Antigonish, NS – The Cape Breton Capers defeated the STFX X-Women 81-63 Friday night on Coach K Court at the STFX Saputo Centre in the first AUS action of 2023.
The Capers got out to an early 10-0 lead in the opening two minutes of the game. Mackenzee Ryan (Glace Bay, NS) drained a pair of three pointers early on.
Katie Upham (North River, NS) was strong for the X-Women but her squad was trailing 27-19 after the first quarter of play.
The second quarter saw the Capers outscore the X-Women 18-13. Kiyara Letlow (Toronto, ON) and Hannha Smith (Bedford, NS) each scored nine points a piece in the opening half as the Capers held a 45-32 lead over the X-Women at halftime.
Aliyah Fraser (New Glasgow, NS) netted eight first half points for X.
The X-Women played a strong third quarter, staying even with the Capers at 21-21. After three the visiting Capers squad maintained their 13-point lead, 66-53.
Cape Breton did not let the X-Women close the gap as they wrapped up the 81-63 victory.
Ryan finished with a game-high 24 points, going 4-6 from three-point range and added four assists.
Letlow had a double-double night with 22 points and 11 rebounds and earned Subway player of the game honours. Smith had 11 points.
For the X-Women, Fraser scored 18 points, including five baskets from beyond the three-point arc, along with pulling in five rebounds.
Upham netted nine points and had seven assists for STFX. Krissy Cooper (Hamilton, ON) also contributed nine points.
With the win the Capers improve to 5-4 on the season, while the X-Women drop to 1-10.
The same two teams will be back in action in a rematch on Sunday afternoon, this time in Sydney as Cape Breton plays host in a 2:00 pm tip-off.
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Recap courtesy Krista McKenna, STFX Athletics