It was an exciting opening day at the 2024 Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) Basketball Championships in Charlottetown, PEI. Here's a full breakdown of each of the four quarterfinal games, plus some exciting awards news for the 'Canes on the court, and on the ice!
11am | Holland vs STU WBBALL Quarterfinal
In front of an electric home crowd, the fourth-ranked Holland College Hurricanes prevailed 76-54 in a roller coaster of a quarter-final game against the fifth-ranked St. Thomas University Tommies. It was a match that was plagued with turnovers and fouls.
The Hurricanes had an outstanding start to the game, jumping out to a 15-3 lead. Slowly, the Tommies tightened up defensively and forced multiple turnovers, coming back thrillingly to take a 16-15 lead early in the second quarter. The rest of the quarter was a dogfight, as both teams swapped points back and forth. STU held a slight advantage, but Holland found new energy, going on a 10-point run to lead 31-24. The Tommies rebounded to close the gap to 35-32 at halftime.
The point-swapping continued early in the third quarter, but Holland maintained a decent advantage, leading 61-44 heading into the fourth quarter, and not looking back the rest of the way. Several multi-point runs sealed the deal for the Hurricanes, as they won 76-54, clinching a spot in the semifinals on Saturday.
Alexa Rancourt was named Holland’s Player of the Game after recording 10 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists. Katie Vidito was named STU’s Player of the Game after recording 12 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
1pm | UNBSJ vs UKC WBBALL Quarterfinal
The third-ranked University of King’s College Blue Devils conquered adversity with a valiant 64-47 win in quarter-final action against the sixth-ranked University of New Brunswick Saint John Seawolves on Friday afternoon, advancing to the semifinals on Saturday.
The Blue Devils experienced a hot start, jumping out to a 10-2 lead. After the Seawolves called a timeout, UNBSJ went on an eight-point run to close the gap to two points. UKC entered the second quarter leading 13-10, the Seawolves stunned them with an early four-point run, taking the lead. Their hot streak continued with nine points within six minutes, forcing UKC to call a timeout. The Blue Devils crawled back to close the score to 24-21 at halftime. UKC exploded in the third quarter, retaking the lead and going up as far as 15 points by the 6:30 mark. With a 49-34 lead after three, the Blue Devils scored just two more points than UNBSJ in the fourth quarter but managed to hang on for the win.
Lindsay Black was named UKC’s Player of the Game after recording 15 points, three rebounds, and one assist. Avrey Alward was named UNBSJ’s Player of the Game after recording 13 points, 11 rebounds, and two assists.
3pm | UNBSJ vs Holland MBBALL Quarterfinal
The third-ranked Holland College Hurricanes survived a nail-biting quarter-final match against the sixth-ranked University of New Brunswick Saint John Seawolves, sending themselves to the semifinals on Saturday with a wild 100-98 win.
In a game plagued by three-pointers and steals, the first quarter had a chaotic start, with both teams swapping leads back and forth. Late in the quarter, it was the Hurricanes who pulled ahead, leading 25-18 heading into the second quarter. Holland’s hot momentum continued as they scored six straight points, leading 31-18 and forcing a Seawolves timeout. Although the Hurricanes continued to surge, UNBSJ slowly closed the gap and had a great ending to the quarter, closing the gap from 15 points to six by halftime.
Holland had a hot start to the third quarter with a seven-point run. For most of the quarter, the Hurricanes held a 15-point lead and led 76-62 heading into the fourth quarter. From there, they maintained an average 20-point lead for several minutes. After a few timeouts from each team, UNBSJ discovered new momentum and shocked everyone with a 13-point run toward the final minute. Despite a valiant effort, the Seawolves ran out of time and Holland barely held on.
Bryce Corless was named Holland’s Player of the Game after recording 29 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists. Ethan Szemerda was named UNBSJ’s Player of the Game after recording 34 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.
5pm | Crandall vs Mount Allison MBBALL Quarterfinal
In easily the most emotional and physical quarter-final match on Friday, the fifth-ranked Mount Allison Mounties prevented a late comeback for the ages by the fourth-ranked Crandall University Chargers, earning their way to the semifinals on Saturday with a91-80 win.
The first quarter was very competitive, as neither team could grab a lead bigger than four points. Mount Allison held a slight offensive advantage but couldn’t ensure dominance. The Mounties kept it going in the second quarter, but the Chargers refused to let Mount Allison get away. Crandall experienced an offensive surge late in the quarter, scoring five straight points and forcing a Mounties timeout. The Chargers tied the game 41-41, but Mount Allison quickly retook the lead just before the final buzzer. The action remained the same in the third quarter, with the Mounties leading the way, but never by too far.
Crandall finally found luck halfway through the fourth and final quarter, as they exploded with a 10-point run filled by three-pointers to tie the game 75-75. It was an all-out melee the rest of the way, as both teams briefly swapped leads until Mount Allison clutched in the final moments.
Edmond Surer was named Mount Allison’s Player of the Game after recording 26 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. Daniel Hawkes was named Crandall’s Player of the Game after recording 19 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
Semi-Final Saturday
We're now down to just four teams remaining in the men's and women's ACAA Basketball season. Here is how the matchups look for Saturday.
1pm (W) | MSVU (1) vs Holland (4)
3pm (W) | Mount Allison (2) vs UKC (3)
5pm (M) | STU (1) vs Mount Allison (5)
7pm (M) | MSVU (2) vs Holland (3)
Award Winners
Many of the Holland Hurricanes student-athletes were celebrated on Friday evening across the region as the ACAA and ACHA named recipients of their regular season awards.
In Charlottetown, the ACAA named its major basketball award winners, and all-conference team members at The Top of the Park at Red Shores Racetrack and Casino.
The big winner for Holland College was Alexa Rancourt, being named the 2024 ACAA Women’s Basketball Player of the Year.
Rancourt, a fourth year forward from Charlottetown, PEI, led the ACAA in rebounds per game, total rebounds and total points, while she finished second in points per game, assists, field-goals and field-goal percentage.
Rancourt was also named to the first ACAA All-Conference team, alongside teammate, Lauren Armstrong.
On the men’s side, Bryce Corless was named to the first ACAA All-Conference team.
Congratulations to Alexa, Lauren and Bryce for exceptional years with the Holland Hurricanes.
On the women’s hockey side, the ACHA announced its 2024 All-Stars in Wolfville, Nova Scotia prior to the opening of the 2024 ACHA Championship.
Hurricanes players recognized as first-team ACHA All-Stars were Taylor Gillis, Jacy McMillan and Emma Arsenault. While Kristyn Taylor and Kayla Batchilder were named to the second ACHA All-Star team.
Congratulations to Taylor, Jacy, Emma, Kristyn and Kayla for representing the ‘Canes so well this season!
For information on the Holland Hurricanes, please visit www.hollandhurricanes.com, www.facebook.com/hollandhurricanes, www.x.com/hc_hurricanes and www.instagram.com/hollandhurricanes.
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For more information about this release, please contact:
Daniel Cudmore, Athletics Development and Communications Coordinator
Tel: (902) 894-6870
Date: Friday, March 01, 2024
