X-Women basketball secure top recruits out of Ontario's JUEL league

ANTIGONISH, NS – StFX X-Women basketball head coach Augy Jones is pleased to announce and welcome Ontario natives Lindsay Lessard, Alana Lawn and Courtney Kilyk, who will be joining the X-Women program for the 2012-13 season.

All three athletes are products of the JUEL Ontario basketball league, Canada’s only provincial spring league. In its second year of operation, the JUEL features the top grade 11 and 12 Ontario players competing at an elite level outside the traditional high school setting.

Lindsay Lessard is a native of Waterloo, Ont. and is a 6’0” left-handed small forward. She attended Waterloo Collegiate Institute and plays for the JUEL’s KW Lightning. Lindsay played in the JUEL all-star game and was also a member of the 2009 Ontario U15 national championship team.  She played two summers for the Toronto ‘A’ game club team (AAU) and was selected to play in the 2012 All-Canada Classic game. She has enrolled in the StFX Human Kinetics program for the fall.

“Lindsay is a great recruit to secure in my first season with the X-Women,” comments StFX head coach Augy Jones, who took over as head coach this past April. “Lindsay had several Division I recruiting visits and was coveted by many CIS schools; she is one of the most versatile high school players in Canada.”

Jones continues, “I got to see Lindsay play several games and was very impressed with the overall skill set she has developed at this young age. She can dribble, shoot, pass, rebound and most importantly she plays with a lot of intensity. She has made solid connections with the talented players that we have on the team already and is a great addition to a team that already has positive chemistry.”

Lessard is excited with the prospect of joining the X-Women, commenting, “When I visited StFX I was so impressed with the strong sense of school pride and spirit regarding their athletic teams. I love the athletic complex and the overall feel of StFX in terms of pride in the players and commitment to winning.”

“I really felt comfortable with Coach Jones, I liked his philosophy and thoughts on basketball, coaching, and team play. His enthusiasm for StFX really stood out and I learned very quickly what an outstanding coach and great person he is. We connected immediately and I am absolutely sure that I will love being coached by him.”

She is equally complimentary on the university, stating “I knew very quickly that I absolutely loved StFX. It has everything that I am looking for in a university - fabulous academics, excellent reputation, tremendous school spirit, great professors, coaches and students, and an absolutely beautiful campus.  There is something very special and unique about ‘X’ and I want to be a part of it!”

Alana Lawn hails from Brockville, Ont. and is a 5’5” point guard from Thousand Islands Secondary School. The captain of her high school team for four years, she was a regional high school first team all-star in both 2010 and 2011and was the 2010 league most valuable player. Alana played for the Ottawa Capitals in JUEL Ontario and will be enrolled in the Human Kinetics program at StFX this coming fall.

“Alana is a leader both on and off the court,” says Coach Jones. “She is a true point guard who plays the game with a high level of intelligence. As a former point guard myself, I know how hard it is to find a ‘pass first’ player who enjoys ‘running’ a team. Alana’s father is a coach, thus she has a deep understanding of the game of basketball. She will fit in perfectly with the scorers we have on our X-Women squad.”

Courtney Kilyk is a 5’8” shooting guard from Fonthill, Ont. who played at Notre Dame College School and the Niagara Falls Red Raiders in JUEL Ontario. The 2009 rookie of the year at Notre Dame in both basketball and soccer, she was a 2008 Ontario Summer Games champion with Niagara and also played U18 soccer for the Niagara Rapids. Similar to Lessard and Lawn, Kilyk will be enrolled in the StFX Human Kinetics program in September.

Coach Jones comments that “Courtney is an exceptional athlete who plays the game of basketball with speed and quickness. She is a natural scorer with deep shooting range, yet her biggest contribution to the X-Women program may be her defense. Courtney is a tenacious man-to-man defender who can guard full court, using her athleticism to stay in front of her opponent. This will be very valuable in the defensive style we plan to play next year.”

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Video interview with Lindsay Lessard:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAs5teTpttg