In the opening weekend of the AUS women's soccer regular season, the Cape Breton Capers, Acadia Axewomen and StFX X-Women all earned six points apiece with two wins.
The defending AUS champion Cape Breton Capers opened the regular season with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the visiting UNB Reds Saturday afternoon as the Reds' comeback fell short. Grace Hannaford, the Player of the Game for the Capers, found the back of the net twice for the home team, also scoring the game-winning goal. Alliyah Rowe added a tally in the win, while Helen Langrehr and Sophia Maillet recorded tallies for UNB in the loss.
The Cape Breton Capers scored a convincing 7-1 victory over the Université de Moncton Aigles Bleues Sunday afternoon. Alliyah Rowe and Grace Hannaford both earned hattricks in the win, with Rowe earning Player of the Game honours. Makenna Bowser added another tally for the Capers, while Moncton's Madeleine Belliveau scored the lone goal in the loss.
The Axewomen had five separate players find the back of the goal in Friday night's home opener as they picked up a 5-1 victory over the visiting Saint Mary's Huskies. Georgia Hamnett, Abby Girard, Abbey Aucoin, Grace Longley and Alli Kelly all recorded tallies, with Saint Mary's lone goal coming from Allie Martin. Milena Ramirez made seven saves for Acadia in the win.
Acadia then went on to blank the UPEI Panthers 7-0 Sunday afternoon in Charlottetown, scoring six goals in 25 minutes. Sydney Kennedy and Lauren Clarke each scored two goals with an assist, while Abbey Aucoin, Grace Somers and Grace Longley also chipped in with tallies.
The StFX X-Women began their 2023 regular season campaign with a decisive 8-0 victory over the visiting Aigles Bleues on Saturday afternoon. Amanda Smith earned Player of the Game honours for StFX with her two-tally effort, while teammate Lauren Reid also added two goals on the day. Other StFX tallies came from Ava Elgood, Brynn Jurus, Abby Steen and Hannah Yantha. Jordyn Pratt made two saves in net for the shutout.
The X-Women then went on to edge the UNB Reds in a hard-fought 2-1 victory Sunday afternoon. A pair of second-half goals by the X-Women earned them the come-from-behind victory. In the 73rd minute, freshman midfielder Cheyenne Bower curled home a corner kick to secure the victory for StFX. Amanda Smith also found the back of the net in the win, with UNB's lone goal coming from Heidi Lauwerijssen.
The Memorial Sea-Hawks hosted the Dalhousie Tigers in St. John's this weekend, where they split the games for both teams to pick up three points. In Friday's season opener, Memorial topped Dalhousie 1-0. In the 50th minute, Sea-Hawks defender Kendra Schram crossed the ball, bouncing it off the crossbar, which then found its way to Sarah Jones who hit it past Tigers goalie Emily Toth. Memorial goaltender Shannon Galway made seven saves on the night to earn the shutout.
Sunday afternoon, the Tigers bounced back as a lone goal from Kaitlyn Clarke in the 56th minute would prove to be the game-winner. Clarke was named Player of the Game for her efforts, while Emily Toth made three saves in net for the shutout victory.
The UPEI Panthers split their games this weekend, doing something they haven't done since 2012 - win on opening day. UPEI earned a hard-fought 1-0 win over the Mount Allison Mounties behind a late goal from fourth-year midfielder Sarah Eden. Claudia Mazzei made five saves for the home team in the win.
Friday, September 1
Dalhousie 0 at Memorial 1
Saint Mary's 1 at Acadia 5
Mount Allison 0 at UPEI 1
Saturday, September 2
UNB 2 at Cape Breton 3
Moncton 0 at StFX 8
Sunday, September 3
Dalhousie 1 at Memorial 0
UNB 1 at StFX 2
Acadia 7 at UPEI 0
Moncton 1 at Cape Breton 7
Standings
1. Acadia Axewomen (2-0-0)
2. StFX X-Women (2-0-0)
3. Cape Breton Capers (2-0-0)
4. Dalhousie Tigers (1-1-0)
5. Memorial Sea-Hawks (1-1-0)
6. UPEI Panthers (1-1-0)
7. Mount Allison Mounties (0-1-0)
8. UNB Reds (0-2-0)
9. Saint Mary's Huskies (0-1-0)
10. Université de Moncton Aigles Bleues (0-2-0)