Capers stall Axewomen comeback and hold on to 92-85 win

WOLFVILLE, N.S. - The Acadia Axewomen drop to 13-4 and second place in the AUS after a 92-85 loss to Cape Breton snapped a seven-game winning streak that dated back to a January 13 win over host Memorial.

Down by as much as 12 points after six minutes of play, the Axewomen exploded on an 11 point run late in the first quarter to bring themselves back to a 25-22 deficit against the Capers.

Soon after the start of the second, the Axewomen took their first share of the lead. They would fight to keep the lead all quarter but ended up losing it before halftime.

The largest lead that Acadia would post in the game came at 8:11 of the second quarter on an Alyson Fulton three-point basket.

The Capers held a 50-47 lead after two quarters of play.

Jayda Veinot of the Axewomen lead all players at halftime with 22 points on 9 of 16 shooting from the field, and three of six from three.

Caper Hannah Brown shot 10 times from the free throw line in the first half and made 8 of those shots. She tallied 19 points in the first half to lead her team.

The Capers took control early in the second half, posting a 31-18 third quarter score and building to an 81-65 lead.

After 30 minutes, the Capers were shooting a strong 10 of 20 from three, while the Axewomen only made 5 of their 14 threes.

Veinot continued to lead all players with 30 points in 30 minutes on 13 of 24 shooting from the field.

Gradually throughout the fourth quarter, the Axewomen worked their way back into the game and made things difficult for the Capers in the closing minutes.  

Unable to complete their comeback, the Axewomen lost the game 92-85.

Mackenzee Ryan of the Capers finished with a team-high 24 points and added 4 rebounds and three assists to help her team take their 15th win of the season. Ryan was named her team's Subway Player of the Game.

Veinot finished with a record-tying 41 points, along with 8 rebounds, and 1 assist. The 41 point game ties Paloma Anderson's record set on January 20, 2016 vs. StFX. Haley McDonald added 14 points and teammate Ellen Hatt posted 10.

The Capers made 32 of 41 free throws compared to Acadia's 14 of 22.   

The game, worth four points in the standings, launch's the Capers to first place overall in the AUS standings. The Axewomen visit the third place UPEI on Friday for a 2-game series.

The Capers host the StFX X-Women on Wednesday evening.