For the month of September, athletes and teams are busy getting ready for their upcoming seasons. As part of their pre-season the Women’s basketball team and Stewart McKelvey Law host the annual Steward McKelvey Helen Campbell tournament.
The Reds hosted Laval, Winnipeg and Dalhousie for a 3-day tournament the weekend of October 4-6..
Unfortunately, the woman were unsuccessful in their attempts against Laval on Friday (L, 65-60) and Winnipeg on Saturday (L, 72-68). They managed a comeback on Sunday with a whopping 33-point win over DAL (64-31).
On Sunday, the Winnipeg Wesman captured the tournament title with a 69-64 win over Laval. The tournaments all-star award was given to UNB’s Miakaela Dodig and Katie Daley. Congratulations girls!
The Helen Campbell tournament isn’t just about challenging new opponents. It’s also the time of year where the Lieutenant Colonel Erin Savage Scholarship is awarded to a well-rounded individual on the basketball team.
Erin Savage was a former member of Reds basketball between 1993 and 1996. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science Savage went to Dal Med. In 1998 Savage joined the Canadian Armed Forces where she served for 17 years.
Savage was passionate about the importance of women’s basketball at UNB in terms of comradery, life experiences and personal development.
In 2014 Erin Savage passed away after a hard-fought battle with breast cancer. To honor her name and memory Savage’s former teammates created this scholarship as a way to support the young women who represent basketball at UNB.
The scholarship is awarded to a member of the women’s basketball team who has completed at least the first two years of an undergraduate degree program, demonstrates exceptional academic and athletic performance, and is involved in the community.
Candidates are chosen by recommendations from the Director of Athletics and the Head Coach, Jeff Speedy.
“I have the privilege of working with a devoted group of young women. They’re amazing athletes and committed students much like Erin Savage was.”
The 2019 recipient scholarship was Eva Tumwine a fifth-year student and a Fredericton local. The scholarship was awarded by Savage’s mother Deb Robinson and a former teammate during Saturday’s game against Winnipeg.
Next, the women will travel to Regina to play in the Regina Cougars tournament.