REGULAR SEASON
| EAST | BALDWIN | |||||||
| U.P.E.I. | 12-8 | 15-15 | Tracy Ellsworth | Dalhousie | 18-2 | 26-5 | Carolyn Savoy | |
| New Brunswick | 10-10 | 14-13 | Joyce Slipp | St FX | 18-2 | 25-6 | Doc Ryan | |
| Acadia | 7-13 | 10-20 | Laura Sanders | Memorial | 9-11 | 13-18 | Doug Partridge | |
| Cape Breton | 1-19 | 1-22 | Fabian McKenzie | St. Mary’s | 5-15 | 11-20 | Jill Jeffrey | |
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Cape Breton Capers: Janice Moseychuk, Deanna MacAulay, Kimberley Reynolds, Kristen Morrison, Amanda Fisher, Robyn Joe, Tara Travis, Melissa Manning, Shauna Poirier, Coleen Gillis, Barbara Duffenais, Michelle Ford, Jennifer Judd, coach Fabian McKenzie
St. Mary’s Huskies: Kristi-Jo Robinson, Julie Galipeau, Carolyn DeAmicis, Shira Hassanali, Joslin Cheverie, Katherina Hack, Cassandra Browne, Meredith Whitney, Melanie Thomas, Morag MacKinnon, Stephanie English, Elizabeth McNamara, Katie Gammon, Felicia Arbuah, Kari Scott, coach Jill Jeffrey, assistant Scott Munro, manager Trish Waugh
In the quarterfinals, St. FX defeated Acadia 60-44. The X-Women did not allow the Axettes a single field goal over the final 11 minutes of play. They led 34-30 at the half and surrendered just 14 points after the break. Donna Sanderson led St. FX with 11. The Axettes (coached by Laura Sanders) included Robyn DeYoung, Lindsay LaMorre, Heather McIntyre, Trisha Cormier, Erin MacAleenan, Pamela Dewling, Jody Harvey, Natalie Nakic, Marcia Conrad, Kristen Cavanagh-Ray, Erin McAleenan, Lori Anthony, Jamie Arnold, Aidan Inglish.
In the other quarterfinal, Memorial defeated New Brunswick 69-60 as Amy O’Reilly hit four from beyond the arc. Ann Murrin led Memorial with 21. The Sea-Hawks had expected to rely heavily on their post play but won it from the perimeter. Even Murrin got in on the act, hitting seven buckets from at least 12 feet out. “I guess I’ve been working on my outside shot ever since I started playing for Memorial, although the first couple of years, I never thought much of it. But it was working tonight. I felt good about it.” Reserve Kerri Highmore pilfered the ball and drilled a three pointer in the second half that seemed to take the steam out of New Brunswick. The Red Raiders had taken a 17-9 lead in the first half on the post play of Lynn Robertson. But when she picked up her second foul, UNB coach Joyce Slipp benched her and Memorial rallied to a 32-28 lead at the half. Robertson was nowhere as effective in the second half. Memorial stole the ball 16 times and forced 20 turnovers. The Varsity Reds (coached by Slipp, assisted by Dick Slipp) also included Charlene Woolaver, Virginia Dickison, Jill Leblanc, Renee Poirier, Lindsay Myers, Ali McGill, Holly Jones, Beverley Kennedy, Heidi McLellan, Christine Thorburn, Grace Piercey, Lindsay Estabrooks and Jill Hachey.
In the semis, 5th-seeded Memorial upset top-seeded Dalhousie 57-56 as Erica Coultas sank a three-pointer with 11 seconds to go on the clock. Dalhousie’s Janice King missed a shot at the buzzer. Coultas finished with 19 points. Ann Murrin added 10 points and 7 boards, while Sandi Ennis notched 10. Jillian MacDonald led the Tigers with 11 and grabbed 6 boards, while Angelia Crealock scored 10, grabbed 6 boards and had 5 steals. Julia Burden added 10. Memorial was up by 17 with 12 minutes remaining but still needed a trey by Coultas to claim the victory. “When I’m old and fat and no longer coaching, I’ll sit back in my chair and remember this game. Because this is one you’ll never forget,” said Memorial coach Doug Partridge. “And while I’m remembering, I’ll raise a beer to Erica Coultas.” Ironically, Coultas wasn’t Partridge’s first choice to take the shot. He’d set up a play for Amy O’Reilly, who’d led the AUAA with 44 treys and had hit four in the quarterfinals. Even Coultas thought O’Reilly should take it. “I really wanted Amy to take it, but I had been feeling pretty good about the way I was shooting all game and when Melissa (Skanes) gave me a great pass and I got the good look at the basket, I knew it was mine.” Coultas called her trey “the shot heard round the Rock. I was kind of waving it in but I didn’t know how much time was left on the clock. It’s the playoffs and you have to put it all on the line. Nobody wanted to play us this weekend because we’re hot and cold but so far we’ve been hot.” The Sea-Hawks had led 26-22 after the half as they kept Dalhousie’s Angelia Crealock, the league’s MVP off the scoreboard. They extended their lead to 44-27 as Sandi Ennis scored a bucket. But Dalhousie kept chipping away by forcing Memorial turnovers, primarily on in-bounds plays. “I don’t know how many would want to admit it, but I think we were getting panicky at the end,” said Coultas. “But we had built up a lot of confidence too and it wasn’t all gone.” Fifth-seeded Memorial had finished (9-11) during the regular season and were swept by Dalhousie. Crealock noted that “most teams, when they’re down by 17, would have just given up. We played in a tough game and we fought back. They just ended up with one more point than us.”
