie (5th year – Blenheim, Ont.)
    Hannah Cormier, UNB (3rd year – Fredericton, N.B.)
    Paige Chisholm, StFX (4th year – Port Williams, N.S.)
    Emily Hamilton, Dalhousie (1st year – Halifax, N.S.)
    Madalyn Higgins, Acadia (4th year – Halifax, N.S.)

  • X-Women lay claim to AUS Championship with win over Axewomen

    X-Women lay claim to AUS Championship with win over Axewomen

    Antigonish, NS – The StFX X-Women claimed the 2019 AUS rugby banner with a 29-17 victory over the Acadia Axewomen in a hard-fought battle in front of over 350 fans at StFX Stadium on a wet Saturday afternoon. 

    The title marks the 21st conference title in team history for the X-Women. 

    Third-year second-row Katie Pentz (Trenton, NS) received playoff most valuable player honours for her efforts in the championship game. 

    After the Axewomen built up a 17-12 lead at halftime, Pentz noted “We really focused on our defense coming together and not letting them through in the second half. We worked really hard on this and they didn’t get into our end until the end of the game, so we came out and did what we had to do.” 

    The X-Women regrouped from the first half deficit to score 17 unanswered points in the second half – holding their opponents scoreless – on route to the win.  

    X-Women head coach and AUS Coach of the Year Mike Cavanagh commented, “I told them at halftime that we had to stop putting ourselves under pressure. I thought we tackled well in the first half, but we just had to play too much defense and didn’t often have the ball, and every time we got it, we gave it up to them.” 

    It was a tale of two halves as the Axewomen got out to an early 12-0 lead, putting continued pressure on the X-Women. Annie Kennedy (Kingston, ON) scored in the third minute of play, then AUS all-star center Emilie Merilainen (Batawa, ON) scored in the 11th minute. Laura Pfleiderer (Williams Lake, BC) converted the second try for the Axewomen. 

    St.FX got on the board three minutes later when center Sammy Nadeau (Bewdley, ON) scored off a nice, long run. The unconverted try brought the score to 12-5. 

    The Axewomen continued to pressure and were strong off the scrum, threatening to score but the X defense held them back. 

    St.FX drew even when Maddie Harroun (Halifax, NS) touched down in the 25th minute and Danielle Franada (Grand Prairie, AB) converted.  

    The teams continued to battle for the remainder of the half and Acadia scored once again in extra time as Kennedy recorded her second try of the afternoon. 

    The visitors were up 17-12 at halftime. 

    St.FX came out strong in the second half and as Coach Cavanagh noted, “We got the ball and we kept it, and we just put the pressure on them.” 

    That pressure led to a try two minutes into the half as Franada jumped on a ball off a nice kick from Hannah Ellis (Halifax, NS) and the X-Women drew even at 17-17 as her own convert attempt was short. 

    St.FX maintained possession in the Acadia end and had several strong scrums. They took their first lead of the game in the 54th minute when Sophie Parker (Windsor, NS) scored off a scrum. Franada’s second conversion of the game gave the defending national champions a 24-17 lead. 

    They closed out the scoring in the 66th minute as Sarah Hoerig scored off a few nice passing plays off an X-Women scrum.  

    The second half was highly physical with big tackles as the AUS rivals gave it their all and the X-Women wore the Axewomen down to take the win. 

    Second-year flanker Sydney Smith (Middleton, NS) earned player of the game honours for the Axewomen. 

    Both teams now advance to the U SPORTS national championship as the AUS conference is guaranteed two berths in the eight-team event. It is scheduled for October 30 to November 3 in Ottawa. 

