(SYDNEY, N.S.) - The 2016 Subway AUS Women's Soccer Championships ended in nail-biting fashion on Sunday afternoon at CBU Field.
The St. Francis Xavier X-Women defeated the Acadia Axewomen 2-1 (3-2 in penalty kicks). The teams battled back and forth on a cold day of excellent women's soccer that saw the No. 4-seeded X-Women continue their improbable run to the title.
StFX started out strong and enjoyed the bulk of the play in the first half. They were rewarded with a 44th-minute strike by Kelsey Ellis (Ottawa, Ont.) and took a 1-0 lead into the half.
StFX began the second half playing conservatively and trying to protect their lead.
Acadia applied pressure throughout the second half and had many chances.
They finally broke through in the 78th minute to tie the game.
Acadia outshot StFX 9-5 during the game but X-Women goalie Nicole Macdonald (Kanata, Ont.) was up to task and turned away all but one shot.
The game ended with Acadia on the offensive but would head into extra time 1-1.
The two teams played with a cautious approach in extra time and were not able to generate much offence.
Near the end of 120th minute, the X-Women switched out their goalie to have Erin Visser (Whitby, Ont.) face the penalty shots.
It was the same move they made when they defeated the host Cape Breton Capers on Friday night. The two teams headed to the penalty spot knotted at 1-1.
The X-Women scored on three of their shots and that was enough to secure the victory.
The Subway Player of the Game was StFX's goal scorer Kelsey Ellis. The Acadia player of the game was Katie Ross (Bedford, N.S.).
Championship MVP was StFX goaltender Nicole MacDonald
The X-Women prevailed again and the No. 4 seed continued their magical run to the title.
The X-Women will next head to Acadia next week to represent the AUS as champions. Acadia will also attend the nationals as the host university.
Recap and photos courtesy of CBU Athletics