Skip to Main Content

Long Shots

March 01, 2020 - 1 minute read


Tristen (Ryan) Holton

Tristen (Ryan) Holton ’06 had a knack for sinking three-point shots, and set records at CUI in her four years on the women’s basketball team. 

“To hear the crowd cheer and my team get excited really got a lot of energy flowing,” Holton says. “I absolutely loved my position.” 

The Eagles went to the playoffs in two of her four seasons. Since graduating, Holton has taught sixth grade and other grades for six years at Irvine elementary schools. She mentors student teachers from CUI in her classroom. “I enjoy that mentoring piece,” she says. “It has been neat to give back to Concordia after everything they’ve done for me in basketball and education.” 

Tristen and husband Nicholas Holton ’07, a business major and Eagles baseball player, have three children who “love sports just as much as my husband and I do,” Tristen says. Nicholas coaches the kids’ teams, and the family attends CUI basketball games for fun and to introduce the kids to college and sports. 

Tristen was inducted into the Hall of Fame for women’s basketball at Homecoming 2020. “I was very surprised when I got the call,” she says. “I’m very proud of my time there. I got to play basketball, have fun, enjoy the experience and get a good education.” 

Back to top