Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus UCF on January 31, 2026 , Win , 65, to, 52
Final
Women's Basketball
65
UCF
52
Iowa State University Athletics
Christofferson Prepared for Sophomore Season
10.07.2011 | Women's Basketball
AMES, Iowa. For as long as Cyclone Head Coach Bill Fennelly has been in charge of the women's basketball program, he has been able to find talent in the depths of Iowa.
Within the last five years, Fennelly has pulled the likes of Alison Lacey, Amanda Zimmerman, Chelsea Poppens and Kelsey Bolte from small Iowa towns with populations of under 2,500 residents, all whom have contributed to runs deep into the NCAA tournament.
With the departure of Bolte, the Cyclones look to others to fill the void she leaves behind in both scoring and leadership. In her last season as a Cyclone, Bolte averaged 16.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Combine that with 88 three-pointers made and over 400 shots taken, there is a big hole left to fill.
One of the Cyclone candidates is sophomore Hallie Christofferson. Christofferson, from Hamlin, Iowa, a town of around 200 people, was a valuable contributor to last year's NCAA tournament qualifying team. Playing in all 33 games and starting in 27 of them, Christofferson averaged 9.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest en route to earning Big 12 All-Freshman team honors.
For the upcoming season, Christofferson recognizes the gap that is left open.
“We (the team) know there is a gap to be filled,” Christofferson said. “We are all going to do our best and we will see what happens.”
She took matters into her own hands this summer as she spent a week back in her hometown with her high school coach. During that week she worked on shooting three pointers on the move as well as polishing her post game by adding a hook shot to her arsenal.
“I told my high school coach 'this is what we need to work on' and we got it done,” Christofferson said.
With her offseason work and a year of play under her belt, Christofferson feels more comfortable about the upcoming season.
“I'm feel a lot more confident in myself now compared to last year,” she said. “Everything was hitting you all at one time; you didn't know how to take things. This year you have a better sense of what is going to happen, you know the practice schedule and how to better manager your time. It's more relaxing. “
Fennelly expects Christofferson to greatly impact the team for this season. Calling her the team's most complete player. At 6-3, she has the skills inside and out.
“Last year no one knew who she was and she made the (All-Big 12) freshman team,” Fennelly said. “She has the ability to be an all conference player and one of the best we've ever had, putting her on a list of really good players.”
“She's going to play a lot of minutes and get a lot of shots,” Fennelly said.
With Bolte gone, Christofferson provides the body type and skill set to replace the 32nd pick of the 2011 WNBA draft.
“There's so many little things that (Bolte) did that impacted how we played,” Christofferson said. “When I was learning the three (small forward) spot, she would literally walk me through each position and tell me 'this is what you have to do when the ball goes there.' She was a great leader on and off the floor.”
Look for Christofferson's role on the court and as a leader to increase during her second season in Ames.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballSyracuse Post-Game vs. ISU (NCAA First Round)
Saturday, March 21
Syracuse Previews Iowa State (NCAA Tournament First Round)
Friday, March 20
Iowa State Previews Syracuse (NCAA Tournament First Round)
Friday, March 20
Bill Fennelly and Audi Crooks Talk NCAA Selection Show
Sunday, March 15
