Jennifer Hamson

Jennifer Hamson (born January 23, 1992) is an American professional volleyball player and former basketball player.[1] She was also an All-American player for the Brigham Young University Cougars volleyball team.[2]

Jennifer Hamson
Personal information
Born (1992-01-23) January 23, 1992
Lindon, Utah
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High schoolPleasant Grove
(Pleasant Grove, Utah)
CollegeBYU (2010–2014)
WNBA draft2014: 2nd round, 23rd overall pick
Selected by the Los Angeles Sparks
Playing career2015–2018
PositionCenter
Career history
2015Los Angeles Sparks
2015–2016BC Enisey
2016–2018Sydney Uni Flames
2017Indiana Fever
Career highlights and awards
  • WNBL champion (2017)
  • AP Honorable mention All-American (2014)
  • WCC Player of the Year (2014)
  • WCC Defensive Player of the Year (2014)

Early career

Hamson grew up in Lindon, Utah. She attended Pleasant Grove High School, where she was an all-state basketball selection and a member of the state championship volleyball team. She also played for the Utah Elite club volleyball team.[3][2] Hamson was recruited to play volleyball by the University of Utah, Colorado State, Utah State, Long Beach State, University of Louisville, and UNLV.

College

Hamson was a dual sport athlete at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, and is considered by many to be the best ever female athlete at BYU.[4] She led the Cougars to a sweet sixteen appearance in the 2014 NCAA tournament, only the third #12 seed to ever make it that far. As a senior, she averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds and led the nation with 147 blocked shots. She was named an Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention recipient and was the WCC Player and Defensive Player of the Year, the first time in league history that the honor has gone to the same student-athlete.[5]

BYU statistics

Source[6]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2010-11 BYU 30 231 55.9% 0.0% 73.9% 5.1 0.1 0.2 1.5 7.7
2011-12 BYU 31 295 57.9% 0.0% 75.3% 5.7 0.5 0.5 2.5 9.5
2012-13 BYU 26 290 51.5% 0.0% 63.2% 8.8 0.7 0.8 2.8 11.2
2013-14 BYU 35 621 56.6% 0.0% 71.5% 11.5 1.0 0.5 4.2 17.7
Career 122 1437 55.5% 0.0% 71.2% 7.9 0.6 0.5 2.8 11.8

WNBA career

Following her collegiate career, Hamson was selected 23rd overall (2nd round) in the 2014 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks, despite telling teams that she would defer playing a year to complete her volleyball commitments.[4] Hamson signed with the Sparks on February 23, 2015 after sitting out the 2014 WNBA season.[7]

Volleyball career

Hamson chose to defer playing in the WNBA so she could attend the U.S. Collegiate National Volleyball Team camp during the summer of 2014. She completed her eligibility by competing with the BYU volleyball team for the fall 2014 season.[8] Hamson was named an All American for volleyball after the Cougars run to the Sweet Sixteen in 2013.[9]

After leaving basketball, Hamson returned to playing volleyball, by then also professionally. In November 2018, she was signed by German Women's Volleyball League (Frauen-Volleyball-Bundesliga) club VC Wiesbaden to replace compatriot Holly Toliver. She said, "My love for volleyball has never gone away and I worked hard for a successful start in this great sport. I am very happy and grateful that I will get the chance to prove this at VC Wiesbaden. Also, this is really a beautiful city."[10] Wiesbaden advanced to the DVV-Pokal Frauen (Women's German Cup) and Frauen-Bundesliga quarterfinals in the 2018–19 season but was swept in both by eventual league champions Allianz MTV Stuttgart, to which she signed for the succeeding season.[11] With Hanson, Stuttgart reached the 2020 DVV-Pokal final but lost to Dresdner SC women's volleyball team. At the time the 2019–20 Bundesliga season was curtailed before the playoffs, Stuttgart stood at second place in the table. She eventually parted ways with the club.[12]

Personal life

Hamson is a daughter of David and Tresa Spaulding Hamson, who starred in basketball at BYU, as did many family members on the maternal side. She has two brothers, Alan, who played for the BYU basketball team, and Tim, as well as two sisters.

Awards and honors

Basketball
  • WCC player of the year (2014)
  • WCC defensive player of the year (2014)

Volleyball
  • WCC player of the Year (2013)
  • All-WCC First Team (2013)
  • All-Pacific Region First Team (2013)
  • AVCA All-America First Team (2013)

Career statistics

Brigham Young University
Jennifer Hamson Basketball Statistics[3] at Brigham Young University
Year G MIN AVE FG FGA PCT FT FTA PCT REB AVG A BLK S PF TO PTS AVG
2010–11 30 455 15.2 90 161 0.559 51 69 0.739 154 5.1 4 45 7 51 27 231 7.7
2011–12 31 553 17.8 114 197 0.579 67 89 0.753 178 5.7 17 76 17 52 31 295 9.5
2012–13 26 659 25.3 121 235 0.515 48 76 0.632 229 8.8 18 72 20 67 55 290 11.2
2013–14 35 1084 31.0 224 396 0.566 173 242 0.715 404 11.5 34 147 16 88 88 621 17.7
Totals 122 2751 22.5 549 989 0.555 339 476 0.712 965 7.9 73 340 60 258 201 1437 11.8

References
  1. "Jennifer Hamson". www.usab.com. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  2. "Jennifer Hamson - Volleyball Profile". BYU Cougars. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  3. "Jennifer Hamson - Basketball Profile". BYU Cougars. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  4. Hamson, Jennifer (April 14, 2014). "Are WNBA teams willing to wait on BYU's Hamson?". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  5. Lloyd, Jared (April 14, 2014). "LLOYD: Cougar senior Jennifer Hamson picked 23rd overall in WNBA draft by LA". The Daily Herald. Archived from the original on April 16, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  6. "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  7. "Sparks Sign 2014 Draft Pick Jennifer Hamson". February 23, 2015. Archived from the original on May 2, 2015.
  8. "Sparks make investment in future by selecting BYU's Jennifer Hamson in second round of WNBA draft". Daily News. April 14, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  9. "Jennifer Hamson: Life as a 6-foot-7-inch tall BYU coed". KSL. March 21, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  10. "From The WNBA To Pro Volleyball, Jennifer Hamson Signs In Germany". Volley Mob. November 11, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  11. "Diagonalangreiferin Jennifer Hamson komplettiert Stuttgarter Kader". Allianz MTV Stuttgart (in German). June 26, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  12. "Perfekt: Volleyball-Star Krystal Rivers bleibt eine weitere Saison". Stuttgarter Zeitung (in German). April 2, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
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