X-Women AUS Hockey Champions: Resilience on Ice

On Wednesday, March 12th, the Keating Centre was electric as the X-Women took home the title of AUS Conference Champions! It was a sold-out arena, filled to the brim with jumping students in support of our X-Women. Father Stan and Andy Hakin were among the crowd as we rose to our feet to witness Kamdyn Switzer (StFX Female Athlete of the Week) score the game-winning goal, and when the buzzer sounded, the fans went mad.

The final game, played on StFX home ice, garnered the X-Women’s home team spirit, …but it was resilience that brought them the win. It was not an easy path to get to the final match. With nine games in thirteen days and an incredible amount of over-time wins, the X-Women pushed through to earn their victory. According to X-Women’s Head Coach, Ben Berthiaume, a few days after the final minute of play, “They would not be denied this year; it was what they wanted”. In an interview with Ben at the Keating Café, he mentioned the importance and the impact of the StFX and Antigonish community, and its support of the girls both on and off the ice. As women’s sports, especially hockey, have begun to get the recognition they deserve, it is an even sweeter victory, when the school and local community support was a vital force behind the X-Women, and all sports here at X.

The Oxford Dictionary defines resilience as: “ the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. Each of the X-Women exhibited this trait as they hit the ice for a tough five-game series against St. Thomas and broke the record for the longest AUS women’s hockey game with over one hundred and thirty minutes on the ice. That’s four hours and forty-four minutes real time! The victory was arguably a turning point for the X-Women, which they fought, and won. With five over-time periods, hockey is no longer physical skill and stamina alone; it becomes a mental game. The X-Women were up to the task – athletes in mind body and soul. Sitting in the stands, there was nothing sweeter than the red glow of the buzzer, lit up after nearly four hours of hockey. But the overtime did not end with St. Thomas. It continued in game one against New Brunswick with two more overtime periods in which the X-Women once again conquered the opposition.

Here at StFX, our sports are central to the crucible that makes us Xaverian. This spring, the combination of unyielding support from the community, and the resilient character of each of our X-Women, including players, goalies, and Coach Staff, fueled their season to a title win. As women’s hockey continues to rise, there was nothing more meaningful than an arena filled to capacity with screaming fans as the X-Women took home the trophy on their final night on StFX home ice for the 2024-25 season. I have no doubt that as they continue to the U Sports Championship in Waterloo, this March, they will continue to hear the StFX crowd, and once again, bring to bear the reliance and strength that brought them to the level of champions.