REDS Ready For AUS Semi-Finals
(FREDERICTON, NB) For the second year in a row, the UNB REDS have earned a quarter-final bye at the Atlantic University Sport women’s soccer championship tournament.
The REDS went 8-1-3 (W-L-T) this season, finishing in second place.
“At the beginning of the season, we set the goal of earning the bye, so it feels good to have accomplished that,” said fifth-year REDS midfielder Carolina Grzesniak, named an AUS first team all-star on Wednesday. “We still have a lot to play for, so our mindset has shifted towards playoffs.”
“The bye gives us a nice chance to recover a bit and fine tune things heading into a competitive week, but the main focus is making sure we’re ready when playoffs start,” she added.
The 2025 AUS women’s soccer championship tournament takes place at Cape Breton University and begins Thursday with two quarter-final games.
The host Capers, the No. 3 seed, take on No. 6 STFX in one quarter-final. Fourth-ranked Memorial faces No. 5 Acadia in the other.
UNB will face the winner of the Capers game against the X-Women. That semi-final is scheduled for 4:00pm on Friday.
“The bye gives you a chance to get eyes on the teams you potentially play the next day,” said REDS’ head coach Jon Crossland. “You hope for a long, physical, and emotional quarter-final for the teams playing. We haven’t faced X or CBU since week two of our season, so we’ll get reacquainted with them this week and be ready to go on Friday.”
UNB finished their regular season with three consecutive wins, including a 2-0 victory over Moncton in last Friday’s regular season finale, and wins in four of their last five games.
Maintaining their intensity has been a priority in practices leading up to the championship tournament.
“Practices have been super competitive, and it’s great to see everyone in good spirits and pushing each other,” said Grzesniak. “Everyone’s excited to compete but is also focused on doing the little things right. We’ve built a lot of trust in each other over the season, and it’s shown through our performances.”
Grzesniak’s seven assists during the regular season were tied for first in AUS scoring and third in the country.
Along with Grzesniak, midfielder Aurora Hughes-Goyette was also named a 1st Team AUS all-star. Keeper Breanna Habinski and midfielders Evana Eyubeh and Heidi Lauwerijssen were named 2nd Team all-stars. Kiara Hackett was named to the AUS all-rookie team.
Habinski finished the regular season with a .930 save percentage, which was best in the AUS and third-best in U SPORTS. Her three goals against were fewest in the AUS and fifth fewest in the country. Habinski’s 0.33 goals against average was best in the AUS and sixth best in U SPORTS.
In 2024, after earning the quarter-final bye, the REDS played to a 1-1 regulation time draw with the X-Women in the semi-finals. UNB won 4-2 on penalties to advance to the conference championship game where they fell 2-0 to Cape Breton.
“We’re proud of what we’ve done so far, but we all know there’s more to accomplish,” said Grzesniak.
STORY BY: Andy Campbell/UNB REDS
FILE PHOTO BY: Fran Harris/for UNB REDS