From White Plains to Notre Dame to DC: The Sonia Citron Journey
- gibsonlowenbergit
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
Sonia Citron has quickly established herself as one of the top guards in the WNBA, but she had a long journey before she found herself at the top.
Photo via Notre Dame Athletics
Born in White Plains, New York, Sonia Citron was raised in a basketball family. William Citron, her father, played basketball at Bradley University and encouraged his daughter to pick up the sport at an early age.
As an eighth grader, Citron joined The Ursuline School varsity basketball team, where she averaged 10.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 4.0 steals, and 3.8 blocks in 22 games. As a senior, she led her team to the 2A state championship after winning two New York Player of the Year awards and being named a McDonald's All-American.
In 2019, Citron was named to the United States U16 National Team, where she averaged 13.3 points and won gold with a 6-0 record. Her play also earned her a spot on the All-Tournament team. Two years later, she joined the U19 national team and averaged 13.7 points per game and once again helped lead Team USA to an undefeated 7-0 record and the gold medal while making the All-Tournament team.
Her stellar high school play earned the attention of Niele Ivey, whose plans for the future of the Fighting Irish Women's Basketball program ultimately won over the star shooting guard.
Sonia Citron started her Notre Dame career off strong.
Citron immediately made her presence felt with the Irish in her debut, where she put up 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists on only 8 shot attempts in a win over Ohio.
She had an extremely strong freshman season, featuring a 29-point explosion in a win over Michigan State and another performance where she dropped 21 in a win over conference opponent Clemson.
The Irish finished the season 24-9 with a trip to the Sweet Sixteen.
The highlight of the season for Citron came during March Madness, where she showcased her skills with a 25-point, 6-rebound, 4-steal outing in the Round of 32 against Oklahoma, where she shot 53.8% from the field and 11/11 from the free throw line.
She went on to finish her first season with the blue and gold, averaging 11.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.6 steals, all top three on the team.
Citron only leveled up her game in her sophomore season, raising her scoring average and drastically improving her efficiency from the field. Joined by star teammates Olivia Miles and Maddy Westbeld, as well as future Washington Mystics teammate Cassandre Prosper, Citron helped lead the Irish to a 27-6 season and a second-straight Sweet Sixteen appearance for the rising star despite an ACL injury sidelining Miles. The Irish fell short yet again, this year falling to Maryland.
This season peaked in the first round of the ACC tournament for Citron as she poured in 28 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists in a win over NC State.
Sonia Citron posted the best season of her collegiate career in her junior year. With Olivia Miles sidelined for the season, Citron took her opportunity to showcase her skills. She posted career highs in points and assists per game while maintaining her strong efficiency.
After adding star freshman Hannah Hidalgo to their already stacked roster, Notre Dame went on to finish the season with a 28-7 record and a conference championship before once again falling in the Sweet Sixteen to Oregon State.
This season also included arguably Citron's best game of her career with the Fighting Irish. She scored 29 points in the first round of the NCAA tournament while also contributing 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and a pair of steals. In this win over Kent State, Citron shot 13/20 from the field, including three shots made from beyond the arc.
Entering her senior year in the 2024-25 season, Citron took a step back, embracing being the third option on a team that featured five current WNBA players and Hidalgo.
The Fighting Irish boasted one of the greatest guard rotations in Women's College Basketball history with the return of Olivia Miles, the ascent of Hannah Hidalgo, and, of course, Sonia Citron.
Her senior season was the most efficient season of Citron's college career, with 59.3% true shooting. Despite her scoring numbers being down from her previous two seasons, Citron saw career highs in steals, blocks, and assists per game.
The stacked Irish roster finished the season first in the ACC with a 28-6 record, the fourth straight year of improvement. Also, for the fourth straight year, the Irish would go on to fall in the Sweet Sixteen, this time to TCU.
This year was up and down for Citron as she had plenty of great games, including eight games where she scored 20-plus. However, the lows were just as prominent; she had 13 games where she scored in the single digits.
Citron had an elite game in the first round of March Madness in the matchup against Stephen F. Austin, posting 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 stocks. Despite that performance, she still struggled in the postseason, only averaging 13.4 points on 42.6% from the field, a significant dip from her regular-season production.
Throughout her career with the Fighting Irish, Citron piled up the awards. She was the ACC Rookie of the Year, a 3x All-ACC team member, a 2x All-ACC Tournament Team member, and a member of the 2024-25 ACC All-Defensive team.
Following her strong college career, Sonia Citron immediately started turning heads at the pro level.
Her stellar career in South Bend helped her gain major attention in the WNBA, ultimately culminating in her being selected third overall by the Washington Mystics in a year highlighted by UConn megastar Paige Bueckers.
She was joined on the Mystics by fourth overall pick and USC standout Kiki Iriafen, a duo that would soon prove to be one of the best rookie duos in history.
In her WNBA debut, Citron took over. She scored 19 points in 23 minutes on only seven shot attempts, setting the tone for a tremendous rookie season.
She finished the season averaging 14.9 points, 4 rebounds, and 1.7 stocks on 47.0/44.5/87.2 shooting splits. These numbers were good enough to earn Citron her first All-Star nod and place her second in Rookie of the Year voting behind Bueckers.
While the Mystics as a whole struggled in her first season, finishing with a 16-28 record, they had a strong young core and several draft selections in the 2026 WNBA draft, putting together a much stronger roster around Citron and Iriafen for this current season.
14 games into her second pro season, Citron is averaging 17.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.0 stocks per game on an elite 63.4% true shooting. She has led the Mystics to a .500-plus record and is currently on pace to make the playoffs for the first time since 2023.
Citron has had several clutch moments this season, including a fade-away game-winner against the Toronto Tempo and a late-game takeover to lead the Mystics to an overtime victory over the Indiana Fever in a game where she dropped a career-high 30 points.
While it's extremely early in her career, Citron has shown potential to be an all-time great guard at the WNBA level and has been one of the best guards in the league early in the season. Time will tell if she can continue that trajectory.
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