X-Women Soccer garners six AUS all-star awards, Kennedy named AUS Coach of the Year

2023 AUS women's soccer major award winners and all-stars announced 

(HALIFAX, N.S.) Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2023 women's soccer all-stars and major award winners as selected by the conference's 10 head coaches following regular season play.

Cape Breton striker Alliyah Rowe of Kitchener, Ontario has been named the AUS most valuable player for the second season in a row.

Saint Mary's Cara Freeman of Halifax, N.S., is this season's AUS rookie of the year, while Memorial's Zoë Rowe from Conception Bay South, N.L. is the recipient of the 2023 AUS student-athlete community service award.

In his 11^th season leading the STFX X-Women program, Coach Graham Kennedy has been chosen by his peers as the AUS coach of the year.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Alliyah Rowe, Cape Breton CAPERS

Alliyah Rowe, a fourth-year striker from the U SPORTS no. 7-ranked Cape Breton Capers, has been named the Atlantic University Sport women's soccer most valuable player for the second straight season.

An arts student from Kitchener, Ont., Rowe led defending AUS champion Capers to a 10-1-1 regular season record, a second-place finish in the conference standings and a first-round playoff by through to the semifinal round of the 2023 AUS Women's Soccer Championship.

She led the conference and the nation in goals scored this season with 25, setting a new AUS record for goals in a single season.

She also set a new conference record for goals in a single game, with two six-goal games this season—Oct. 15 versus Mount Allison and Oct. 21 versus Moncton.

Rowe finishes her fourth year of eligibility as the new AUS all-time career scoring leader with 56 goals. The previous record of 53 career goals was set by former Capers standout Karolyne Blain who played five seasons for Cape Breton between 2011 and 2015.

In addition to being named the conference's top player, Rowe was also named an AUS first-team all-star for the fourth time in her career today. She is a two-time U SPORTS first team all-Canadian—having earned the honour in both 2022 and 2019. In her inaugural 2019 season with the Capers, she was also named both the AUS and U SPORTS rookie of the year.

She will now represent the Atlantic conference as the league's nominee for the Chantal Navert Memorial Award as the U SPORTS player of the year. Only two Atlantic conference nominees have won the national award, UPEI's Amy Connolly in 2005 and Cape Breton's Sarah Drake in 2002.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Cara Freeman, Saint Mary's Huskies

A first-year forward with the Saint Mary's Huskies, Cara Freeman has been named the 2023 AUS women's soccer rookie of the year. 

This marks the first time in program history a player from Saint Mary's women's soccer has been named the conference's top rookie.

A science student from Halifax, N.S., Freeman started in all 12 regular season games for the Huskies. She led the team in scoring with nine goals—the fourth-most in the conference this season—and 13 points.

Her nine goals scored marked the most by a rookie nationally this season.

In addition to being named the AUS's top rookie, Freeman was also named an AUS second team all-star today.

She will now represent the AUS as the conference's nominee for the U SPORTS rookie of the year. The most recent Atlantic conference players to take home the national award are 2023 AUS MVP Alliyah Rowe (in 2019), and Cara Freeman's sister and current teammate Erin Freeman who was named U SPORTS rookie of the year in 2018 while playing for the Cape Breton Capers.

STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Zoë Rowe, Memorial Sea-Hawks

The Memorial Sea-Hawks' Zoë Rowe has been selected as the 2023 recipient of the AUS student-athlete community service award. This marks the second consecutive season a player from the Sea-Hawks has won this award.

A fourth-year biochemistry student in her third year of eligibility from Conception Bay South, N.L., Rowe led the Sea-Hawks in scoring this season with nine goals and 11 points.

In addition to earning this major award, Rowe was also honoured as an AUS first team all-star today for the first time in her career.

In the classroom, Rowe is a three-time academic all-Canadian boasting a 4.0 GPA. She is a recipient of the Colbourne Family Scholarship—awarded to an individual who displays leadership qualities, participates in student organizations/faculty committees, and contributes to the larger community.

She volunteers her time extensively both on and off campus. On campus, she was elected president of her class to represent the student body. She is responsible for providing input on the program and serves as a liaison between the faculty and student body.

Off campus she volunteers her time with Easter Seals NL, leading and facilitating recreational activities such as rock-climbing and swimming while fostering an inclusive environment tailored to individual's diverse needs.