In the other semi, 2nd-seeded UPEI dumped the 3rd-seeded St. FX X-Women 55-51. Marie-Claude Couture followed a missed W-Women layup with a steal and a driving layup to give UPEI a 52-49 lead. Kate Ellis led the Panthers with 14 points, which Couture and Christine Larouche each scored 12. Krista Connolly added 10. Nikki Doucet and Donna Sanderson led St. FX with 9 points apiece. St. FX had beaten the Panthers by a combined differential of 48 points during their two regular season matches.
In the final, Memorial dumped UPEI 53-39. The Sea-Hawks, who finished (9-11) in regular season play, stunned the heavily favored Panthers by playing solid defence and dominating the boards, out-rebounding PEI 4-136. “Coach has been preaching to us about the importance of defence since I got to MUN four years ago,” said guard Erica Coultas. “This weekend just showed how right he was. We busted our butts on defence.” Coultas capped a decisive 13-0 second-half Sea-Hawks run with a trey.” Ann Murrin said the Sea-Hawks kept their focus. “We’ve been working on that all year, getting the lead and making sure there would be no comebacks, to bury the other team when their down.” Murrin paced Memorial with 18 points and 7 boards. Erika Stokes scored 5 and grabbed 11 boards. Coach Doug Partridge said his troops played with passion. “We put our hearts on the line and we said we’re either going to win this and be overjoyed or lose it and get our hearts broken. I just kept walking up and down the sideline thinking: ‘we’re going to win this thing. We’re going to win.” Coultas noted that “Amy is the shooter on this team. But I’m the type of player if I get hot, I’ll keep shooting. And Doug said: ‘you’re hitting them, so don’t stop shooting. And I wasn’t going to stop. I was going to go down shooting.” Memorial out-rebounded UPEI 46-31. PEI shot 16-60 from the floor and just 2-21 from the arc. Kate Ellis led UPEI with 12 points and 10 boards. “They did what they needed to do to win,” Ellis told the Charlottetown Guardian. “Their shots were falling and ours weren’t. We played our best but we weren’t getting the breaks today. That’s life.” Murrin said “this is just amazing … better than I ever imagined. We had a good feeling all weekend and didn’t let anything rattle us. This (today) is what matters, we got the banner,”
The co-bronze medalist Dalhousie Tigers: Jillian MacDonald; Angelia Crealock; Julia Burden; Janet Wells; Fausta Charlong; Janice King; Danielle Rumboldt; Logan Dunning; Rita Rieksts; Kerry Maier; Elizabeth McNamara; Kerri Maier; Sonya Young; coach Carolyn Savoy; assistant Jim Charters; assistant Joe Wells; manager John Badcock; trainer J.C. Gallant
The co-bronze medalist St. Francis Xavier X-Women: Nikki Doucet; Donna Sanderson; Kristin Moore; Erin Harris; Katie McDonaugh; Kim Reardon; Jacqueline Johnston; Mary Jamieson; Alyson Wister; Laura Whitehouse; Lisa Wood; Miriam Heaton; Joanna Shea; Deborah Burns; Lauren O’Brien; Laura Whitehouse; Katie Melanson; coach Doc Ryan; assistant Darren House; assistant Karen Case; manager Leslie Roper; trainer Jen Nicholson
The runner-up Prince Edward Island Panthers: Kate Ellis; Marie-Claude Couture; Christine Larouche; Krista Connolly; Cheryl Pittman; Jennifer Johnston; Kari McArdle; Melissa Harwood; Scottina Whitty; Carolyn Ellis; Kate Myron; Christie Mason; Roshanda Robinson; Jane Vessey; Lisa Woodrow; coach Tracy MacEachern-Ellsworth
The champion Memorial Sea-Hawks: Ann Murrin; Erica Stokes; Melissa Skanes; Erica Coultas; Amy O’Reilly; Joanne McNeil; Kerri Highmore; Sandi Ennis; Heather Dawe; Kendra Wheatley; Gwyn Pryse-Phillips; Cori Hanan; coach Doug Partridge; assistant Tami Pennell; assistant Peter Benoite; assistant Karen Cameron; therapist Penny Murphy