By Reegan MacAulay
This past weekend, the Holland Hurricanes basketball teams took to their home court for a pair of Friday night contests to close out the first semester of the 2025-26 season.
Here’s what happened for the women’s and men’s basketball squads in Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) competition on Friday, Dec. 5, at the McMillan Centre for Community Engagement in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Women’s Basketball
The women’s basketball Hurricanes handily defeated the Crandall University Chargers 72-46, ending the first semester with a two-game winning streak and heading into the holiday break with three wins in their last four matches.
Friday’s game began and finished with dominance from the Hurricanes, while Crandall showed some fight in the middle two quarters. The two teams traded points early in the first quarter, until a three-point jump shot by sophomore Nykeva Brown with 6:58 remaining sparked an 18-6 run that carried Holland to the final buzzer.
Up 24-13 after one, the Hurricanes maintained a steady lead through the second quarter, extending it by three by halftime (42-28). While the Chargers pushed harder in the third quarter, allowing Holland to lengthen their lead by just one point (53-38), the Hurricanes regained their first-quarter momentum in the fourth quarter.
They went on a tear of three-pointers, with notable contributions by sophomore Allie Forbes and rookies Maryn Kline and Riley MacDonald, en route to the team’s first home victory of the season.
Brown and fellow sophomore Karissa George each scored 14 points, which led the team. They combined to register 28 points, a 10-for-22 field-goal record, 5-for-11 three-point record, a 3-for-4 free-throw record, six rebounds, and one assist. George alone logged a rare nine steals in an impressive defensive effort.
Holland improved to 5-2 on the season and remains third in the conference with 10 points, two behind STU and four ahead of Mount Allison. Crandall dropped to 2-5, still fifth in the standings, and is six points behind the Hurricanes.
Holland and Crandall will meet again on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, beginning the second semester with a pivotal rematch in Moncton, N.B.
Connect with the women’s basketball ‘Canes at www.instagram.com/hurricanesbball.
Men’s Basketball
The men’s basketball Hurricanes will have to wait until the new year to claim home-court glory after a close 77-70 loss to the Crandall University Chargers.
It was a near-deja vu of what went down in Holland’s previous home match a few weeks prior, with the Hurricanes just a few points behind in the dying seconds and still within good reach of a full comeback, but ultimately falling short.
Holland had the stronger start in the first quarter, jumping out to 10-2, 15-4, and 17-9 leads by the halfway point. Within two minutes, the Chargers reeled the Hurricanes in and stole the lead, 18-17. Around that time, Holland called a full timeout, which triggered a seven-point run to close out the quarter up 24-18.
The second quarter was very similar, with the Hurricanes going up by eight in the early going, but Crandall slowly found their groove again and took a 37-32 lead with 1:42 remaining till halftime. The lead was traded one more time, with the Chargers coming out on top 40-38 after two quarters.
After another back-and-forth battle in the third quarter, Crandall led 56-50 going into the fourth. They led by as much as 12 with 7:59 remaining, but Holland pushed hard to decrease the deficit all the way until the bitter end. Entering the final minute, they called two timeouts within about 30 seconds, and were down by four – 74-70 – with 52 seconds left. Unfortunately, after the second timeout, the Chargers capitalized on a foul and scored on three free throws.
Veteran Jahreal Tomlinson led the squad with 18 points, going 6-for-10 in field goals and 5-for-6 from the free-throw line and adding six rebounds and two steals.
Following the weekend, Holland regressed to 2-5 and is now tied for fifth in the conference with Mount Allison, each with four points. Crandall improved to 3-4, emerging from the pre-game three-way fourth-place tie as the top team with six points.
The men will join the women in visiting the Chargers on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, for a crucial, second-semester opening rematch in Moncton, N.B.
Connect with the men’s basketball Hurricanes at www.instagram.co/hurricanesbball.
Happy holidays, Hurricanes nation, and thank you for your support in 2025! See you in 2026.
Connect with the Holland Hurricanes at www.hollandhurricanes.com, www.facebook.com/hollandhurricanes,www.x.com/hc_hurricanes and www.instagram.com/hollandhurricanes.
140 Weymouth Street, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada C1A 4Z1
Tel: 1-800-446-5265 | Fax: 902-629-4239
