X-Women down Axewomen 38-19 in AUS rugby action

(WOLFVILLE, N.S.) - A rematch of the 2015 Subway AUS Rugby Championship between rivals StFX and Acadia resulted in the X-Women doubling Acadia 38-19 in Wolfville. 

A young Acadia Axewomen squad with eight first-year starters got on the scoreboard first in the opening minutes of the game with first year flanker Emma Pfleiderer's (Williams Lake, B.C.) first career try and converted by first year Axewoman Annie Kennedy. Kennedy was named as Acadia's Player of the Game.  

StFX quickly replied on a Jaelei Meyer (Carlyle, Sask.) try that was converted by fifth year fly-half Sabrina McDaid (Scarborough, Ont.).  

2015 AUS Most Valuable Player Joanna Alphonzo (Ajax, Ont.) added two trys in the closing 10 minutes of the first half, with McDaid converting only one to give the X-Women a 19-7 halftime lead.  

StFX took a commanding lead in the second half with two unanswered trys in the opening 20 minutes of the second half. Danielle Cormier, who was recognized as the Subway Player of the Game, punched in a try that was converted by McDaid followed by fourth year flanker Brooke Newsome's (Brantford, Ont.) unconverted try to give the X-Women a 31-7 advantage. 

First-year Axewoman Natasha Johnson (Williams Lake, B.C.) had a long run for a late try in the final half bringing Acadia to 31-14 deficit, but the X-Women squad pulled out to another cushioned lead with their sixth and final try of the day by Merrit Blair (Ottawa, Ont.), converted by McDaid. 

Rookie Axewoman Nicole Pahl (Markham, Ont.) added Acadia's last try, unconverted, in the final minutes to end the scoring at 38-19. 

Asked if her team was focused on beating Acadia after losing to them in the AUS finals last season, X-Woman Danielle Cormier pointed out that last year was not the focus but rather improved defence has been the top priority this season. 

"We really worked on our defence this season so far," said StFX's Danielle Cormier. "This past week, the girls have been crushing it, really working hard together. Our main focus was being one and I think we really pulled that off today."

Acadia will host the Saint Mary's Huskies this coming Friday night, while the X-Women host the UPEI Panthers, also on Friday.  

Scoring Summary: 

First Half 

ACA – Try by Emma Pfleiderer, converted by Annie Kennedy – 7-0 ACA 
StFX – Try by Jaelei Meyer converted by Sabrina McDaid – 7-7 
StFX – Try by Joanna Alphonzo, not converted – 12-7 StFX 
StFX – Try by Joanna Alphonzo, converted by Sabrina McDaid – 19-7 StFX 

Second Half 

StFX – Try by Danielle Cormier, converted by Sabrina McDaid - 26-7 StFX  
StFX – Try by Brooke Newsome, not converted – 31-7 StFX 
ACA – Try by Natasha Johnson, converted by Annie Kennedy – 31-14 StFX 
StFX – Try by Merrit Blair, converted by McDaid – 38-14 
ACA – Try by Nicole Pahl, not converted – 38-19 FINAL

Source: Acadia Sports Communications