Ashley Joens returns to the state of Iowa for another season.
But her sister Aubrey is not.
Aubrey Joens, a sophomore keeper of the Iowa State women’s basketball team last season, has entered the transfer portal.
“I just wanted more playing time and a bigger role overall and I thought it was a good decision for me,” said Joens.
The 5-foot-8 native of Iowa City appeared in 61 games over the past two seasons and averaged 5.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. Joens started in two games in her debut season and 15 games last season but saw her role diminish by the end of the 2021-22 season.
She still made a major contribution off the bench at times, helping the Cyclones win a school-record 28 games last season and get promoted to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2010. Expectations for Iowa State next season were even higher.
Joens’ sister Ashley announced earlier this year that she plans to take advantage of the extra year of eligibility brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and come back for another season. One of her sisters, Kelsey, is a member of the Iowa State Recruiting Class of 2023.
“It was a very hard decision knowing that I wasn’t going to play with Ashley again and that Kelsey was coming over here and I wasn’t going to be able to play with her and all my teammates in general again,” Aubrey Joens said. “I’m really good friends with everyone and it was a tough decision to want to leave.”
Joens said she’s heard about Marquette, Oklahoma and South Dakota since deciding to transfer. While her time at Iowa State is coming to an end, Joens said she’s happy to be playing for the Cyclones.
“It was really fun,” she said. “I’ve made a lot of good friends here, people I’ll keep in touch with. And I had a lot of fun playing in front of the fans at the Hilton. They were great. The coaching staff was great. So, it’s really hard, to leave such a good place. But I was just ready for a different situation.”
Tommy Birch, the Register’s sports company and reporter, has worked at the newspaper since 2008. He is the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. You can reach him at [email protected] or 515-284-8468. Follow him on Twitter @TommyBirch.