Lawlor scores 17 to lead Panthers to first AUS final since 2020
HALIFAX, NS (March 1, 2025) – The 2025 Bell AUS Women's Basketball Championship final is all set.
On Saturday night at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, the third-ranked UPEI Panthers defeated the No. 2 seed Acadia Axewomen 76-50 to earn their first berth in an AUS championship final since they won it all back in the 2019-20 season.
"Our main focus was to come out strong with our defensive principles and I feel we really stuck to that," said Panthers guard and AUS Second Team All-Star Devon Lawlor in a courtside post-game interview. "We never let up and we kept that energy the whole game, which we needed."
In Sunday's championship final, set for 1 p.m. at the Scotiabank Centre, the Panthers will have to contend with the two-time defending champion Saint Mary's University (SMU) Huskies. SMU punched their ticket to the final with a resounding 89-58 semifinal victory over the Cape Breton University Capers on Saturday afternoon.
The Panthers came into the game riding high after a thrilling 75-73 quarter-final victory over the UNB REDS on Friday night. In the opening quarter against Acadia, UPEI came out firing and took an immediate 5-0 lead less than two minutes in.
After Acadia stormed back to cut the UPEI lead to 10-9, the Panthers countered with a 10-2 run to give them a 23-14 lead after the first 10 minutes of play.
That lead would be extended to as much as 15 points by the end of the second quarter when Lily Vrugteman made a layup with 26 seconds left in the half to lead 38-23.
The first-round bye Acadia earned by finishing the regular season in second place may have come back to haunt them as the Axewomen looked rusty – making just three baskets in the second quarter and shooting just 26 percent for the entire first half.
The ball did start falling a little more for the Axewomen in the third and fourth quarters but every basket made was met with a basket on the other end of the floor by the Panthers.
Lawlor led the UPEI charge with 17 points, but the Panthers did a great job of sharing the ball. In all, 10 different players scored a point for the Green and White on Saturday.
Acadia First Team All-Star selection Samantha Russell paced the Axewomen with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while teammate Sarah Delorey chipped in with 12 points of her own.