Humble Hallie from Hamlin grows into role as face of Iowa State Womens’ Hoops

Former Exira Vikette and Audubon County 4H-er leads Cyclones back to NCAA Tourney, is excited about potential professional career  

By Drew Herron - AJ Sports Editor / March 19, 2014

AMES – Iowa State will open NCAA Tournament play Saturday against Florida State as the program takes part in March Madness for an eighth straight year. 

This season, the team’s best player proved to be Hallie Christofferson, the face of the Cyclones Women’s Basketball team, and the pride of Hamlin, Exira, and all of Audubon County.

Christofferson wraps up her senior season as a unanimous First Team All-Conference Big 12 selection, is a finalist for most of the tier awards in women’s college hoops, and is on everyone’s All-American shortlist.

Eventually and probably, Christofferson will become for a while a professional basketball player. Wherever she ends up, be it the cities of the WNBA or in Europe, it will mark quite a distance to travel for a young woman from Hamlin, Iowa…population 251.

“I would like to take that chance if I’m given the opportunity,” Christofferson says of playing pro ball. “I’ve always thought it was so far out of my reach, I’d never really considered it. But now I’m looking forward to the chance.”

Christofferson leaves Iowa State a more polished player and individual than she came into it, and coach Bill Fennelly certainly has a lot to do with the success she has carved out for herself. But Fennelly will point to Christofferson’s upbringing, growing up on a corn and soybean farm in rural Audubon county (she and her siblings raised pigs) that made for a malleable individual ready to cultivate and grow.

“I think for her, it starts with the values she learned growing up in small-town Iowa,” coach Fennelly says. “Yea, Hallie has a lot of talent, but her work ethic, her individual accountability and sense of responsibility…all the good things that are prevalent in rural Iowa really show up.”

At Exira High School and in Audubon County, Christofferson was a lot of things growing up. She was valedictorian of her class, homecoming queen, an all-academic student who starred in track, volleyball, and of course, basketball. 

During her senior year, Christofferson guided the Vikettes to a Class 1A State Championship in the program’s final season before consolidation with Elk Horn-Kimballton. Moreover, she was an active 4H member and sometimes office holder from fourth grade through high school graduation.

Christofferson knows first hand what head, heart, hands, and health mean.

“I think I was President, Vice-President, and some other things at different times,” Christofferson jokes of her Audubon County 4H group. “We had a very small club, so we were able to do a lot.”

Fourth grade was also the same year Christofferson began to play basketball, and the rest is history in the making. The youngest of four children to Tom and Phyl, Hallie was able learn the value of hard work from her older brothers and sister as they went about life on the farm and in the community.

“I was always able to look up to my siblings, and use them as an example,” Christofferson says. “From them, I learned that dedication and hard work will lead you to where you want to be. I just followed their path.”

Eventually, Hallie followed her older sister Britta (who was a thrower for Iowa State’s Track team) to Iowa State, where she was exposed to the College of Design’s exhibitions, and other artists’ work that inspired her to become a Graphic Design Major, exposing a whole new artistic side to the polymath basketball star.

Now, Hallie works with pride on prints and poster series artwork projects that allow her a whole other avenue to be creative.

“In high school, I loved art, and I wanted to stick with something where I can work with my hands and be creative,” she says.

Christofferson doesn’t create the banners or posters with her own likeness for Iowa State Media relations, though there are plenty of those around. And like it or not, she has become the face of the program as well as a role model.

Prior to the season, Fennelly met with Christofferson as to what that might involve with speaking obligations and duties a step above the average player or starter. To see Christofferson mature and take the reigns of a program that heads into another March Madness this weekend, coach Fennelly says she is all that is right with college athletics.

“She’s humble to a fault, she’s quiet,” coach Fennelly says. “To be the star player and literally the face of the team in every way…it’s something she’s comfortable with. She’s short and to the point, but the Iowa State fan base can empathize with her. Every single one of our fans looks at her, this girl from small-town Iowa, and there is this instant connection.”

From Hamlin to…fill in the blank, Christofferson has opened some eyes as to how one might go from here to the rest of the world.

“I hope that (young players) don’t think that just because you come from a small school, that you don’t have the same opportunities as other people,” she says. “Maybe it does open some people’s eyes a little…if she can do it, why can’t I?”

