Three Queens Hockey Players named ACAC All-Stars
Red Deer, March 17, 2023 – Red Deer Polytechnic and the Athletics department are pleased to recognize Queens Ice Hockey forward Avery Lajeunnesse and defense Alesha Santos as they were named First-Team All-stars, and forward Madison Sansom as she was named a Second-Team All-Star in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) women's hockey division.
These three were vital to the Queens success this year with Lajeunnesse as one of the leaders, Santos as one of the hardest workers on the team and Sansom as the natural goal-scorer on the team.
Avery Lajeunnesse (Forward)
Avery Lajeunnesse is a five-foot-four forward in her third year with the Queens Hockey program and is enrolled in the Bachelor of Education-Elementary program. She is a local student-athlete as her hometown is Red Deer and even played for the Red Deer Chiefs before moving over to collegiate hockey.
Lajeunnesse had quite an offensive year as she finished with 14 points in 20 games which included eight goals and six assists. The eight goals were enough for second in the conference and the 14 points placed her in fifth amongst all other female skaters in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC)
Head Coach Kelly Coulter said she is very skillful offensively but what makes her stand out is her leadership abilities.
"First and foremost, Avery is a very competitive individual as such she brings a consistent, relentless work ethic to every single game. Most nights, she is the hardest-working player on the ice. She is very driven to help our team succeed whether it is killing penalties, winning races to loose pucks or engaging in battles to win pucks."
Lajeunnesse has three points so far in the playoffs, all of them being assists.
Alesha Santos (Defenseman)
Alesha Santos is a five-foot-six defense and is enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at the Polytechnic. She currently is in her second year of eligibility. Santos hails from Calgary, AB and played minor hockey for the Rocky Mountain Raiders in the Alberta Female Hockey League (AFHL) before being signed to play for the Queens.
She scored one goal and had nine assists in the 2022/2023 regular season which tied her for first in the conference with 10 points amongst all defenders. She was able to double her points from her rookie season as she only played in 11 games compared to dressing in all 20 games this year.
Coulter explained she is also one of the hardest workers on the Queens roster.
"She rarely misses extra ice sessions dedicated to working on specific skills. It is no secret she has become a great defenseman because she is always working on her game and implements the tactical feedback almost immediately. She is a solid 200-foot player as she has the skill to run the powerplay and shut down other teams' top players."
The Queens head coach added Santos is a fantastic skater, who can not only lead a rush or skate a puck out of the defensive zone but is an amazing teammate.
Madison Sansom (Forward)
Madison Sansom is in her final year with the Queens as she will be graduating from the Social Work program at the Polytechnic in a couple of months. She is from Saskatoon, SK and played minor hockey with the Battleford Sharks. She came to the Polytechnic back in 2019/2020 when it was known as Red Deer College. In her rookie season, she played 23 games but scored just five points. This year her season did not start too well but she ended up being one of the top scorers in the league by the end of the regular season.
Sansom was awarded the Queens Athlete of the Week back on February 6, 2023, when she was on a seven-game point streak which turned into ten while also scoring a goal in six consecutive games. In the first half of the season, she just had one point but in the second half, she put up 13 points leading to this all-star honour.
The two-time Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) championship coach stated moving Sansom over to the centre position was a huge contributor to her great second half.
"We are simply a better team when she has the puck on her stick. She has shown poise and patience that reflects her confidence and experience. As a result, we are seeing the offensive abilities that we knew she always had. Her buying into the concept of good defending leads to more offensive opportunities has made a huge difference in her game."
Sansom and the Queens are up 1-0 in the best-of-five-game series after taking Game 1 against the NAIT Ooks in Edmonton with a final score of 2-0. Game 2 will go tomorrow night in Red Deer with the puck dropping just after 7 pm.