The StFX X-Women basketball team had a great weekend, beating the UNB Varsity Reds 82-52 on Friday night and again by a 71-65 score Saturday afternoon. Both games were played in Fredericton.
Kirsten Jones and Vanessa Pickard played well for the visiting X-Women on Friday night. Jones had 22 points and 10 rebounds and was named player of the game, while Pickard scored 16 and had 7 assists to pace the blue and white to victory. Kolbi Roper contributed nine points and six rebounds and Donisha Young added eight points for StFX.
Claire Colborne continued her strong season for the Varsity Reds, cashing in with 19 points in a losing effort. Jordanne Holstein scored 10 and Megan Corby had eight points and eight rebounds for UNB.
The X-Women shot 40.8% from field goal range, 45.5% from three point range and 63% from the free throw line. The Varsity Reds were 24.6% from field goal range, 12.5% in three point shooting and 89% from the free throw line.
The score was 37-27 at half time for the X-Women, with still a chance for the Varsity Reds to stage a comeback. It wasn’t until the second half that the blue and white broke the game open, outscoring the Varsity Reds 45-23 in the last two quarters to seal the victory and snapping a StFX two-game losing skid.
Saturday’s game was much closer as the X-Women won 71-65. Vanessa Pickard once again showed why she was a top-end recruit for the X-Women in the off-season, contributing 17 points, five rebounds and three assists in the win as she was named player of the game. Three other X-Women hit the double scoring digits as Donisha Young scored 12 points and had four rebounds, and Kirsten Jones and Kolbi Roper each scored 10 points apiece. Jones also contributed 11 rebounds, 10 of them off he defensive board for the X-Women.
Emma Russell had a game high 19 points for the Varsity Reds and added eight rebounds as they dropped two straight to the X-Women. Claire Colborne scored 12 points and Samantha Kaminsky added 12 points and six rebounds for UNB.
The X-Women shot 36% from field goal range, 28% from the three point line and 64% from the free throw line, while the V-Reds were 35% from field goal range, 35% from three point range and 87% from the free throw line.
The two teams went back and forth all game, as UNB outscored the blue and white in the first and third quarters, only for StFX to outscore UNB in the second and fourth quarters. The score was 31-27 for the X-Women at halftime. StFX sealed the victory in fourth quarter outscoring the Varsity Reds 22-14.
The 7-7 X-Women currently sit in sixth place in the AUS conference with 14 points, as their next action includes two big four point games on home court. Saturday evening, February 11th they will host the first place Acadia Axewomen (11-1), followed by the eighth place UPEI Panthers (2-13) on Sunday afternoon, February 12th. Game times are 6:00 pm on Saturday and 2:00 pm on Sunday at the StFX Oland Centre.