#iowastate   #cyclones

Christofferson goes from farm to First Team Big 12

Former Exira standout finishing up decorated career at Iowa State

By Drew Herron - AJ/NT Sports / March 13, 2014

AMES – It’s not as though the basketball folks in Exira have a crystal ball that can look into the future.
But Vikettes coach Tom Petersen knew early on that he had something special in front of him one summer day in the Exira gym in 2006, when Hallie Christofferson, not quite a freshman, sweated through a workout.
The 6-foot-2 freshman was long, athletic and superbly coordinated for her frame, and she had many of the raw qualities desirable of a basketball player. But when coach Petersen saw firsthand the dedication and work ethic demonstrated from a young lady mature beyond her years, he believed at once he was seeing the start of something extraordinary.
"I wish people could have seen and watched the way she would go about practice, because it's not something you come along often,” he said. “And I haven't seen it since."
For Iowa State, the eureka moment came two years later, though Cyclones’ head coach Bill Fennelly says it took less than five minutes of seeing Christofferson working out at the ISU summer camp on the Ames campus prior to her junior year for the Cyclones' coaching staff to lock into her abilities as a DI player.
"After every session, we meet as a staff, and I told them immediately that I want that kid," coach Fennelly says of Christofferson. "From there on, we wanted her pretty bad and we recruited her pretty hard. I can say I've spent a lot of time at the Casey's in Exira."
It laid the framework for one of the most decorated careers in Iowa State Cyclones Women’s Basketball history, as evidenced again this week with Christofferson’s selection to the First Team All-Conference by the Big 12.
This latest honor is one of many bestowed upon Christofferson, who grew up on a farm in rural Audubon County, a bit east of Hamlin and north of Exira.
After leading Exira to its only girls’ basketball state championship as a senior in 2010, Christofferson made a quick transition to the pace of Iowa State and the Big 12.
As a true freshman, she started 27 of 33 games and averaged 9.3 points and 5.1 rebounds on her way to earning a spot on the All-Big 12 Freshman Team in 2011.
That quickly silenced critics who doubted that Christofferson’s domination of the Rolling Hills Conference and Class 1A basketball would translate well to the best conference in the country for women’s college basketball.
"She wasn't a big name coming into college and Exira, Iowa isn't exactly on the national map," coach Fennelly says. "But as a freshman, she makes the (Big 12) All-Freshman Team, and that was quite an accomplishment.
"Hallie had the skill sets that were more advanced that most freshmen, and we put her in a situation where she could be successful right away. We plugged her in and allowed her to grow in her role, and she's been a phenomenal asset ever since."
Most of those skill sets were built up in the gym in Exira, over the course of several hours over several years. From the onset, coach Petersen stressed fundamentals and pushed for hours upon hours of footwork and agility training. Those gains can be seen today on the floor at Hilton Coliseum.
"We work a lot on moves," coach Petersen says. "Obviously you want to spend time shooting the ball, but in practice we spend a lot of time on movement, because it's all position with your feet and your body if you want to be successful in the game of basketball.
"So many kids want to come into the gym, pick up a ball and just start shooting. Honestly, that would be the LAST thing I would encourage kids to do. You start off with ball handling, agility, weights and more ball handling…shooting is usually the last part that goes with it."
At the close of this week (March 14), Christofferson is averaging 18.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game for Iowa State, and has recorded 19 career double-doubles. Amongst the honors this year for the All-American candidate are spots on the Naismith Trophy watch list as well as the Wooden Award, two of the most prestigious honors out there.
Christofferson is the school’s fourth leading scorer all-time in terms of points-per-game (18.5) and she ranks fifth on ISU’s single season points list (558). She’s also the best free throw shooter (.879) on the nation’s second-best free throw shooting teams (80.2).
In Ames, they have a saying of “Doing things the Iowa State Way.” Coach Fennelly says Christofferson is the living embodiment of that concept.
"Hallie has impacted our program positively and dramatically in a number of ways on the court and off the court,” he says. “Our fan base loves her, she's a phenomenal student and she's bringing national recognition to our university because of the (numerous) awards that are basketball related and not.
"I've been here 19 years, and we can all debate who are the best players to have ever played here. But when that discussion takes place, Hallie certainly deserves to be in that discussion."
Since her arrival on campus at ISU, Christofferson has played positions 2-3-4 and 5, and has grown her game tremendously and thoroughly.
This year especially, the team has relied heavily on her versatility as she eats up minutes and rarely leaves the court.
"Our team this year, the weight that she carried on her shoulders is probably greater than any one individual player we have ever had here," coach Fennelly says.
Christofferson came into the process at Iowa State as post, but came out the other side polished enough to play anywhere on the court. On the low block or the perimeter, that balance and versatility is also a product of hard work dating back to the Exira days.
Coach Petersen saw early that Christofferson could do a lot more than dominate the post. Sometimes the towering 6-foot-3 forward would bring the ball up court, shoot from long range, and slash inside and out whenever she was given the green light. She did it at Exira, and eventually she grew into that as well on the Big 12 stage.
"She's blossomed and opened up her game tremendously since she's been at Iowa State," coach Petersen says. "Now people can see how good a player she really is. In high school, she was mainly a post player…yea she could step up and shoot 3's, but we didn't need her to do that. As I watch her at the collegiate level, that's her greatest development or evolution…her ability to shoot from outside."
It’s the expansion of her game that has Christofferson most satisfied since arriving at Iowa State. In the Rolling Hills Conference, there was no reason for Christofferson to do anything other than what she was doing by dominating in the paint.
But she knew competing at the next level would require a different approach.
“When I was at Exira, all that was expected of me was to be a post player,” she says. “Coming here, I started to play the (No. 3 position), and that’s what I am most proud of in regards to improving my game. To expand out to the perimeter and shoot 3-pointers was my way to work my way out from the basket.”
At that level, to evolve one’s game takes an extra kind of effort and dedication. But from freshman year to sophomore and from sophomore to junior and from junior to senior, Iowa State has seen steady and marked improvement from Christofferson.
The process by which that happens is attributable more to the individual than the institution.
"I've got a lot of players come and sit in my office and tell me that they want to get better and they're going to do this, this and this," coach Fennelly says. "But they walk out the door, and that's the end of it, it's over. Obviously, it takes WORK. You need to put in the time, you need to be in the gym, you have to accept coaching, and you have to be accountable and responsible. Hallie's individual personality traits have allowed her to become a GREAT player because she put in the time."
Iowa State’s season and schedule now sits in limbo, waiting for the selection process to play out Monday. It will determine where or how the Cyclones will play their postseason tournament, and how Christofferson might end her collegiate playing career.
“It’s gone by so incredibly fast,” Christofferson says. “I remember as a freshman thinking or feeling like it was never going to end. Now, I try my best just to take it all in.”

