REGULAR SEASON

Memorial 17-3 27-6 Doug Partridge        
  Cape Breton 15-5 21-8 Fabian McKenzie        
  Dalhousie 12-8 20-11 Carolyn Savoy        
  New Brunswick 11-9 15-13 Jeff Speedy        
  UPEI  8-12 12-19 Brian Chambers        
  Acadia  7-13  9-17 Angie McLeod        
  St. FX  6-14 13-19 Brent Baker        
  St. Mary’s  4-16  9-23 Jill Jeffrey        
                 

        Playoff non-qualifiers:

        St. Francis Xavier X-Women: Shannon Matheson, Leah Mochrie, Jaqueline Richardson, Emily MacPherson, Ashley Stephen, Maria Konchalski, Sheryl Chisholm, Victoria Anderson, Danielle Suchan, Tristan MacDonald, Kirsten Jones, Madison Ficaccio, Kelsey MacDonald, Lindsay Coombes, coach Brent Baker, assistant Stephanie MacNeil, assistant Darlene Benson, manager Kristen Landry, therapist Tara Sutherland, therapist Katrina Lambert, student therapist Shannon Chisholm, doctor David Cudmore

        St. Mary’s Huskies: Alise Brown, Kelsey Daley, Venessa Ryan, Jasmine Parent, Julia Finlay, Stephanie Wakeham, Barbara Capes, Jenna Clark, Binky Raymundo, Lisa Barrett, Alyssa Wolfe, Alishia Clayton, Kailey Ykema, Robyn Fleckenstein, coach Jill Jeffrey Healy

In the quarterfinals, third-seeded Dalhousie nipped sixth-seeded Acadia 69-67 in overtime as April Scott hit a driving layup with 3 seconds to play. Dalhousie won all four meetings with Acadia in the regular season, but in front of a boisterous full house of 1,100 banging blue Thundersticks, the Axettes pushed them to the limit. “We knew it was going to be hard,” said Dal forward Kate McNeil. “Acadia is a really tough team and they’ve gotten better as the season has gone on. And their crowd was amazing, it was so nice. Too bad they weren’t cheering for us, but a great crowd is a great crowd.” After a back-and-forth first half, the Tigers looked like they were taking control after holding Acadia to nine points in the third quarter and turning a two-point halftime deficit into a five-point lead. Brianna Orr hit a three-pointer and a layup to put Dalhousie ahead 52-42 with about five minutes to play. But the Axettes cut the gap back to 56-54 after Brianne Ozimok hit two free throws to cap a 9-0 run, and Marrla Evans swished a 20-foot jumper as time ex­pired to send the game to overtime tied at 59-59. Becky Mutch set up the tying hoop with a great hustle play, diving almost out of bounds to tip her own miss back to a teammate. The two teams traded baskets in overtime, and Acadia led 67-65 after Evans sank a three-pointer with 1:10 to go. But Laurie Girdwood scored inside for the Tigers and then Scott made her layup, and the Axettes couldn’t get a shot off until half a second too late on their final possession. Acadia coach Angie McLeod said she couldn’t have asked for any more from her team. “Credit to both teams, what a great game,” she said. “I’m heartbroken for my kids, but I’m so proud of them at the same time. We left it all out there.’’ Laurie Girdwood led Dalhousie with 20 on 8-15 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 6 boards. Kathleen McNeil added 14 on 4-10 from the floor, 6-8 from the line, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Brianna Orr added 13 on 5-16 from the floor, 3-10 from the arc and 3 boards. April Scott added 9 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 8 boards and 2 steals. Alex Legge notched 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 6 boards and 4 assists. Leah Girdwood added 4 on 2-6 from the floor. Rachael Harrison notched 2 on 1-7 from the floor and 4 boards, while Brittany Sullivan and Tamara Mijatovic were scoreless. The Tigers shot 27-70 (.386) from the floor, 3-14 (.214) from the arc and 12-18 from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 17 fouls, 24 turnovers, 7 steals and 3 blocks. Brianne Ozimok paced Acadia with 21 on 6-18 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 8-10 from the line, 9 boards, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Becky Mutch added 12 on 4-12 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 steals. Marrla Evans added 9 on 3-11 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Jennifer Bishop scored 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. Emma Duinker notched 8 on 2-9 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Samantha Nuttall added 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 5 assists. Marianne Thomson added 2 and Jaclyn Krucik 2, while Jessica Hutchinson was scoreless. The Axettes shot 21-65 (.323) from the floor, 8-18 (.444) from the arc and 17-22 (.773) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 19 fouls, 12 turnovers, 13 steals and 3 blocks. The Axettes (coached by Angie MacLeod) included Jaclyn Krucik, Leslie Steeves, Maddy Raymond, Amanda Harwood and Alesja MacDonald.

