By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Ashley Evans ('18, JD '21), who played women's basketball for the Bearcats from 2014-15 through 2017-18, graduated in May from the Willamette University College of Law. Her graduation completed a seven-year journey at Willamette. Evans earned a bachelor's degree with a major in Politics and a minor in Religious Studies in 2018, then pursued her graduate degree.
"I chose Willamette for my undergraduate study because since I was a sophomore in high school, I wanted to pursue becoming a lawyer," Evans explained. "Willamette's reputation of high academic achievement as well as having a law school I could one day attend, drove my decision to attend Willamette. Additionally, Willamette was located across from the State Capitol where I ended up working for four years, making it the right decision. The ability to continue playing basketball, while getting the education that I needed in order to go to law school made my experience exceptional."
Evans initially planned to complete Willamette's 3+3 BA/JD program, but eventually changed to a 4+3 plan so that she could more easily focus on basketball during her fourth year. In the 3+3 program, students take classes at the College of Law in their fourth year of undergraduate studies. In the 4+3 plan, students complete all four years of undergraduate work before attending the College of Law. The two degree paths were recently consolidated in the University's Law School Bound program.
"From the time of her recruiting visit, Ashley was very focused on law school," Willamette Head Women's Basketball Coach Peg Swadener said. "We promised as a staff to support her in whatever direction she wanted to go, whether it was for the 3+3 or the 4+3 program. I love that we can support the 'student' in the student-athletes here at Willamette, and Ashley was a perfect example of that."
"Ultimately, I decided to switch to a traditional 4+3 path because I knew that I would never get the opportunity to play collegiate basketball again and it was not going to hurt my ability to go to law school," Evans said. "Going into my senior year, I knew we had a lot of potential that season and I did not want to regret missing it. I felt that the first year of law school (and looking back I was definitely correct) would be a different level of commitment that would require my full attention which would detract or possibly inhibit my ability to contribute to basketball the way I wanted. Staying the normal fourth year allowed me to get another year of academic preparation for law school and enjoy my last opportunity to play basketball at a high level.
Evans played in 95 games with 82 starts during her four years with the Bearcats. Her career statistics included 664 points, 202 rebounds, 258 assists, 96 steals, and 13 blocks. She set a Willamette career record by converting 83.1% of her free throw attempts (49 of 59). She scored a career-high 29 points against Warner Pacific College on Nov. 15, 2016. Her 258 assists rank eighth on Willamette's all-time list. She connected on 177 three-point shots to rank second all-time and finished fifth with 461 three-point attempts.
In 2017-18, Evans helped Willamette achieve a 17-10 overall record, including 10-4 in the Northwest Conference. The Bearcats qualified for the NWC Tournament and reached the championship game before falling to George Fox University. In the semifinals, Willamette defeated Whitman College on the road in Walla Walla, Washington, 55-52, as Evans made the winning 3-point basket with 16.6 seconds remaining. It was Willamette's first winning season since the team went 17-8 in 2000-01. Evans was one of five seniors on the team.
"Regarding my greatest contributions to the team that year, I would say my experience and my knowledge of the game," Evans commented.
"I was so proud of Ashley and what she accomplished here," Swadener noted. "I know it was an extremely difficult decision for her to delay entrance into law school, but the product of that decision was amazing to watch! She and her teammates had worked so hard and sacrificed so much to build the program to that point, and to see it all come together the way it did, at the perfect time of year, was so rewarding."
Her senior season provided Evans with many great memories. It was a fantastic way to complete her four years as a collegiate athlete.
"It was the perfect capstone to my basketball career and it is something I will never forget," Evans said. "Seeing the growth from my freshman year and only winning a handful of games to being fairly successful my senior year holds a lot of lessons and unforgettable memories. Having coaches who believed in us and developed our skills and knowledge for the game, paired with teammates who bought in and worked hard every day, led us to our successes in 2017-18."
In many ways, Evans was well prepared for the College of Law through her experiences playing basketball and completing her undergraduate degree in Politics. She gained significant experience working at the State Capitol when she completed an undergraduate internship as a legislative aide with State Senator Herman Baertschiger Jr. She also worked in Sen. Baeertshiger's office at other times as an undergraduate and continued to help out when she could during her three years of law school.
"I went back and forth from internship to a paid position depending on how many hours I could put in during a given year," Evans noted. "And I did a remote externship for the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office during my third year of law school."
Achieving success and returning the women's basketball team to a winning record was important to Evans and her teammates. Even so, there were other factors that made playing on the basketball team very special for Evans.
And now looking back, three years later, "there are many aspects about being a member of Willamette's women's basketball team that I loved and now miss," Evans noted. "Most of all, I loved having the opportunity to compete and get better every single day at something I love, while also being surrounded by teammates and coaches that pushed me both on and off the court."
Playing basketball at Willamette also helped Evans be confident and ready to attend the College of Law.
"My time as a member of the women's basketball team prepared me for law school in many ways," Evans said. "Most of all, it further instilled in me the importance of being passionate about what you pursue. Law school, like college basketball, and all it entails, is difficult, and if you are not passionate and therefore committed to what you pursue, then quitting seems more of an easy choice. Head Coach Peg Swadener ingrained in me that being all-in on a goal facilitates achieving it."
Associate Professor of Law Karen Sandrik, a former student-athlete herself who taught Evans during her first year of law school, explained "student-athletes come with an incredible work ethic and understanding of how to manage their time and balance competing interests. It isn't easy to balance a physically demanding sport and an academically rigorous schedule at the same time. I love teaching former student-athletes, and Ashley is no exception to that. She is talented and motivated. I am excited to see where the law takes her in her next journey.
"I look forward to seeing how Ashley continues pursuing her passion for the law like she did as a student-athlete," Dean of the College of Law Brian Gallini said. "As a former coach and student-athlete myself, I am always excited when our students rely on the skills they developed as an athlete in the law school classroom."
Now that Evans has completed her seven-year journey at Willamette, she can focus on a professional career, bolstered by her experiences as an undergraduate student, a women's basketball player, and a graduate student of the College of Law. Beyond taking the bar exam this summer, she's still deciding on exactly what she wants to do next.
"I am still trying to figure out what my next step might look like," Evans said. "However, something that I have always been interested in is advocating for student-athletes in both high school and in college athletics."
Perhaps working on behalf of student-athletes will be her next major endeavor. Regardless, Evans is prepared to take on experiences that might have seemed overwhelming before she attended Willamette as a student-athlete. She has gained a well-rounded understanding of athletics, competition, teamwork, and the legal system.
