Busy weekend for P.E.I.’s Holland Hurricanes’ teams

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Women’s rugby goes undefeated

The Holland Hurricanes completed a perfect regular season in the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) Women’s Rugby Conference on Oct. 27 with a 24-7 road win over the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Reds at UNB’s College Field in Fredericton.

The ‘Canes dominated the first half, leading 7-0 at the halfway point, and concluding the half up 17-7. The Hurricanes added seven more scores in the second half.

Madison Tingley, Tori Hogan and Marissa Themeles led the Hurricanes’ scoring statistics.

With the first seed clinched, the ‘Canes will look to remain undefeated in next weekend’s ACAA women’s rugby playoffs. The semifinal matchups will be announced this week.

Cross-country runners have strong showings

The Holland Hurricanes came out of the 2023 Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) cross-country championships in Truro, N.S., with a bronze medal and nothing to be disappointed about.

The male runners improved from a previous fourth-place finish at a Mount Allison meet to earn bronze. Colton March finished sixth, leading the way for the Hurricanes, while teammates Abdelrahman Elsabbah (seventh), Theophilus Ekow Nketsiah (ninth), Sam Hulan (18th), Graham Gardiner (25th), Sean Bidake (29th), Brandon Williams (30th), Tristan Mitchell (31st) also represented Holland College.

March was named to the ACAA All-Conference Team for his outstanding season.

The female runners concluded their season with a fifth-place finish. Melanie Mitchell was the highest-finishing Hurricanes’ runner in 15th, with Paola Gutierrez finishing right behind in 16th. Katie Astley (26th) and Louisa Mackula-Theriault (29th) also competed for the Hurricanes.

For full event results from this weekend, visit www.acaa.ca.

Football Hurricanes suffer costly loss

The Holland Hurricanes’ chances at making the AFL (Atlantic Football League) championship game were dashed with a 31-9 loss against the Dalhousie Tigers on Oct. 28 in Halifax.

The Tigers jumped out to a 17-1 lead and never looked back.

A Hurricanes’ touchdown early in the third cut the Tigers lead to 17-8, but Dalhousie rebounded with two more touchdowns, in exchange for another ‘Canes Rouge.

With the win, Dalhousie ends the regular season at 4-2, clinching a spot in the AFL title game on Nov. 11 versus UNB (3-2). The ‘Canes have been mathematically eliminated with a 1-4 record entering their final regular-season game on Nov. 4 at UPEI versus the Reds (1 p.m.).

UNB can tie Dalhousie with a win, with home-field advantage for the final going to a tiebreaker.

Basketball teams open season

The Holland Hurricanes found themselves in close action against the St. Thomas Tommies to begin the 2023-24 Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) basketball season.

In women’s play, the ‘Canes began their season on a high note with a 73-65 win over the Tommies. The men lost 90-84 after leading for most of the game.

Both teams are back in action at the McMillan Centre on Nov. 4 against the University of New Brunswick Saint John (UNBSJ) Seawolves. The UNBSJ women’s team is currently 0-2, while the men’s team is 1-1.

The women’s game begins at 2 p.m., and the men’s contest tips off at 4 p.m.

Jason Simmonds is a sports editor with SaltWire in Prince Edward Island. He can be reached by email at [email protected] and followed on X @JpsportsJason.