WOLFVILLE, NS - The Acadia basketball team is pleased to announce the addition of AJ Simmonds to the Axemen basketball 2012-2013 roster. Early on the recruiting trail, head coach Stephen Baur is thrilled with Simmonds' commitment to Acadia early in the process and AJ's addition as a significant step in the 2012 recruiting season.

“We are excited to have AJ join us.  We had the opportunity to see him all summer and were blown away by his character, work ethic, and leadership.  His play spoke for itself at Auburn the last two years and in winning a Silver Medal for NS, but seeing the rest of the picture with AJ let us know how special he is.”

The native of Dartmouth, NS currently plays at Auburn Drive High School.  Simmonds recently won a provincial title last year with current Axeman Shaquille Smith; the first in school history.  AJ captured a Silver Medal with U17 Team NS this past summer as the team captain, and has represented Nova Scotia on four separate occasions.  Averaging 18 points and 8 assists this season for the second place Auburn Eagles, Simmonds is looking forward to your his university career at Acadia.

“The summer allowed me to build a strong relationship with the coaches, and after I met the guys I feel like I fit in well with the team and the style of play.”  This past summer Assistant coach Nick Jordan was the head coach of the Under 17 Team Nova Scotia while head coach Stephen Baur and assistant coach Kevin Duffie assisted Jordan.

AJ will be taking a Bachelor of Arts degree while at Acadia this coming fall of 2012.