#cyclones  #iowastate    #halliechristofferson    #big12

Exira-EHK's Nick Peppers named to Shrine Bowl All-Star football game

IWCC-bound senior is first ever selection in brief history since Danes-Vikings combination

By Drew Herron - AJ Sports Editor / March 13, 2014

ELK HORN - The meaning or honor of playing in the Iowa Shrine Bowl holds varying weight for different players.
For one of this year's participants on the South roster, it most certainly brings with it a great deal of pride.
Exira-EHK senior linebacker Nick Peppers was announced recently as one of Iowa's 46 best football players selected for the all-star game, a remarkable recognition of his talent and achievements while competing in the 8-Man game.
"It's an honor to say the very least," Peppers said this week. "It's something I wanted pretty badly since my freshman year. And when we switched to 8-Man, I thought it might not be possible. But this is something I've wanted for a long time. It's definitely been a goal."
Last season Peppers was a First Team All-State selection by most every publication to release a list, but there is always the underlying gap that exists in Iowa between 8-Man and 11-Man. As a sophomore, Peppers played 11-Man in 2011 and he led the state (all classes) with 166 total tackles (70 solo and 16 for loss).
But, before the 2012 season, the Spartans moved from Class A to 8-Man, where numbers and stats can easily get skewed. Still, Peppers collected 165 total tackles as a junior (17 for loss), and this last year, he finished with 126 and six for loss as he sat out two games injured.
Though there are four 8-Man players on each side of the North-South game, Peppers thinks there still exists a underlying stigma against athletes from smallest class, and helps keep the chip on his shoulder.
"I hear it all the time, and you see it on Twitter," Peppers says. "I think there definitely is a knock on 8-Man (players), but if anything, it gives you a little bit of extra motivational energy."
The game is scheduled for Saturday, July 26 at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls. The Iowa Shrine Bowl Game is an All-Star Football game selected of pre-college on each side of a north-south dividing line that around here means Highway 30. The event is also a fundraising event in which proceeds through ticket sales, advertising, merchandising, sponsorship and contributions for The Shriner's Hospital for Children. Anyone interested in tickets ($10 advance/$15 at door) or sponsorship can contact Nick directly at 712-249-5945.
This year, the 42nd annual installment of the game, features 46 graduated high school seniors selected to the teams. Each fall, Iowa high school coaches are asked to recommend a defensive and offensive player whom is a worthy representative of his school and community. The teams are then selected by coaching staffs from across the state.
Spartans' head coach Tom Petersen didn't hesitate to nominate Peppers, and apparently enough of the other coaches agreed that senior from EEHK had the skill sets to compete.
"He's been the face of our program the past four years," coach Petersen says. "Nick's a special player, but more importantly a special kid and a leader."
Coach Petersen credits Peppers' unselfishness throughout his career when asked to do what's best for the team. When his offensive carries begin to slow after his sophomore year, he did not sulk, he blocked harder and spent more energy on defense. As a sophomore during 11-man player, led the state in tackles. As he progressed along, Nick Peppers carried the ball less and blocked more in accepting his specific role on a very good team.
"Nick is not a (player) you can replace with one or two people, it's going to take an entire team to make up for what he had," coach Petersen says. "He's been such a tremendous asset for us turning this program around."
Peppers plans to play next fall at Iowa Western Community College. IWCC's ability to turn out talent and serve as a spring board to the next level have got the former Spartans' standout excited about pursuing this avenue.
Peppers enters the Shrine Bowl in hopes of securing a starting position at linebacker, the position he plans to  play at Iowa Western in the fall.
"This is definitely going to help keep me motivated to stay in top shape over the summer," Peppers says. "And once I get to Iowa Western, I'll be like I am a week ahead of everybody at Iowa Western. It's going to be an exciting time."

