Ashleigh Isenbarger (née Grant; born 15 May 1997) is an Australian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who last played for the

Perth Lynx The Perth Lynx are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Lynx compete in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) and play their home games at Bendat Basketball Centre. For sponsorship reasons, t ...

of the

Women's National Basketball League The Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) is the pre-eminent professional women's basketball league in Australia. It is currently composed of eight teams. The league was founded in 1981 and is the women's counterpart to the National Baske ...

(WNBL).

Basketball career

Early years (2012–2015)

Isenbarger made her debut in the

State Basketball League NBL1 West, formerly the State Basketball League (SBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Western Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Western Australia partnered with the National Basketball L ...

for the

Lakeside Lightning Lakeside Lightning is an NBL1 West club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 West. The club is owned and managed by Lakeside Baptist Church. The Lightning play their home games at Lakeside R ...

in 2012. Following her second season with the Lightning, Isenbarger became a member of the

West Coast Waves The Perth Lynx are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Lynx compete in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) and play their home games at Bendat Basketball Centre. For sponsorship reasons, ...

academy for the 2013–14 WNBL season. Her academy stint led to her averaging 7.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Lightning in 2014. The following season, Isenbarger averaged a career-high 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds in 22 games for the Lightning.Player statistics for Ashleigh Grant
/ref> She subsequently earned SBL Most Improved Player honours.

WNBL (2015–present)

Isenbarger's impressive season in 2015 saw her earn a development player spot on the

roster for the

2015–16 WNBL season The 2015–16 WNBL season is the 36th season of competition since its establishment in 1981. A total of 9 teams contested the league. The regular season was played between October 2015 and February 2016, followed by a post-season involving the top ...

. She made two appearances for the Lynx in 2015–16, and returned to the Lightning for the 2016 season. In 23 games for the Lightning in 2016, Isenbarger averaged 13.7 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game. On 13 September 2016, Isenbarger signed a full-time contract with the Perth Lynx for the

2016–17 WNBL season The 2016–17 WNBL season is the 37th season of competition since its establishment in 1981. The regular season begins on October 7, 2016 when the Sydney Uni Flames host the Perth Lynx and is scheduled to conclude on February 19, 2017. Townsville ...

. In September 2017, Isenbarger joined the

Melbourne Boomers The Melbourne Boomers are an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. The Boomers compete in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) and play the majority of their home games at Melbourne Sports Centre – Pa ...

as a development player for the

2017–18 WNBL season The 2017–18 WNBL season was the 38th season of the competition since its establishment in 1981. The regular season began on 5 October 2017, with the Melbourne Boomers visiting the Dandenong Rangers. The Sydney Uni Flames were the defending champ ...

. She impressed during pre-season, which saw her elevated to the main playing squad. She was subsequently awarded the Club Most Improved Player award for the 2017–18 season. She went on to help the Lakeside Lightning win the SBL championship in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. Isenbarger spent a second season with the Melbourne boomers in 2018–19 and then returned for her eighth season with the Lakeside Lightning in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the 2020 SBL season was cancelled. Isenbarger later joined the Lightning in July 2020 for the West Coast Classic. On 24 September 2020, Isenbarger signed with the Perth Lynx for the

2020–21 WNBL season The 2020 WNBL season was the 41st season of the competition since its establishment in 1981. The Canberra Capitals were the two-time defending champions, but were defeated in the Semi-Finals by Melbourne. The Southside Flyers won the Grand Final, ...

, returning to the team for a second stint. Isenbarger joined the Lightning for the

2021 NBL1 West season The 2021 NBL1 West season was the inaugural season of the NBL1 West. After 32 years known as the State Basketball League (SBL), the league was rebranded under the NBL1 banner for 2021. The regular season began on Friday 16 April and ended on Satu ...

. She then re-signed with the Lynx for the

2021–22 WNBL season The 2021–22 WNBL season is the 42nd season of the competition since its establishment in 1981. The Southside Flyers were the defending champions, however they failed to qualify for finals. The Melbourne Boomers won their second championship, de ...

References

External links

SBL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isenbarger, Ashleigh 1997 births Living people Australian women's basketball players Basketball players from Perth, Western Australia Centers (basketball) Forwards (basketball) Melbourne Boomers players Perth Lynx players