This year, Saint Mary’s celebrates the 50th anniversary of women in varsity sport. Throughout the year, we will highlight women in sport at Saint Mary’s, like basketball superstar Justine Colley-Leger BComm'14, who continues to inspire young women athletes today.
Justine Colley-Leger BComm’14
You could say that sport, specifically basketball, has always been a part of Justine Colley-Leger’s BComm’14 life. In fact, her daycare teachers still talk about how, as a toddler, she would ask them to get the basketball out of the toy box so she could shoot on the four-foot hoop!
The youngest of five, who grew up in East Preston, Justine’s sports journey began when she was eight years old. Her Mom took her to an open session of the Cole Harbour Rockets for the under-10 age group, and when they got there, Justine was the only kid who could dribble with both hands and reach the hoop.
The coach noticed and told the mother and daughter duo about an under-12 girls' basketball team that was just starting. He encouraged Justine to try out. “That was the start of someone taking notice of my skills and placing me on a trajectory,” she says. “One where I would be playing against older and often more skilled people than myself.”
For years, she was the smallest kid on the court, coming home with many bumps and bruises. But now, she can see how these experiences of being the underdog helped her build resilience. They also helped build her skill level.
By the time she was 14, Justine was playing on the high school varsity basketball team at Halifax Grammar School, where she was enrolled for Grades 9-12. Once again, she was playing at a level above her age group and against girls who were many years older.
To no one’s surprise, Justine excelled and, upon graduation, was recruited by countless Canadian universities and a handful of NCAA schools in the States. Ultimately, she chose to stay in Nova Scotia and attend Saint Mary’s, where her older sister had also gone. “I knew that at some point I’d have to put the basketball down, so that was a part of my decision to go to Saint Mary’s. I was drawn to their strong academic program. Plus, I’m a real homebody,” she adds with a laugh. “I like to see familiar faces and eat home-cooked meals!”
In her five years at Saint Mary’s, Justine became a basketball superstar. She led the Huskies to two AUS championships and CIS (now U-Sports) silver and bronze medals. She also earned two-time AUS MVP, four-time All-Canadian, and five-time AUS first-team All-Star, while playing more than 40 games with the Canadian national team.
“Justine was a tremendous leader who helped elevate Saint Mary’s Women’s basketball on the national stage, lifting the team to its first-ever regular season #1 national ranking,” says Head Coach Scott Munro. “A player and person like Justine only come along once in a long while. It was an honour and a pleasure to coach and watch her leave her mark on Saint Mary’s University and Canadian University basketball.”
To this day, Justine still holds the distinction of being the all-time leading scorer in the history of Canadian women’s university basketball and, in 2019, was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame.
She made some lifelong friends during her years of Huskies basketball and loved playing for the huge crowds their games drew. “It’s rare that a women’s game gets more spectators than the men’s team, but that’s what happened in those days,” she says. “The stands were always full.”
It’s these types of stories that she loves to share with young women in the hope that they, too, will enjoy the tremendous benefits that sport can bring to life. And with stats showing that pre-teen girls tend to step away from sports as they work their way through their teens, Justine thinks it’s crucial that these girls hear stories of women who have had successful athletic careers in high school and university.
“When we tell the stories of successful female athletes, this inspires young women to follow that path as well, and then to reap the benefits to their overall well-being - physically, mentally, and socially.”
Justine began dating her husband, Maj. Nicolas Leger, in her university years. They now have four children and have returned to East Preston to raise their family. She loves being close to her parents and extended family and relishes the strong community vibe of the place she calls home.
Sport continues to be a considerable part of Justine’s life—she now plays in the semi-professional Maritime Women’s Basketball Association—and six months ago, she accepted the position of Athletic Director at Halifax Grammar School. She’s having a ball and is also putting her Major in Finance to good use, creating budgets and using some of the time management skills she gained during her university years when she had to juggle sports, academics, part-time work, and family life.
She’s been asked to give presentations on her athletic career within the school and can feel her impact on the students there. “It’s a real privilege to inspire others, especially young people,” says Justine. “I feel so appreciative, fortunate, and blessed to be in this role.”
By Renée Hartleib