As universities head into the holiday break, several StFX teams have wrapped up competition for the 2011-12 season, including two teams who took home AUS championship titles – X-Women rugby and X-Men cross country.
The X-Women rugby team won their 14th consecutive Atlantic University Sport title with a convincing 60-0 shutout over Acadia at home at Oland Stadium on October 28th. StFX is the only team to be crowned conference champions since the inception of the AUS women’s rugby league. At the CIS national championship at Trent University in Peterborough, ON, the X-Women competed with the goal of defending their 2010 national title, but fell short in the gold medal game against a tough Guelph squad, losing 28-0. They had earlier tournament victories over Trent (76-3) and Lethbridge (20-5) en route to the final game, their fifth gold medal appearance in the past six years. The CIS silver medal was their third in team history. The X-Women were ranked No. 1 in the nation for the entire 2011 season.
The X-Men cross country team enjoyed a successful 2011 campaign, winning every AUS meet they entered this season, including the AUS championship meet in Fredericton on October 29th as hosted by UNB. Third year runner Connor McGuire was the individual AUS champion while freshman teammate Riley Johnston was second overall. The X-Men placed six runners in the top ten. The championship marked the fourth AUS title in X-Men history as they previously won in 2009, 2008 and 2006. At the CIS championship on November 12th at Laval the X-Men placed ninth overall amongst a field of 17 teams.
The X-Women cross country team ran a strong race at the AUS championship, placing second overall to Dalhousie. The top finisher for StFX was Natalie Kannenberg in fifth place as the X-Women placed four runners in the top ten. In regular season competition, StFX had three first-place finishes and one second place showing. At the CIS championship on November 12rth at Laval, the X-Women ran to a seventh place finish amongst 19 teams and were the top team from the AUS conference at the national meet.
On the soccer pitch, the X-Women and X-Men teams both competed at their respective AUS championships. After the X-Women had a 6-6-1 season and finished in fifth spot overall, they met Cape Breton in the AUS quarterfinals hosted in Fredericton by UNB. After playing to a scoreless draw at half, the Capers scored three goals in the final 20 minutes of the game to take the 3-0 victory and send the X-Women down in defeat.
At the AUS men’s soccer championship in Cape Breton, it was deja-vu all over again for the X-Men as they were defeated in penalty kicks for the third consecutive season in the playoffs. This time it was at the expense of the Saint Mary’s Huskies, the eventual AUS champions who went on to win a CIS silver medal. Saint Mary’s defeated the X-Men 1-0 in the AUS quarterfinal match. StFX played to a 7-3-3 regular season, finishing one point out of second place. They were ranked in the CIS Top 10 for the majority of the regular season.
The X-Men football team continues to rebuild with their young team. They finished the 2011 regular season with a 2-6 record in third place in the AUS conference. They met the second place Saint Mary’s Huskies in the AUS semi-final playoff game and lost 25-2 in Halifax on November 5th. The X-Men will be returning a core group of players on both offense and defense next season.
With the fall sport season wrapping up, the winter sports of hockey, basketball and volleyball are in the middle of their seasons, while indoor track and field will begin AUS competition in January.
The X-Men basketball team has been ranked No.2 in the country for each week since the season opened. They currently enjoy a 5-0 record in first place heading into the holiday break. The X-Men went 8-0 in pre-season exhibition play with tournament victories at UPEI and McGill and on home court at the StFX Invitational. The X-Men will be participating in the annual Dalhousie Rod Shoveller exhibition tournament in Halifax December 29-31. Veteran head coach Steve Konchalski currently stands at 795 career victories and is primed to hit his 800th career win in the New Year.
The X-Women basketball team have been sidelined with a few injuries to start off their season but still hold a respectable 2-3 record and sit in sixth place in the competitive AUS conference. They posted a 7-2 pre-season exhibition record including a win at the Mirimichi Invitational tournament.
X-Women volleyball has been under the direction of first year head coach Danny Da Costa this season and have a 5-4 record in AUS regular season play to date. They currently sit in fourth place. Pre-season competition brought out a 7-3 record including a tournament victory at the UNB Invitational in October.
On the ice, the AUS-defending champion and 2010-11 CIS silver medalist X-Women hockey team are off to a good start. Currently ranked No. 4 in the country, they enjoyed a stint in the No. 1 position for one week. With a 9-2-0 record in AUS league play they are in second place, two points back of first place Moncton. The X-Women posted a 2-0 record in pre-season exhibition play and will be competing at the McGill Invitational December 28-30th where they will play Wilfrid Laurier, Manitoba and McGill.
The X-Men hockey team find themselves with a 5-7-3 record in sixth place in the highly competitive AUS men’s hockey conference. They enjoyed a 4-2 pre-season exhibition record including wins over NCAA teams Northeastern and Boston University. The X-Men will play Saint Mary’s in Truro, NS on December 30th and Acadia in Berwick, NS on January 2nd in exhibition games over the holiday break.
Finally, the X-Women and X-Men track and field teams have been training throughout the fall and will finally get a chance to compete when the first AUS meet of the indoor season takes place in Moncton on January 14th. The track and field circuit also consists of a trio of meets in Halifax and one in Montreal prior to the February 25th AUS championship in Moncton.