Iowa State’s Ashley Joens ‘excited’ to reunite with Stephanie Soares in WNBA

AMES — Stephanie Soares beamed after she became Iowa State’s highest WNBA Draft pick in program history.

The 6-foot-6 star who played 13 games with the Cyclones before suffering a torn ACL had been picked fourth overall Monday night by the Washington Mystics, but behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing wrought a twist of fate for Soares, who ended up with the Dallas Wings via trade.

“Someone just tapped me (on the shoulder) and was like, ‘You got traded, you got traded,’” Soares said on a WNBA Zoom call. “I was like, ‘What?’ That happened so fast.’ But, yeah, I think I’m just ready to get to Dallas now and start getting to work.”

So is her former and current teammate, Ashley Joens. Iowa State’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder heard her name called in the second round when the Wings selected her with the 19th overall pick.

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“It’s really exciting when you hear your name called,” Joens said. “You get to go up onstage, take your picture, and just know where you’re going now — and obviously with Steph going there, it’s really exciting I get to play with her again.”

Eventually, perhaps. Dallas President and CEO Greg Bibb said on a Zoom call it’s unlikely Soares’ rehabilitation will be complete before the season starts, so she’s a long-term investment.

“When you have the opportunity to add a player of the caliber of Stephanie Soares, you do what it takes,” Bibb said. “To be able to add her to our draft class, along with the others we’ve been able to select (Monday night), it’s a huge day for the organization.”

Dallas ended up with one-third of the draft’s first round picks — four of 12 — and Bibb said acquiring a shooter emerged as the primary goal. The Wings did just that by selecting Maddy Siegrist of Villanova, Lou Lopez Sénéchal of Connecticut and Abby Meyers of Maryland before picking Joens.

So the former ISU and Iowa City High standout will have to shine consistently when training camp begins on April 30.

“Training camp’s gonna be tough, but nothing’s ever easy,” Joens said. “Nothing’s ever handed to you. You have to earn it.

“So just coming in and being aggressive and competitive and competing; just soaking it all up, learning from the veteran players and going from there.”

Bibb said Dallas would have considered selecting Joens in the 2022 draft as well, but she chose to play a fifth year with the Cyclones and improved her ball-handing, quickness and shooting.

“A premier shooter,” Bibb said of Joens. “Plays bigger than her size. Tough. A competitor. Great interview. Very serious about her basketball craft. Awesome teammate.”

Now Joens will get to be teammates with Soares again — and this time it could turn into a much longer on-court relationship.

"Getting to play with her again is really exciting, because obviously with her injury this year I didn’t get to play with her the full year,” Joens said. “She’s got a lot of potential and is a great player, a great person, so I’m excited to get to play with her again.”

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