        In the other quarterfinal, fifth-seed UPEI defeated 4th-seeded New Brunswick 67-48. Leah Corby drained a three-pointer to open the contest, but it was all UPEI all the time from then on. The Panthers pushed their lead as high as seventeen points and lead by six or more points for all but the first three minutes and three seconds of the contest. The Panthers took away the strong free throw shooting from the Reds by playing error-free basketball and giving them only 18 tries from the foul line. Jenna Kaye was chosen player of the game for UPEI, while Amanda Sharpe earned the laurels for the Varsity Reds. UPEI led 25-14; 39-24 and 49-41 at the quarters. Jenna Kaye paced UPEI with 27 on 12-20 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 9 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Heidi Campbell added 11 on 5-5 from the floor and 7 boards. Kelly Debow notched 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 4 boards. Vanessa Jakola notched 7 on 3-5 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Susanne Canvin scored 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 11 boards and 3 steals. Lauren Wonfor scored 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 4 boards. Cassie Goodwin scored 1, while Katie Moore and Mary Catherine Connolly were scoreless. The Panthers shot 28-59 (.475) from the floor, 3-11 (.273) from the arc and 8-11 (.727) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 15 fouls, 14 turnovers, 10 steals and 1 block. Amanda Sharpe led New Brunswick with 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 4-7 from the line and 5 boards. Kathleen Singh added 8 on 1-5 from the floor, 6-7 from the line and 5 boards. Angela Aydon notched 8 on 4-8 from the floor and 8 boards. Jessica Steed scored 8 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Leah Corby scored 4 on 1-4 from the arc, 2 assists and 3 steals. Jillian Sipprell notched 4 on 2-3 from the floor. Katelyn Springer scored 2 and nabbed 4 boards. Jill Rowe scored 2, while Christine Ryan, Joanna Fox and Katelyn Foster were scoreless. The Varsity Reds shot 17-56 (.304) from the floor, 2-14 (.143) from the arc and 12-18 from the line, while garnering 28 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 13 fouls, 11 turnovers, 8 steals and 1 block. The Varsity Reds (coached by Jeff Speedy) also included Jessica Steed and Tashina Van Vlack.

        In the semis, the top-seeded Memorial Sea-hawks clocked the 5th-seeded UPEI Panthers 80-58. UPEI came out quickly and took an early four-point lead before Memorial took over. Erin Mullaley was chosen player of the game for the Sea-Hawks, while Susanne Canvin earned the laurels for the Panthers. The Sea-Hawks led 23-18, 51-34 and 74-45 at the quarters. Paula Barker paced Memorial with 13 on 5-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals. Katherine Quackenbush notched 13 on 3-6 from the floor, 7-9 from the line, 4 boards and 4 steals. Maegan Seaward notched 12 on 5-7 from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 3 boards. Victoria Thistle scored 12 on 6-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Erin Mullaley notched 12 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Meghan Dalton scored 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 5 boards. Leslie Stewart scored 6 on 4-4 from the line. Sarah Sturge notched 2 and Kelly Himmelman 1, while dishing 4 assists. Robyn O’Reilly, Mellissa Prunty and Kayla King were scoreless. The Sea-Hawks shot 28-53 (.528) from the floor, 3-10 from the arc and 21-29 (.724) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 18 fouls, 15 assists, 11 turnovers and 10 steals. Susanne Canvin paced UPEI with 17 on 7-15 from the floor, 3-5 from the line, 14 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Lauren Wonfor added 13 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Jenna Kaye notched 7 on 1-4 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 3 boards and 5 assists. Katie Moore scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Mary Connolly notched 5 on 1-4 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Heidi Campbell scored 3 on 1-6 from the floor, 5 boards and 2 assists. Kelly Debow scored 4, Cassie Goodwin 2 and Vanessa Jakola 2, while Erica VanDriel was scoreless. The Panthers shot 21-66 (.318) from the floor, 2-9 (.222) from the arc and 14-21 from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 22 fouls, 13 assists, 15 turnovers, 2 blocks and 5 steals.