Rowe also volunteers as lead coach of the Star Development program, organizing and facilitating bi-weekly summer soccer sessions for 50 athletes
She now becomes the Atlantic conference nominee for the U SPORTS student-athlete community service award. The last AUS nominee to take home the national honour was Rowe's current Sea-Hawks teammate Kate Hickey who earned the U SPORTS award last season.

COACH OF THE YEAR: Graham Kennedy, STFX X-Women

STFX X-Women head coach Graham Kennedy has been selected by his peers as the AUS women's soccer coach of the year for the second time in his career. He first earned the honour in 2019.

In his eleventh season as head coach of the X-Women program, Coach Kennedy led the team to an undefeated 12-0-0 record, a first-place finish in the regular season standings and a first-round playoff bye through to the championship semifinals.

The U SPORTS no. 5-ranked X-Women were the only team in the nation to win all of their regular season games and they allowed just three goals against all season—a league and U SPORTS best—for a goals against average of 0.25.

They managed a league-leading nine shutouts this season and finished with 48 goals (tied with Cape Breton for the most in the conference).

Kennedy now becomes the Atlantic conference nominee for the U SPORTS coach of the year award. Cape Breton Capers head coach Stephen "Ness" Timmons is the most recent coach from the Atlantic conference to earn the national honour (in 2017).

2023 AUS WOMEN'S SOCCER ALL-STARS

The AUS first and second team all-stars were also announced today. They are as follows:

First Team All-Stars:

Keeper – Ellie Lancaster, Cape Breton (1^st year – Fall River, N.S.)
Defender – Abby Steen, STFX (3^rd year – Stittsville, Ont.)
Defender – Caitlin Crichton, STFX (3^rd year – Ottawa, Ont.)
Defender – Mya Harnish, Acadia (4^th year – Lower Sackville, N.S.)
Midfielder – Grace Hannaford, Cape Breton (2^nd year – Enfield, N.S.)
Midfielder – Megan Chiasson, Dalhousie (3^rd year – Lower Sackville, N.S.)
Midfielder – Brynn Jurus, STFX (3^rd year – Ancaster, Ont.)
Striker – Alliyah Rowe, Cape Breton (4^th year – Kitchener, Ont.)
Striker – Amanda Smith, STFX (5^th year – Ottawa, Ont.)
Striker – Sydney Kennedy, Acadia (5^th year – Fletchers Lake, N.S.)
Striker – Zoë Rowe, Memorial (3^rd year – Conception Bay South, N.L.)

Second Team All-Stars:

Keeper – Christina Gentile, STFX (4^th year – Laval, Que.)
Defender – Ally Wilton, Cape Breton (3^rd year – Bedford, N.S.)
Defender – Leah Adams, Acadia (3^rd year – Truro, N.S.)
Defender – Sarah Jones, Memorial (3^rd year – Marystown, N.L.)
Midfielder – Grace Longley, Acadia (4^th year – Bedford, N.S.)
Midfielder – Carolina Grzesniak, UNB (3^rd year – Oshawa, Ont.)
Midfielder – Cheyenne Bower, STFX (1^st year – London, Ont.)
Striker – Claire Langille, Memorial (3^rd year – Windsor Junction, N.S.)
Striker – Elise Evans, Dalhousie (2^nd year – Toronto, Ont.)
Striker – Abigail Aucoin, Acadia (2^nd year – Dartmouth, N.S.)
Striker – Cara Freeman, Saint Mary's (1^st year – Halifax, N.S.)

The 2023 AUS Soccer Championships presented by Bell are being hosted by Cape Breton University in Sydney, N.S. Oct. 26 to 29.       

The women's schedule can be found here: https://www.atlanticuniversitysport.com/sports/wsoc/2023-24/postseason/index

All games of the championship will be available via webcast at www.AUStv.ca.

Final AUS women's soccer standings:
https://www.atlanticuniversitysport.com/sports/wsoc/2023-24/standings

The AUS conference receives one berth at the 2023 U SPORTS women's soccer championship being hosted by Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. Nov. 9 to 12. The berth will be awarded to the conference champions.  

For more information on the national women's soccer championship, please visit the official website at: https://usports.ca/en/championships/soccer/f.

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