The AxeCast

A physical education graduate of Acadia and Axewoman basketball player, Jen Lloyd was one of a long list of female players from Cobequid High School in Truro, NS who attended Acadia under head coach Laura Sanders.

Lloyd played several years of basketball in Europe after graduating at Acadia and when she returned she began a teaching career that still continues to this day. 

She also explored coaching at with the NS Provincial programs and at College level and eventually made her way into officiating basketball. After her coaching success, the Canadian Association of Basketball Officials (CABO) then recruited Jen to become a basketball official.

She is a regular site at AUS women's basketball games and she has been known to officiate men's games as well. She also is on the officiating crew of the NBL.

Named the 2016 AUS Community Service Award winner for Men's Basketball, Shaquille Smith took his experiences from attending Acadia and has applied it to everyday life.

Shaquille was named as 1 of 8 nominees for the U SPORTS Mitchell Family Alumni of the Year Awards this past spring for his work in his hometown of North Preston, NS where he applied his passion of helping others to bring a community basketball court to North Preston.

His service to the greater community of basketball was amplified by the creation of the Futures Program that mentors young athletes in their choices in life around mental health, education and athletics.

We chatted with Sonny Wolfe about his early start in coaching football and his time now spent retired from the game he loves.

We covered his time at Acadia from his first university head coach position in 1984 with the Axemen to his return to McGill in 2007.

Sonny Wolfe completed his 24th and final season as a U SPORTS head football coach in 2011 after five years at McGill, capping a 19-year career at Acadia during which he and his wife Denise became an integral part of the local community. He won three AUS championships at Acadia – in 1984, 1995, 1998 – and his 24 seasons as a head coach ties him with the legendary Gino Fracas for the seventh-highest career total in U SPORTS football history.

A dual-sport athlete while at Acadia, Sean Stoqua excelled in football and basketball over his four seasons at Acadia. 

During his years at Acadia and beyond, Sean mastered resilience following ankle and knee injuries that sidelined his participation in several seasons.

After graduating from Acadia, Sean focused on a becoming a physiotherapist and brining his skills and experiences to the forefront of helping athletes recover from injury.

Sean played his last year of eligibility with the UOttawa Gee Gees in 2019-20, overcoming a list of physical setbacks.

A product of Horton High School, Jasmine Parent left the Valley for supposed greener pastures but returned and suited up for the Acadia Axewomen in 2009. Parent was part of the build up to an eventual 2012 AUS championship win that changed the coming years of Acadia's women basketball team.

Her experience at Acadia set her up for the changes that she would eventually make in her life and launch a career in the health and fitness industry.

Lindsay Harris was among a group of Horton High School basketball grads that changed the landscape of the Acadia women's basketball team. 

She grew up around sport with a father who was a physical education teacher and basketball became her passion.

After a great high school career, she joined the Axewomen in 2009 and helped shape a championship team that captured their first AUS title in over 50 years.

Named to the AUS All-Rookie team in her first season as an Axewoman, Lindsay was honoured as an AUS First Team All-Star in her last season.

Lindsay chatted about her decision to head to Acadia and the influence her Dad had on her choice and university basketball career.

Len and Eric chat with former Soccer Axette Wendi Wells about her time playing soccer and growing up in Wolfville as the daughter of then Athletic Director Don Wells.

Wendi was a two-time CIAU (USPORTS) All-Canadian and captured 5 AUAA (AUS) titles and a 1990 CIAU National Championship.

She was inducted into the Acadia Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 as one of Acadia's many great female athletes.

Len and Eric chat with former Football Axeman Kevin Garbuio from Fort McMurray, AB where Kevin is a teacher at Father Mercredi High School. Kevin Garbuio is helping provide students with special needs with skills to achieve some form of independence in adulthood.

Along with his duties as a teacher, Kevin has gone well beyond his job scope as the school's head football coach along with serving his community.

He is involved with the Special Olympics and has hopes to get more involved with sports programs available in the Wood Buffalo region.

Kevin was named to the Your McMurray Magazine's Top 50 under 50 in 2020.

This past fall, Kevin created the idea of hosting a mental, emotional health event for student athletes after COVID-19 forced schools to shut down in March 2020. As classes moved online and teams cancelled games, Garbuio said he watched students in the football community struggle.

A graduate of the Acadia University and the men's basketball program in 2002, Saj Joseph was an AUS All-Star in his last season with the Dave Nutbrown led Axemen.

Saj talks about his time as an Axemen and the effect that Acadia and Nutbrown had in shaping his leadership in the business world. 

Joseph's impact on the basketball program during his time at Acadia is seen by his selfless leadership as the program's leading single season in assists and third in career assists.

This week we chat with former Acadia swimmer Jill Leon who graduated in 1979 after winning two National Championships in a row with the Axettes - an unprecedented achievement by any national championship team from Acadia.

Later in life, Jill challenged her swimming stamina in crossing the Northumberland Strait from Nova Scotia to PEI in 2013.

Join us as she talks about being coached but the late Jack Scholz and her experience as a National Champion at Acadia in 1977-78 and 1978-79.