Bastien scores 17 as REDS advance in AUS tourney

HALIFAX, NS (Feb. 21, 2026) - The UNB REDS women's basketball team will play for Atlantic University Sport (AUS) gold. 

Following a first-round bye thanks to finishing atop the AUS regular season standings, the REDS defeated the fourth-ranked STFX X-Women 72-52 in their Saturday afternoon AUS Women's Basketball Championship semifinal matchup played at Scotiabank Centre. 

The win sends UNB to the AUS championship final on Sunday afternoon at 1pm for the first time since 2024, when they fell to Saint Mary's University. They will meet the winner of Saturday's late semifinal between Acadia and UPEI. 

While UNB has won more AUS titles than any other school (28), they have not won one since the cult classic movie Office Space was released in February of 1999. 

The opening quarter was very much back and forth. UNB opened with an 8-0 run before X's Mali Straker (Yellowknife, NT) hit a three-point shot that started a 7-0 run the other way. 

The REDS responded with their own 7-0 run that was capped off by Kylee Speedy's (Fredericton, NB) three-pointer to put her team up 15-7 with 1:49 left in the quarter. 

Up five going into the second quarter, UNB extended their lead to 10 three minutes in when Zoe Olscamp (Stratford, PE) made a jump shot to go up 24-14. STFX fought back, however, cutting the deficit to 30-24 when Abby Mercer (Wolfville, NS) scored on a layup. 

However, the REDS stormed right back with consecutive threes – the first by Ann Bastien (Terrebonne, QC), who then stole the ensuing inbounds pass and fed the ball to Katie McAffee (Lower Knoxford, NB) for her three-pointer to quickly go back up by 12 (36-24) with 1:22 remaining in the half. 

By the time the halftime buzzer went, UNB led 40-26. 

STFX's Shannon Neita, who led the AUS in rebounds per game this season and was named the league's Defensive Player of the Year, collected three fouls in the opening half, limiting her minutes in the first two quarters. With her on the bench, UNB outrebounded X 28-13 in the opening half. 

After the break, UNB continued to pull away from X as Olscamp, Katie Butts (Ottawa, ON) and Alyssa Jenkins (St. John's, NL) combined for 14 of their team's 15 points in the quarter to take a 55-37 lead into the fourth. 

The final quarter saw X push to get back into the game, but every basket was met with a response by the REDS. 

Bastien scored six of her game-high 17 points in the last frame to earn Player of the Game honours. Teammate Maheva Ngassam (Saint Hubert, QC) added eight points and 12 rebounds. 

Ayla White (Ancaster, ON) paced the X-Women with a team-high 12 points.