    SCORING SUMMARY: 

    ACA 17-0: 17 

    StFX 12-17: 29 

    1st HALF 

    ACA – Annie Kennedy try, 3rd minute 

    ACA – Emilie Merilainen try (Laura Pfleiderer convert), 11th minute 

    StFX – Sammy Nadeau try, 14th minute 

    StFX – Maddie Harriun try (Danielle Franada convert), 25th minute 

    ACA – Annie Kennedy try, 40th minute 

    2nd HALF 

    StFX – Danielle Franada try, 42nd minute 

    StFX – Sophie Parker try (Danielle Franada convert), 54th minute 

    StFX – Sarah Hoerig try, 66th minute 

    Players of the Game: 

    ACA – Sydney Smith (Middleton, NS) 

    StFX – Katie Pentz (Trenton, NS)

    Krista McKenna is the Sports Information Officer for StFX University

  • Rugby Axewomen advance to Finals after 52-20 win over UPEI

    Rugby Axewomen advance to Finals after 52-20 win over UPEI

    WOLFVILLE, N.S. – The U SPORTS No. 8 ranked Axewomen will advance to the AUS finals against defending U SPORTS and AUS champions StFX next Saturday night after topping the visiting UPEI Panthers in semi-final play, 52-20.

    The opening 20 minutes were tight as the Axewomen worked hard in defending a feisty Panther team who led 10-7 in the opening 10 minutes of the match.

    The Axewomen struck first when Emilie Merilainen scored the first of three tries against the Panthers. UPEI followed quickly with a converted try by Mia Fradsham to take their first and only lead of the game.

    Merilainen scored again in the 13th minute to give the Axewomen a 12-7 lead on a converted try by Annie Kennedy.

    Acadia would score 14 additional points before the Panthers would reply. Kennedy converted Laura Pfleiderer and Monique Coffey tries before UPEI responded with a penalty kick for three points that would end the half.

    The Axewomen opened the second half with tries by Emma Pfleiderer and Monique Coffey’s second try of the night.

    Behind 40-10, UPEI’s Dayna Pitter scored an unconverted try in the 66th minute to close the gap to 40-15.

    Acadia’s Halie Naas and Emilie Merilainen each added a try in the 66 and 79 minute that was split by UPEI’s Sarah MacLeod at the 69th minute.

    In the end, the 52-20 lead was insurmountable by the Panthers, yet Acadia’s head coach credits UPEI for the great effort and determination the team showed.

    “We had some girls who didn’t play last week and were resting up their bodies, so I suspected we’d look a little disjointed to start the game but you have to give all the credit to UPEI who are such a proud team who have played this game 10 years in a row and yet to beat us. They are driven, well-coached, they have a lot of heart so it just isn’t that we didn’t play well at the start, it’s how well they played,” noted Acadia head coach Matt Durant when asked about the slow start.

    “I think we as a coaching staff will always pick out stuff we can work on. We gave up more points tonight to UPEI than I expected we would, but I was really impressed with our defense. We played really well inside our own 22. We buckled down defensively, played some really strong goal-line defense, so I am not really discouraged by our defensive play, but I was a bit surprised they were able to get 20 points on us based on how we played defensively, but again, credit to UPEI,” said Durant.

    The Axewomen will now advance to finals against StFX next Saturday afternoon in Antigonish.

    Eric Cederberg is the Director of Communications for Acadia Athletics

  • Axemen clinch first place and hosts of the AUS Loney Bowl Championship

    Axemen clinch first place and hosts of the AUS Loney Bowl Championship

    WOLFVILLE, N.S. – The U SPORTS No. 8 Acadia Axemen improved to 6-0 and clinched first place in the AUS standings with a 44-25 win over the visiting StFX X-Men.

    Undefeated, the Axemen got a little help from the Bishop’s Gaiters who handed Saint Mary’s their third loss of the regular season in tonight’s other AUS matchup. The Huskies fall out of contention for first place in the AUS standings and drop to 3-3.

    Two Ben George field goals and a touchdown by X-Man Chase Bowden gave StFX their only lead of the game at 7-6. Glodin Mulali‘s Acadia record-breaking kickoff return of 111 yards launched the Axemen into 13-7 lead and they never looked back.

    An exchange of two Ben George rouges and a 17-yard field goal by StFX’s Keiran Burnham gave the Axemen a 15-10 edge going to halftime but Mulali struck again.With only seconds remaining on the clock, Mulali turned a shallow pass into a 74-yard reception to give the Axemen a commanding 22-10 at the half.

    Burnham opened the second half with a 56-yard punt that added a single point rouge to the scoreboard. Senior receiver Cordell Hastings hauled in a 22-yard touchdown pass that concluded a seven play, 90- yard drive to give Acadia a 29-11 lead. George would add his third rouge of the night before Jacob Fenchak scored on a 26 yard pass completion in the final quarter for the Axemen’s fourth major of the game.