        In the other semi, the Cape Breton Capers dumped the Dalhousie Tigers 75-60. Natasha Eadie was chosen player of the game for the Capers, while Kate McNeil earned the laurels for the Tigers. The Capers simply sore down the Tigers. “I think getting the bye was good for us,” said Eadie. “We knew they couldn’t keep running 40 minutes with us. They were going to tire out eventually, and they did.” Cape Breton held a 36-30 lead at the break after a choppy, physical first half. The teams combined for 25 fouls and 26 free-throws in the first 20 minutes of action, with the Tigers making more fouls (15) than field goals (12). Cape Breton extended the lead as the foul troubles mounted for Dalhousie in the third quarter, with post players Kate McNeil and Laurie Girdwood each going to the bench with four. Cape Breton took a 54-44 lead into the fourth quarter and Eadie made a couple of big plays to put the game out of reach. On back-to-back possessions, she burned the shot clock down to the last second before hitting back-breaking shots at the buzzer: a three-pointer and a running floater that put Cape Breton up 66-53 with five minutes left. Caitlin Ulrich followed with a spin move in the post to stretch the Cape Breton lead to 68-53 and effectively kill any hopes of a Tigers comeback. “We told the girls it was about tempo control and that the game would be decided in the last 10 minutes,” said Capers coach Fabian McKenzie. “We just had to wear them down, and that’s what I think we did.” Dalhousie coach Carolyn Savoy said that “foul trouble did hurt us because we had to have so many different lineups on the court, but full marks to Cape Breton, they hit some tough shots and they grabbed the boards. They certainly came with a hard effort.” Kelsey Hodgson paced the Capers with 21 on 8-22 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Natasha Eadie scored 19 on 6-11 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 5 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Kari Everett notched 12 on 5-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 2 blocks. Tamara Alleyne scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor and 4 steals. Caitlin Ulrich added 6 on 1-4 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Karmen Brown scored 5 on 2-6 from the floor and 7 boards. Nicole Workes scored 4 on 2-3 from the floor. Katherine Kanaski scored 2 on 1-5 from the floor and 4 boards, while Julie Frappier and Stephanie Toxopeus were scoreless. The Capers shot 27-64 (.422) from the floor, 5-10 from the arc and 16-19 (.842) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 18 fouls, 13 assists, 12 turnovers, 2 blocks and 12 steals. Alex Legge paced Dalhousie with 14 on 4-8 from the floor, 6-9 from the line and 4 boards. Kathleen McNeil added 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 4-5 from the line, 9 boards and 2 steals. Leah Girdwood scored 8 on 4-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Brianna Orr scored 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Laurie Girdwood scored 6 on 3-10 from the floor and 5 boards. April Scott scored 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 5 boards and 7 assists. Rachael Harrison notched 4 on 2-3 from the floor. Tamara Mijatovic scored 4 on 2-2 from the line. Brittany Sullivan added 3, while Brooke Sullivan was scoreless. The Tigers shot 22-54 (.407) from the floor, 2-10 from the arc and 14-21 from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 24 fouls, 14 assists, 20 turnovers and 6 steals.

