Bio

Haley McDonald joined the Axewomen coaching staff in 2023-24 after concluding her historic playing career with Acadia. On top of her experience coaching at Acadia, McDonald is the director of AXE Basketball Club, was head coach of Horton High School senior girl’s team, was an assistant coach with the 2022 BNS U15 team that won a national silver medal, and is currently serving as head coach of Basketball Nova Scotia’s U17 provincial team for 2024.

In her fifth and final season of U SPORTS eligibility, McDonald capped her remarkable career by winning the Atlantic University Sport women’s basketball most valuable player award and being named first-team U SPORTS All-Canadian for her excellence on the court while maintaining a 4.08 grade point average as she completed her master's degree in Sociology.

She earned the James Bayer Memorial Scholarship Award from the AUS while finishing her career as Acadia’s all-time leading scorer with 1,846 points. She was previously named a U SPORTS second team all-Canadian twice, in 2019-20 and 2018-19.

McDonald holds the conference's all-time record for points scored in a single game—having scored 51 points in a March 2, 2019 AUS championship semifinal game versus UPEI. The Axewomen went on to capture their second-straight conference title that season.

As a final recognition for her playing career, in February 2024 she was named a U SPORTS Top 8 Academic All-Canadian award recipient for 2022-23 season.