    X-Men finally responded on an Isaac Fagnan 32-yard pass reception to close the gap to 37-18.

    Acadia solidified the win with a 16-yard pass reception by Cam Morley for the Axemen’s last touchdown of the night and a 44-18 lead.

    In the dying minutes of the final frame, Michael Forsey posted the final scoring play of the game on a 16-yard pass reception.

    Mulali led Acadia with 139 yards on six receptions. Axeman Dale Wright rushed for 83 yards on 10 carries and Cordell Hastings added 84 yards in receiving to Acadia’s 363 net yards passing.

    X-Man Isaac Fagnan led all receivers with 148 yards on 6 receptions.

    StFX pivot Quinn Stewart was 21 for 34 pass attempts for 346 yards, while Acadia’s Hunter Guenard recorded 18 completions of 33 attempts for 313 yards.

    Acadia accumulated 510 yards on the ground and in the air compared to StFX’s  435.

    The defending AUS champion StFX drop to 1-6 and will wrap u their season at Saint Mary’s on October 26, while the Axemen host Saint Mary’s next Saturday afternoon. Acadia concludes the regular season on the road at Mount Allison on October 26.

    The Axemen will now await the winner of the AUS Semi-final game scheduled for November 2. Acadia will host the AUS Loney Bowl Championship game for the second time in the last three seasons.

    Eric Cederberg is the Director of Communications for Acadia Athletics

  • Axemen split opening weekend with 6-4 win over UNB

    Axemen split opening weekend with 6-4 win over UNB

    WOLFVILLE N.S. – The Acadia Axemen closed out the opening weekend of AUS regular season play with a statement 6-4 win against the reigning U SPORTS Champions, the UNB Reds.

    Saturday night’s match-up between the UNB Reds and the Acadia Axemen began with one of the quieter periods of hockey this year at the Andrew H. McCain Arena. Neither team found the back of the net as both Acadia goalie Logan Flodell and UNB goalie Samuel Harvey were rock solid between the pipes, making 11 saves each.

    UNB opened the scoring, just under five minutes into the second frame. Tristan Pomerleau circled from the Acadia blueline and darted down the left-wing boards, before driving the net and finishing off his own rebound through the five-hole of goalie Logan Flodell. The goal was assisted by Stephen Anderson and Patrick Watling.

    Axemen Captain Liam Maskaant responded with his first goal of the season after a 3 on 2 rush concluded with Maskaant’s wrister being deflected into the top corner over the UNB goaltender’s glove. Eric Henderson and Jordy Stallard grabbed assists on the play.

    Just 19 seconds later, forward Jack Flaman gave Acadia the lead beating Samuel Harvey with a wicked wrist shot following a play made by teammate Ross MacDougall. The goal was Flaman’s first of the regular season.

    It took only a minute and ten seconds later for the Axemen to add to their lead when Mason McCarty buried his first in an Axemen sweater after deflecting Garrett McFadden‘s point shot into the UNB goal. Jordy Stallard notched his second assist of the night on the goal.

    The Varsity Reds were quick to close the gap in scoring as Mark Rassell grabbed his first of the season tipping in teammate Matt Murphy’s point shot. The powerplay goal came 12:45 into the frame and was also assisted by Matt Boucher.

    UNB would get the last laugh of the period as Alexandre Goulet tied up the game after tapping in a cross-crease feed from Patrick Watling with only 0.8 seconds remaining in the second.

    The teams headed to their respective locker rooms for the intermission tied up at 3.

    UNB’s Tyler Boland opened up the scoring at 4:23 of the third, finding a loose rebound and tucking it past Logan Flodell after he made the initial save on Stephen Anderson’s shot. Joe Gatenby got the second assist on the goal.

    Only 2 minutes later Axemen defenceman Garrett McFadden tied up the game on the powerplay with a rocket slapshot from the left point that traveled through a sea of bodies before beating Harvey to the low glove. The Subway First Star of the Game, Jordy Stallard, added his third assist of the night and Morgan Nauss grabbed his second in as many games.

    With 12:50 having passed in the final frame, the Subway Third Star of the Game, Mason McCarty, grabbed his second goal of the night and gave the Axemen the lead with a seeing eye shot through a screen eventually beating Harvey to the high glove. The powerplay goal was assisted by Cristiano Digiacinto.

