Ashleigh Vella: the wonder from "down under"

Ashleigh Vella is a major piece of the Idaho State family and the women's basketball program. As an international student from Australia, she has traveled more miles than any other player to get here. Now she is at the point in her career where she is nearing milestones, including her 500 rebounds.

"Now I'm a junior so I bring experience, and I know Coach [Sobolewski] and his system and how he likes things done. I try to be as much of a leader as I can on the court. I set goals for myself; I try to get at least a couple boards [offensive rebounds] a game and try not to force things and try to help my teammates," said Vella on her impact for ISU.

As a two-way player, one that scores in double figures and is third on the team in rebounds, Ashleigh brings a lot of talent to the table for Idaho State and is a key part of their success.

Idaho State is a two-way team as well, but that doesn't mean they are not emphasizing one part of their game.

"Defense. That's our staple this year; we want to be the best defensive team. We have a goal of keeping people under 34 percent every game from the field. We've worked really hard in the offseason on our rebounding; that probably lost us a few games last year that we should have won," said Ashleigh about the key to Idaho State's success. 

The Bengals have a high expectation for success, and as a team, they have lofty goals in mind. "Optimistically, we want to win every game, and I think we definitely have the potential to win every game. Just talking with the girls, we really want to host the tournament this year. We just have to keep defending to do it; I don't think it's an unreachable goal at all," said Vella.

ISU has had several marquee wins, including ones against South Florida, Chattanooga and both Montana teams.  "We were down so much with so little time, but we really stuck with it and fought back," said Ashleigh of the Montana State game. 

Ashleigh certainly had a long way to go in order to come to the Idaho State campus; she is from Melbourne, Australia.

"I had a coach back home … from America [that] knew the head coach here. I sent in my tape and it, just by chance, sort of worked out," said Ashleigh when talking about how she came to Idaho State.

"I really like it. I'm from a small town in Australia so it's similar and I love the community feel from this place, you know, we have such great support. I like it; [I'm] not liking the cold though," said Vella.

Part of their success stems from fan support. "Last game we almost [had] 1,500 fans. We just get more and more fans every week; we love when they come to the games and heckle the other teams and support us," said Vella.

"We are such a close-knit team. These girls really are my family – I don't get to see my family very often – but they're so supportive of me, and they make me really feel like part of their family," said Ashleigh about playing for ISU.