(Halifax, NS) – In an important 4-point game, the Dalhousie Tigers hosted the Acadia Axewomen at the Dalplex on Saturday night in support of Shoot for the Cure. The three-point shooting for the Axewomen made the difference, as they came away with the 78-52 win.
It was a tough offensive start on both sides, with both teams having a hard time getting the lid off the basket from the outside, but Haley McDonald (Port Williams, NS) of the Axewomen was able to open up the scoring with a tough shot from deep.
The Tigers were quick to see that the outside shots weren't falling for them early, so the ball was pushed inside for Karina May (Moncton, NB) and Robertha Charles (Montreal, QC) to go to work in the paint.
The quarter remained tight until the Axewomen were able to pick up the defensive intensity and began to win the battle on the glass. After Jayda Veinot (Port Williams, NS) knocked down another shot from deep for the Axewomen, they held the Tigers scoreless in the final two minutes of the quarter and took a 20-14 lead going into the second.
It was a better start to the second quarter for the Tigers, with Sophie Gaube (Hubley, NS) knocking down a three on the first possession.
The lead continued to grow for the Axewomen midway through the quarter however, with another three from Veinot extending it to 10.
There was once again a stretch as the end of the half where the outside shots when cold on both sides when the Tigers needed to capitalize on defensive stops, but some turnovers in transition stopped their potential run.
In a flurry of a final minute, Robertha Charles and Veinot traded threes back and forth with Veinot knocking hers down with just 7 seconds to go in the half.
With that final shot, the lead remained at 10 for the Axewomen as they went into the break up 36-26.
The two teams continued to trade shot for shot starting out the second half, but the turning point midway through the quarter was a stretch of three possessions in a row where the Axewomen were able to knock down shots from deep, two of which coming from Veinot.
That stretch pushed the lead up to 18 for the Axewomen, forcing a timeout from the Tigers.
That's the way the quarter ended in the third. Claire Ayotte was able to get to the rim and keep the lead at 18 to make it 60-42 going into the fourth.
It was more of the same in the fourth quarter, with the three-point shooting stretched the lead for the Axewomen.
The Tigers could manage just 10 points in the final quarter, and the Axewomen were able to secure the 78-52 win.
Robertha Charles led the Tigers in the loss with 13 points and 9 rebounds, while Jayda veinot had a spectacular 5-5 performance from deep to finish with 17 points, while Haley McDonald was right behind her with 16 points, 5 assists and 4 boards for a great stat-line.
The Axewomen will be back on the road on Wednesday for another 4-point game when they play StFX, while the Tigers will host UPEI next weekend.