#8-Man   #exira-ehk   #iowaprepfootball    #shrinebowl

WRESTLING: Brad Kerkhoff eager to share the glory of state medal with kin

Audubon junior picks up second career medal at State

By Drew Herron - AJ Sports Editor / March 6, 2014

AUDUBON - The passion for wrestling runs deep in the Kerkhoff household.

Audubon junior Brad Kerkhoff recognizes it, appreciates it and he doesn’t hesitate to tap into it.

Kerkhoff recently captured a State Wrestling medal for the second straight year, with his dad and longtime Wheelers head coach Blane Kerkhoff there on the mat with him at Wells Fargo Arena.

It was the eldest Kerkhoff who was there to give Brad his red warm-up sweat suit and congratulate him first following 6-5 decision victory that fetched him seventh place. But when reflecting upon what it took to wrestle through to another Saturday at the State Tournament, Brad recounts a story more in line with brotherly love on this trip to Des Moines.

“To be honest, there is no way I would have placed or been able to make weight if I didn’t have my brother as a workout partner,” Brad Kerkhoff says of competing regularly against his older brother Blair. Blair is currently a sophomore 141-pounder at Coe College in Cedar Rapids.

“He’s picked up so much knowledge and technique wrestling on college, wrestling against him is a lot different than any other opponent around here,” Brad Kerkhoff says. “Having him around helps out a ton, somebody at your disposal who is ALWAYS willing to wrestle and help me.”

Brad and Blair both made it to the State Tournament in 2012, when Brad was a freshman at 106 and Blair a senior at 126.

Last year, mononucleosis shelved Brad for part of the off-season, and it was a while before he could go at it full blown. Having Blair around, with his collegiate wrestling education and training plan certainly helped as well. As did a more mature approach to nutrition and training regimen.

The countdown to State 2015 has already counted for the Audubon Wheelers, and perhaps no other individual is more driven than Brad as he looks forward to his final bite at the apple.

Four days a week to lift, three days to wrestle mixed in with camps and conditioning make up the bulk of this off season’s regiment and road map to Des Moines.

From his freshman year to his sophomore year he went up in weight classes from 106 to 120. As a junior, he competed at 126, not much of a transition as kids tend to grow, and many of the opponents he faced this winter were the same last year at 120. Next year, its almost certain Brad will not compete at 126, but perhaps more likely at 132 or 138, or even 145. Though, there is no way to predict how tall nature might take growing boys, but Brad will be ready to go wherever he ends up next winter.

Entering his senior year, Kerkhoff has a reputation as tough on the bottom and the top, and ought to have on record an ability to shoot effectively from his feet in the neutral position. Finishing up after shots is one area he expects to polish over the summer, as well as defending against shots. Continual footwork training and nutrition goes without saying. 

“I’d like to get a lot better with my feet,” Brad says. “To be able to take anyone down and to feel more confident (against shots) defensively on my feet. I can’t continue to give up takedowns like I have been, if I want to get to where I want to go.”

His coach and father, Blane, says the biggest difference and growth he saw this year compared to last was mental toughness and belief in himself.

“Every kid has the goal first of reaching State, and then you experience it and it makes you hungry for a medal,” coach Kerkhoff says. “And, once you get on the medal stand, it’s natural that you want to get something better. I know that’s a goal for him, and he has one more year to chase that championship.”

Brad Kerkhoff finished his junior season with a 47-8 record for a Wheelers’ team that posted a 20-2 dual record and won the Western Iowa Conference Tournament title.

Audubon sent five individuals to the State Tournament, and all but senior Matt Fett (who finished as fourth place medalist) will return for the Wheelers next year. 

There already is a buzz about town regarding next season’s wrestling squad, with 12 starters set to return. If all remains in place, Audubon can expect eight juniors to become seniors for 2014-15. This past season might be signs of bigger things to come by the end of next winter.

“We have all kinds of opportunity for Audubon Wrestling next year,” Brad says. “There are four of us returning State qualifiers and we all know what it’s like, and what we are capable of. That’s the thing about wrestling at State…you learn how good you are because you wrestle against the best and you see how you do.”

#audubonwheelers  #iowawrestling  #iahsaa