The career scoring leader in Iowa State women’s basketball history made it official on Monday: Ashley Joens will return to the program in 2022-23 for her final season of eligibility.
The Iowa City native announced her decision on Monday, ahead of the WNBA’s deadline for any player on a non-Final Four roster to declare for the draft on March 28.
Joens has already had an illustrious career at Iowa State, eclipsing the all-time scoring record in February and sitting near the top in just about every statistical category.
Now, she will have a chance to take the top spot in basically all of them, conceivably.
The decision comes three days after Iowa State’s season came to a close in a Sweet 16 loss to No. 10 seed Creighton Friday in Greensboro.
Joens averaged 20.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game this season, helping Iowa State to a 28-7 record which stands as the most wins in school history.
Next season, the goals will be clear, and it’s not just the 29-win mark.
Iowa State will be vying for its third Elite 8 appearance in program history and could conceivably find its way to a Final Four appearance with the pieces it has coming back.
Time will tell what’s to come, and there are no guarantees in this sport, but the Cyclones will see the return of every player on the roster minus Maddie Frederick.
It doesn’t get much better as far as looking into the future goes.
Cyclone Fanatic will have more coverage of women’s basketball throughout the off-season, leading up to the season opener in November.
