Heart of the Axe: Gabe Davignon

Heart of the Axe is a weekly feature from the perspective of Axemen and Axewomen student-athletes. It dives deeper into why they decided to attend Acadia, what drives them athletically, how they got started in their sport, the impact Acadia has had on them during their time in Wolfville and much more. 

This week's feature athlete is third-year basketball Axeman and business administration major Gabe Davignon who joined the Axemen in 2022-23 and was named to the AUS All-Rookie team that same season. 

For Davignon, the path to becoming an athlete at Acadia University was a journey filled with pivotal moments, dedication, and a relentless pursuit of his dreams.

Even today, as a shooting guard for the Axemen, he remains committed to excellence and growth, both on and off the court.

A LIFELONG DREAM

Growing up, basketball played a huge role in shaping my life. It taught me discipline and hard work, which are applicable in other aspects of life, like school and work.

It also enabled me to form lifelong relationships with friends who I would have never met otherwise.

For me, it all started for me at Prospect Road Elementary School when I was six years old with the Steve Nash program.

A few years later I remember a conversation with my dad while watching the Final 8 tournament at the Metro Centre. He asked me how cool it would be to play in a tournament like that one day for a team like Acadia.

That’s when I knew I wanted to pursue this sport at the next level.

THE RECRUITING PROCESS

Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, I remained focused on my dream of playing university basketball.

I wasn’t highly recruited out of high school, but I was fortunate enough to have a conversation with coach Mike (Leslie) at Acadia. We talked for about three hours about basketball and life, and what resonated with me was his belief in me and what I would bring to the team.

That belief let me know that Acadia was where I wanted to be, so the next day, I called coach to let him know I had chosen Acadia.

THE TRANSITION

The transition from high school to university basketball was a challenging one.

Every player on the team was the best player on their respective high school teams, so the skill level and athleticism made everything so much faster.

For me, my shooting ability was what our team needed in my first year, which got me the opportunity to get out on the floor.

I learned pretty quickly that as fast as it was in practice, it was even faster in games, where we were playing older, faster, stronger players from around the country.

But I embraced the challenge and worked hard to adjust to the speed and intensity of university basketball.

A MEMORABLE MOMENT

One of my favorite memories so far in my career was a game last year against Saint Mary’s.

The season was coming down to the wire and we were in must-win games.

At halftime, coach gave a spirited speech, and in the second half, we responded.

It was the best team basketball we had played all year, and for me personally, it was the best game of my career so far.

It was a reminder of the importance of making the most of every opportunity and pushing ourselves to be better.

LESSONS LEARNED

The biggest lesson I’ve learned from my experience is to make the most of the opportunity I have.

I am fortunate enough to play university basketball in U SPORTS, and if I don’t appreciate that opportunity and push myself every day, I would be cheating myself.

I’ve learned to appreciate and make sure I push myself to make the most of the opportunity I’ve worked hard to earn.

To anyone who wants to be where I’m at now, my biggest piece of advice would be to learn to love the hard work.

If you don’t love being in the gym and working on your game, it’s very hard to grow as a player.

If you want to play university basketball, it’s important to understand that those extra hours in the gym by yourself will eventually pay off big time.

It’s about stacking hours and stacking days until you get to where you want to be.

LOOKING AHEAD

While my dream is to play basketball at the highest level, I also know that life after sports will eventually come.

When that time comes, I know I’ll work in the realm of sports in some regard.

I don’t have the full plan laid out yet, but sports are what I love, and if I can manage to take my accounting degree and find a job that involves sports, that would be amazing.

For now, though, I’ll continue to focus on my journey as an athlete at Acadia University, striving for excellence and making the most of every opportunity.