Three-peat! Huskies defeat Panthers 68-53 to win third straight AUS Championship
Posted: Mar 02, 2025

Three-peat! Huskies defeat Panthers 68-53 to win third straight AUS Championship

Game Leaders
UPEI
Pts: Deborah Aboagye - 11
Reb: Sydney Cummins - 9
Ast: Grace Lancaster - 3
Saint Mary's
Pts: Lucina Beaumont - 19
Reb: Lucina Beaumont - 12
Ast: Clara Gascoigne - 5
Team Stats
Full stats

HALIFAX, NS - The Saint Mary's Huskies won their third straight Atlantic University Sport women's basketball championship, defeating the UPEI Panthers 68-53 on Sunday afternoon at the Scotiabank Centre.

"I'm so happy right now, I'm so happy for my team. I love them so much," said Huskies forward and AUS Second Team All-Star, Lucina Beaumont, who was named the Subway Player of the Game and a Tournament all-star, after scoring a game-high 19 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. "It's a good feeling."

The Huskies become the first AUS women's basketball program to hoist the AUS banner three straight years since their predecessors won four consecutive titles from 2013-2016.

With the win, the Huskies - ranked #5 in U SPORTS coming into this weekend - punch their tickets to the U SPORTS Final 8 National Championship, which will be played March 13-16 in Vancouver, BC. 

The two-time defending champs looked calm and composed in the first quarter, with guard Aki Kobayashi (Osaka, Japan) opening the scoring on a tough drive to the hoop, followed by Kobayashi finding Aliyah Fraser (New Glasgow, NS) for a three-pointer to open up a 5-0 lead. 

The #3-seed Panthers responded with buckets from guard Devon Lawlor (Millcove, PEI) and forward Deborah Aboagye (Montreal, QC), but back-to-back buckets from Huskies all-stars Lucy Beaumont (Fredericton, NB) and Clara Gascoigne (Dartmouth, NS) extending the Saint Mary's lead to 13-4, forcing a Panthers timeout.

Gascoigne scored seven points in the first quarter, and the Huskies led 20-10 after 10 minutes of play.

The Huskies kept the pressure up to start the second quarter, using their dominant defence to force turnovers and spark transition offence, with Gascoigne and Kobayashi driving for a pair of lay-ups to extend the lead to 24-12. 

The Panthers cut the lead to 26-16, but a three-pointer from Beaumont followed by another spectacular steal and score from Gascoigne extended the Huskies lead to 31-16. 

Panthers guard Lily Vrugteman (Cambridge, ON) hit a buzzer-beating shot to end the first half, but it was the Huskies who took a 40-22 lead into the locker room.

The Huskies were paced by Clara Gascoigne, who poured in 16 first-half points, while Lucy Beaumont chipped in seven points and six rebounds, while the Panthers were led by Deborah Aboagye who scored six points off the bench.

The third quarter was the Lucy Beaumont show, as the second team all-star forward scored 12 points in the frame on 3/4 shooting including 2/2 from beyond the arc. The Panthers had their best quarter offensively, but were outscored 22-18, as the Huskies took a 62-40 lead into the fourth quarter.

UPEI had a final push to begin the fourth quarter, opening the frame on a 7-0 scoring run, including a three-pointer from all-star guard Lauren Rainford (Toronto, ON). But Saint Mary's responded with four quick points from guard Aliyah Fraser, extending the lead to 66-47.

As the time ticked down, the Huskies celebrated their third consecutive AUS title, but it was clear that the team had a bigger goal in mind.

Saint Mary's will now move on to the U SPORTS Women's Basketball National Championship, which will be hosted March 14-16 by the UBC Thunderbirds in Vancouver. SMU finished fifth at last year's event hosted by the University of Alberta in Edmonton.

"It's going to be our third time there, and hopefully, we're going to do really well," Beaumont said about her team's trip west. "We're just going to play really good defense – that's our goal."

Huskies guard Clara Gascoigne finished the game with 18 points, five assists and two steals, and was named the 2025 Bell AUS Women's Basketball Championship Most Valuable Player. Aki Kobayashi chipped in 11 points for the Huskies.

Deborah Aboagye replied with 11 points for the Panthers with Devon Lawlor chipped in with 10.

2025 Bell AUS Women's Basketball Championship Awards

Tournament MVP

Clara Gascoigne / Saint Mary's University Huskies

Tournament All-Stars

Clara Gascoigne / Saint Mary's University Huskies
Lucina Beaumont / Saint Mary's University Huskies
Deborah Aboagye / UPEI Panthers
Lauren Rainford / UPEI Panthers
Kiyara Letlow / Cape Breton University Capers

Recap by Allan April / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics
Photos by Nick Pearce / Atlantic University Sport