Axewomen repeat as AUS champions with win over Sea-Hawks

HALIFAX, N.S. – The Acadia Axewomen are the 2019 AUS women's basketball champions for the second consecutive year following their 84-74 win over the Memorial Sea-Hawks in Sunday's championship game at Scotiabank Centre. 

Acadia knocked off the sixth-seeded Dalhousie Tigers and the no. 2-seed UPEI Panthers on their way to Sunday's final.  

The Axewomen, who split the season series with Memorial 2-2, topped the Sea-Hawks in their fifth meeting of the season to clinch their second straight AUS women's basketball banner. 

The Sea-Hawks jumped out to an early 12-6 lead in the first quarter before Acadia was able to tie it at 13 seven minutes into the game. 

Memorial was able to regain the lead early in the second quarter but that would be the last time they led as Acadia rattled off a 23-3 run in the last six minutes of the first half.  

The Axewomen, who would take a 17-point lead into the break, were led at half by AUS first team all-star McDonald, and AUS second team all-star and rookie of the year, Jayda Veinot, who would finish the half with 18 points and 16 points respectively. 

Acadia was relentless in the third quarter, starting things off in the second half with Veinot's third three of the game, pushing their lead to 20. 

Veinot, who was named Subway Player of the Game, would again strike from deep, this time plus the foul for a four-point play, which would put the Axewomen up by 25 in the final minutes of the third quarter. 

McDonald and Veinot would account for 48 of the Axewomen's 72 points, shooting a combined 18 of 32 (including 7 of 14 from deep) through the first 30 minutes, would take a 27-point lead into the final frame. 

The Sea-Hawks continued to battle throughout the fourth, led by Sydney Stewart's team-high 19 points, but they would never draw nearer than within 10 points down the stretch. 

Tournament all-stars for the weekend are UPEI's Jenna Mae Ellsworth, Memorial's Sydney Ezekiel and Sydney Stewart, and Acadia's Jayda Veinot and Haley McDonald. McDonald was named the Subway AUS Championship MVP, scoring a tournament-high 93 points over her three games. 

The Axewomen will move on as the sole AUS representative at next weekend's U SPORTS Final 8 Women's Basketball Championship in Toronto, being hosted by the Ryerson Rams.