        In the final, the Memorial Sea-Hawks edged the Cape Breton Capers 64-61 as Leslie Stewart scored 12 in the fourth quarter while Katherine Quackenbush netted the go-ahead basket with 45.3 seconds left. The Sea-Hawks, who finished first in the regular season at 17-3, trailed by seven points early in the fourth quarter but brought themselves back with a full-court press that forced Cape Breton turnovers. Quackenbush, the league and playoff MVP, said the Sea-Hawks found an extra gear with their season on the line. “In the fourth quarter we were down and (coach) Doug (Partridge) said, ‘This is it, you’ve got to leave it on the floor,’” said Quackenbush, a Halifax native. “We’ve got such a deep team and we’re in such great shape that we were able to turn it up that extra notch when we needed to.” Cape Breton used a 15-2 run over the third and fourth quarters to go ahead 49-42, their biggest lead in a game that was tied after the first quarter and at half. But 13 second-half turnovers were the difference for the Capers, who at one point coughed up the ball on four straight possessions as Memorial closed the gap. Cape Breton coach Fabian McKenzie said his team didn’t show as much poise as the veteran Sea-Hawks, who have eight fourth- and fifth-year players on their roster. Cape Breton has three. “They played with more composure than we did,” McKenzie said. “That’s how you learn, you play in those pressure-type games. We just didn’t get it done when we needed to. Our kids played with a lot of heart, and they just need to learn how to win at this level.” Stewart, a fourth-year guard from Halifax, came up big for Memorial with a string of clutch baskets in the last five minutes. With the Sea-Hawks down 57-55, she scored back-to-back baskets to give them a 59-57 lead. Kanaski scored in the post to tie it at 59-59, but Quackenbush collected an offensive rebound and sent the Sea-Hawks ahead for good with 45.3 seconds left. Memorial hit three free-throws in the final 22 seconds and the Capers couldn’t get a three-pointer off on their final possession. It’s a good feeling for Stewart, who sat out last season while working in a co-op program. “That’s why I came back. I knew we were a national contending team, and I think we showed it today,” she said. Mackenzie said “we’ve had better days. Overall, our effort was outstanding. But we didn’t get the right things done at the right time and lost the game.” Paula Barker made two three-point shots on Memorial’s first two possessions. The Sea-Hawks were up 13-5 at one point in the first quarter, but the Capers fought back hard with players such as veteran Katherine Kanaski chipping in one and two-pointers. The first quarter ended 20-20 and the game was knotted up 34-34 at the end of the half. The Cape Bretoners took control in the third with a 13-2 run and were up five points at the end of the quarter, 47-42. But Memorial regrouped in the final quarter with a 6-0 run to lead 59-57 with 2:17 left in the contest and never looked back. “Katherine Kanaski probably played one of the best games she played in her uniform,” said McKenzie. “Memorial really keyed on taking away people like Kelsey Hodgson and trying to work Natasha Eadie a little bit. Katherine just managed to put herself in the right place and worked very hard on the glass and in the paint.” McKenzie said there was no shame in the young Capers squad losing the AUS championship by three points. “Overall, our effort was outstanding. They followed the game plan to the letter. At the start of the year, not a lot of people picked us to be in there because we lost a lot of talent, but the group put in good work and showed great heart and made it to the final. It’s a young team that we have. They’re the great future for us. We get back there and try again next year.” Partridge said “Leslie really stepped up in that last couple of minutes and made a lot of big plays for us. Today, she was really outstanding.” A humble Stewart was named player of the game for her efforts. “I was just trying to finish my layups,” she said. “We did well in the fourth quarter because our main focus was on tough defence. Our whole team played well, I just happened to be on the floor.” Leslie Stewart paced Memorial with 19 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 assists. Victoria Thistle notched 10 on 4-15 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 3 assists. Paula Barker scored 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 3 boards. Katherine Quackenbush scored 9 on 4-15 from the floor, 5 boards and 3 assists. Meghan Dalton notched 6 on 3-4 from the floor and 4 boards. Maegan Seaward scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 assists. Kelly Himmelman notched 4 on 1-4 from the floor, while Erin Mullaley and Mellissa Prunty were scoreless. The Sea-Hawks hit 25-62 (.403) from the floor, 4-12 from the arc and 10-13 (.769) from the arc, while garnering 27 boards, including 13 offensive glass, 14 assists, 14 fouls, 9 turnovers, 7 steals and 1 block. Katherine Kanaski paced the Capers with 21 on 10-16 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Kari Everett scored 18 on 9-12 from the floor and 4 boards. Kelsey Hodgson notched 12 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Natasha Eadie scored 6 on 3-12 from the floor, 7 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Karmen Brown scored 4 on 1-1 from the floor, while Nicole Works, Caitlyn Ulrich and Tamara Alleyne were scoreless, although Alleyne dished 3 assists and nabbed 3 boards. Cape Breton shot 27-55 (.491) from the floor, 2-6 from the arc and 5-6 (.833) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 17 fouls, 19 turnovers, 4 steals and 1 block.

        After the season, Brent Baker leaves the St. FX women’s program to become head coach of the University of New Brunswick men’s program.

The co-bronze medalist Prince Edward Island Panthers: Susanne Canvin; Lauren Wonfor; Jenna Kaye; Katie Moore; Mary Connolly; Heidi Campbell; Kelly Debow; Cassie Goodwin; Vanessa Jakola; Erica VanDriel; Melissa-Anne Campbell; Ketty Cedat; Madeleine Magni; Mary Anne Godkin; coach Brian Chambers

The co-bronze medalist Dalhousie Tigers: Alex Legge; Kathleen McNeil; Leah Girdwood; Brianna Orr; Laurie Girdwood; April Scott; Rachael Harrison; Tamara Mijatovic; Brittany Sullivan; Brooke Sullivan; Jessica Puddister; Meghan Donahue; coach Carolyn Savoy; assistant Carly Clarke

        The runner-up Cape Breton Capers: Katherine Kanaski; Kari Everett; Kelsey Hodgson; Natasha Eadie; Karmen Brown; Nicole Works; Caitlyn Ulrich; Tamara Alleyne; Nicole Works; Julie Frappier; Stephanie Toxopeus; Jahlica Kirnon; Luciann Lahey; coach Fabian McKenzie; assistant Debralee Ruiz

        The champion Memorial Sea-Hawks: Paula Barker; Meghan Dalton; Kelly Himmelman; Kayla King; Erin Mullaley; Robyn O’Rielly; Raya Parsons; Mellissa Prunty; Katherine Quackenbush; Maegan Seaward; Leslie Stewart; Sarah Sturge; Victoria Thistle; Kayla King; coach Doug Partridge; assistant George Mammen