    Just over a minute later Jordy Stallard added a goal to his three assists with a quick shot in front of goal after a great breakaway pass from Ryan Foss. 

    The game would end with the Axemen taking it by a score of 6-4.

    Acadia hopes to ride this wave of confidence into next Friday when they play Dalhousie in Halifax.

    The Reds will be looking to bounce back when they play their next regular season game October 11th against Moncton.

    Provided by Griffin Herrington, Acadia Athletics Communications

  • Axeman Improve to 4-0 as they Head into the Second Half of the Season

    Axeman Improve to 4-0 as they Head into the Second Half of the Season

    Wolfville, NS – On Saturday afternoon the Axeman beat the Mount Allison Mounties 22 to 15 as they improved to 4 and 0. The Axeman have looked really good this season as second year starter Hunter Guenard has shown that he is ready to lead the team. Guenard leads the AUS in yards per game, total yards, and completions. The Axeman also have the top running back in the league as Dale Wright has dominated defenses posting a yards per game total of 113, along with 5 touchdowns. Not to mention that Acadia’s wide receiving core has shined as Glodin Mulali leads the league in receiving, with Cordell Hastings and Matthew Gledhill both in the top 10 in the AUS. 

    Their defense has been impressive also as linebacker Bailey Feltmate leads the league in total tackles. As a defensive unit, the team is first in points allowed with just under 20 per game. The team was ranked 5th in the National U Sports Football Rankings last week, and they have the potential to be ranked even higher going forward. 

    There were some question marks coming into the season after having a less than successful 2018 campaign, but the Axeman have shown they are ready to win this season. Even with the departures of key players like Brandon Jennings, Matthew Nettle, Garvin Cius, and others, the team has managed to assemble a team capable of winning an AUS Loney Bowl Championship. 

    One of the most impressive parts of the team this year has to be the play of the offensive line. The Axeman lost veteran players Nathan Heide, Drew Seldon, and Jacob Creedon, but have been able to put together a five-man unit capable of making holes for Dale Wright, while also giving time to Guenard in the pocket. Veteran lineman Shelton Williams has looked impressive as he has dominated the line of scrimmage all year long. 

    The Axeman have 4 games left this season and will look to continue their winning ways as they travel to Lennoxville, Quebec to take on the Bishops Gaiters who are 2-2 this season. The Axeman dominated the Gaiters in their last game as they won convincingly. 

    If the Axeman can remain healthy, and quarterback Hunter Guenard can continue slinging the ball like he has, the Axeman could find themselves with some hardware this season. Much of the success the team has had to date has to be attributed to the efficiency they have had in the red zone as the Axeman rank first at an 81% conversion rate; and when they do find the red zone, 69% of the time they score a touchdown. With a red zone conversion rate like that, and the limited turnovers the team has had, the Axeman have found a formula for winning this season. 

    A winning formula they hope to continue as they enter the second half of the season, and prepare themselves for a push to the Loney Bowl, and maybe even, a journey to the Vanier Cup. 

    Sebastian Farkas is a Fourth Year Politics Student and Sports and Wellness Editor of the Athenaeum.

  • Axewomen head to finals after 55-0 win over UPEI

    Axewomen head to finals after 55-0 win over UPEI

    WOLFVILLE, N.S. – For the eighth year in a row, the Axewomen Rugby team will be taking on StFX in the AUS Championship game after Acadia’s 55-0 win over the visiting UPEI Panthers in AUS semi-final action.

    Subway Player of the Game Annie Kennedy posted three tries and five conversions in the Axewomen’s third win of the season against the Panthers.

    The Axewomen scored three minutes into the opening half when Emilie Merilainen had an easy off to Annie Kennedy who had an easy thirty-yard sprint to the try line. Kennedy converted her first of three tries.

    Maddie MacKenzie’s hard work paid off as she was taken down inside the 22-yard line and tossed it off to Nicole Pahl for Acadia’s second try in the opening 12 minutes.

    The Axewomen would only score one more try in the opening half. Bailey Dembicki’s try was converted by Kennedy for a 19-0 halftime lead over the Panthers.

