Ashten is a talented 6’5 basketball athlete who in her career has already won an NCAA Championship with Stanford University, scratched the surface of the WNBA, was awarded League MVP in the NZNBL on top of an All Star 5 Nomination in France.
Learn more about Ashten’s story and her future goals as a basketball athlete below:
In 50 words or less, introduce yourself:
Hi, I’m Ashten!
I grew up in Colorado and recently graduated from Stanford University in 2023. I have spent the last year and a half in New Zealand and France playing basketball professionally.
How did your basketball journey begin?
Growing up, sports were always a huge part of my life. I started playing basketball around 8, and I quickly fell in love with it. As I got older, and started to take it more seriously, basketball transitioned from something I did for fun into an avenue for some incredible opportunities.
When did you realize that you wanted to play basketball professionally?
In 2012, when I was 11, Denver hosted the Final Four for the NCAA tournament. It was one of the first times that I was exposed to women’s basketball being played at an extremely high level. I knew that one day I wanted to play on that stage – I was also highly motivated by the fact that each player got free basketball shoes from their university.
Tell us about your time at Stanford University:
I attended Stanford from 2019-2023, where I graduated with both my bachelor and masters degrees in Management, Science & Engineering.
During those 4 years, I won 2 x pac-12 championships, played in back to back final fours and won the National Championship in 2021.
Overall my time at Stanford provided me with incredible experiences and connections that I will carry with me forever. However, despite all of the successes, it wasn’t always easy. My freshman year of school was cut short by COVID-19, which carried into the entirety of my sophomore year. This was an enormous challenge for our team, but it also helped us to grow together and learn the importance of community. That year, my teammates were the most important people in my life. We helped each other get through an incredibly difficult time, and through the ups and downs of the season we were able to walk away with one of the highest accomplishments in college basketball – winning an NCAA Championship.
What does it take to win an NCAA championship?
Winning an NCAA Championship takes perseverance. The college basketball season is grueling and long. Our team had to push through exhausting 3 hour practices, games played in random gyms across the country, and living on the road for weeks at a time; never knowing when we’d return home. We took that season day by day and found small things that brought us together as a team. All of those challenges prepared us for the tournament in a way that no one else was ready for, and we were able to win it all.
In 2023 you were drafted pick 34 to the Connecticut Suns in the WNBA, what emotions did you feel when they called your name?
The WNBA draft was something that I had dreamed about forever; getting drafted was one of the most surreal experiences of my life. After a senior season that hadn’t lived up to my expectations, I honestly didn’t know if the draft would be a possibility for me. When I heard my name called, it was incredible. I felt so much all at once, I’m pretty sure I started crying because I just couldn’t believe that it was real.
How was training camp and what experiences did you learn from?
Attending training camp with the Connecticut Sun was another incredible opportunity. I got to learn from and play with WNBA legends, Dewanna Bonner and Alyssa Thomas, and I was also reunited with a former teammate from Stanford, DiJonai Carrington.
Even though I wish I was in Connecticut a little bit longer, it gave me a lot of confidence in starting my professional career overseas and I am excited to work my way back into the league.
Recently you have sustained a couple of big injuries, tell us more:
At the end of my first professional season in New Zealand, I suffered a stress fracture in my right foot. I had to take 8 weeks off from basketball, before traveling to play in France. For the majority of that season I had no issues and was able to jump right back into playing, until right before the playoffs started, where I had a stress reaction in my foot again. When I found out that it was another fracture I was devastated, and I had to sit out for another 6-8 weeks. The injury delayed my ability to play in Australia, but my team gave me the option to come early to rehab before I started playing – which eventually led me to SRA.
How did you come to find SRA?
I was introduced to SRA from a friend and former teammate Paige Bradley, and immediately after getting started I knew that SRA was going to be a big part in my recovery and also my training as a whole while playing in Australia.
How has SRA helped you with these injuries and as an athlete?
SRA played a huge role in my recovery, and I have had no issues with my foot since getting started. On top of that, I have learned a lot foundationally on what I need for my body to be performing at its best. This week we enter the NBL1 finals, and my body feels the best it has in over a year, all because of the resources and tools provided by SRA.
What future goals do you have and how are we going to achieve these?
As much as I love playing overseas, making a WNBA roster is the ultimate goal. As I gain more experience at the professional level I am confident that I will be able to break into the WNBA in the next couple of years. In the meantime I look forward to continuing to play around the world, experiencing new cities and cultures while also bettering myself as an athlete through the tools provided by SRA.