    Former Panther Alysha Corrigan picked up a loose ball 15 yards outside of the Panther try line and used her speed and strength to open the second half.

    Annie Kennedy scored her second try of the night off of a great outside pass from Gillian Bergsma to push the Axewomen lead to 29-0 at the 45-minute mark of the game.

    Ten minutes later the lead was extended to 36- on a Maddie MacKenzie try that was converted by Kennedy.

    Emilie Merilainen extended the lead to 43-0 with just over 20 minutes remaining in the match on a run that demonstrated her speed in open space. Kennedy converted the try.

    Alysha Corrigan scored her second try of the night on a long 50+ yard run that used several straight arms to elude the Panther tacklers.

    With a 48-0 lead, Axewoman Annie Kennedy added her third try of the evening and converted her fifth try of the game to give Acadia a 55-0 win over UPEI.

    Kennedy, who was named the Subway Player of the Game, noted that the team plays one game at a time.

    “We just take it game by game with the hope of winning the AUS next weekend. We will worry about AUS before we worry about Nationals,” said Kennedy.

    Kennedy was concerned about the Axewomen’s lull in the first half.

    “We definitely have some things to work on. It was our performance 100%. We didn’t have the ball the first half so that’s something we definitely have to work on. A little more possession. That will come. We are pretty confident going into the AUS championship,” noted Kennedy.

    The Axewomen face StFX on Friday at 6:00 p.m. in Antigonish. Watch the Championship live on AUStv.ca.

    Eric Cederberg is the Director of Communications for Acadia Athletics

  • Acadia Hosts AUS Volleyball Championship

    Acadia Hosts AUS Volleyball Championship

    This weekend, (Feb 26-28), we are fortunate enough to be hosting another AUS championship. This Subway sponsored spike-fest will host six Varsity Women’s Volleyball teams from around the Atlantic provinces. UNB, Moncton, Saint Mary’s, Memorial, Dalhousie, and of course, Acadia. This is also very convenient because there are only six teams in the league, who needs a regular season anyways? Acadia is entering the weekend as the third seed team. An unfortunate standing due to the basis of the playoff structure. Six plays third, fourth plays fifth, winners move on to challenge the top two seeds who got a bye for the first round. Although this does give opportunity to for the team to get a warm up game in against last place, UNB before they start gunning for the finals.

    The weekend kicks off on Friday with the first quarter-final taking place at 3pm. This is showdown between Moncton and St. Mary’s. Don’t skip class for it. The next game, and Acadia’s first, begins that evening at 7pm. A perfect opportunity to throw some Acadia gear on, head down to the gym, and realize you have absolutely no idea how volleyball works. I’ve brainstormed some questions in which first-time volleyball watchers tend to ask themselves. Why is one girl wearing another colour? Why do they feel the need to cheer after every play? Did their father let them out of the house wearing those shorts? I do not have the answers yet, but I’m hoping this weekend will lead myself and the rest of you curious cats to some knowledge. Acadia seems to be the dominant force in this match up. Winning two of the three previous games they’ve played.

    Once Acadia brushes through the quarter-final round we’ll go jumping into the semis versus the well-rested Memorial Sea-Hawks. The Sea-Hawks, which I may mention is not an actual bird, just a poorly thought out nickname for an Osprey, are the number two seed coming out of this season. They have ten wins and seven losses throughout the school year. We have contacts in the airline industry who have ensured us that the Seahawks will all be individually seated next to crying children, while the pilots’ strike up as much turbulence as possible. I doubt this will have much influence on the result but hey, it’s not cheating if you win. This will be a tough match as Memorial have star-player Jill Snow slamming down volleyballs everywhere she goes. She boasts a whopping 209 kills, this season alone. Talk about a master key. She has the highest kills per set in the league and will need some tough defense to slow her down. This should be no problem, as Acadia has split wins with the Sea-Hawks thus far, and with an extra bit of home court advantage, it should happen again.

    If all goes well, and the Memorial Pigeons are beaten we will most-likely take on Dalhousie in the final. This is all so possible for this team, and it would be amazing for this Acadia team to make a run at the title this year. Another quarter-final loss would just puck for everyone. Suck*. So get out this weekend to show support, have your questions answered, and if nothing else, a good time.

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