DENVER, Colo. –  In a perfect world, the Yale women's basketball team's games at the University of Denver Classic this weekend would have been a showcase for one Bulldog in particular: senior forward Camilla Emsbo, a native of nearby Lakewood. 
 
On the court, Emsbo is the type of player who can influence a game with her mere presence. There's no telling how many times over the course of her first three seasons playing for the Bulldogs that an opposing player took a look at the 6-foot-5 Emsbo defending in the paint and decided that driving to the rim was simply not a good idea. 
 
And Emsbo also influences the game in tangible ways. She was a unanimous first team All-Ivy League selection last year after ranking among the Ivy top seven in blocks per game (1st, 2.2) (26th nationally), double doubles (1st, 13), field goal percentage (1st, .514), rebounds per game (2nd, 10.2), free throw percentage (3rd, .704) and points per game (7th, 14.1).

 

But for the 2022-23 season, including this weekend's games against New Mexico State and Houston Christian at the Denver Classic, Emsbo finds herself having to impact the game in a completely new way: from the bench. Due to injury, she will be sidelined for the year – but she will continue to be a major part of the team. Prior to her injury Emsbo had been elected captain by her teammates, and she remains in that leadership role.
 
Those who have played alongside Emsbo note that she is perfectly suited to lead, whether she is on the court or not.

"She's intelligent, compassionate and respectful of everyone around her," said junior point guard Jenna Clark.  "She has a lot of great qualities that make her a true leader. She's trustworthy and someone that each member of the team knows they can talk to, which is super important in the captain role."

Clark developed into an elite point guard with Emsbo as one of her favorite targets last year. The two enjoyed a unique chemistry that manifested itself in everything from game-changing plays to pre-game lineup introductions.

"I know that she always has my back and in games we would go to battle for each other," Clark said. "I would just say that getting to play every game with one of the best post players in the entire country was pretty cool. I also love our pregame routine which consists of me running into her arms and us getting a real kick out of ourselves." 

Since Emsbo's injury, Clark has seen her find new ways to contribute.

"Camilla is someone who will always be there to help, whether on the court or off," said Clark. "I think that her leadership and communication has been huge in bringing the team together and keeping us together. I am constantly looking to her for advice and thoughts during practices. I'll walk over to her and ask her opinion on certain reads and she gives me feedback that helps me be a better passer and point guard. Even though she's not actively playing, she's still making a huge impact."

Sophomore forward Grace Thybulle is one of the players who figures to log more minutes with Emsbo out. At 6-foot-3, she is Yale's tallest healthy player. She scratched the surface of her potential last season, appearing in 17 games and starting two. Now, as Thybulle and Yale's other post players take on the challenge of filling the void left by Emsbo's injury, they look to her as a mentor. 

"Camilla is an amazing grounding presence," said Thybulle. "Even when she's not on the court she knows how to bring us together and settle us down. For me specifically, she's been so great in helping coach me through the post. She has such a deep knowledge of the position and has helped me grow my skill set so much in that sense. When I come off the court after not finishing a move quite right she knows exactly how to break it down with me."

Even with her Yale playing career coming to a premature end, Emsbo has rewritten the record books. She is second on Yale's career blocks list with 172 – trailing only Erica Davis '07 (182). She is seventh on Yale's career rebounds list (715). She joined the 1,000 point club last season and sits 18th on Yale's career scoring list (1,092 points). Her 58 blocks last year placed her third in school history, behind only her total from 2019-20 (62) and the school record of 63, set by Davis in 2006-07. 

And yet those numbers are just part of the reason that the superlatives flow when her teammates talk about her. Clark calls her a "game-changer". Thybulle calls her "a once-in-a-lifetime human being".

"Camilla is such an emotionally intelligent person and everyone is able to easily place a lot of their trust in her," said Thybulle. "In that sense she was just such a natural pick to be a leader because she's fostered that trust in such a deep way."
 
Emsbo credits the captains she has played with at Yale for helping her develop her leadership style.

"My past captains – Gabby Nelson '19, Megan Gorman '20, Ellen Margaret Andrews '21 and Roxanne Nesbitt '22 – have taught me that there is not one type of leader," said Emsbo. "Each one of these captains has had a different role on the floor, and a different way of connecting with and inspiring their teammates. A constant that runs between them is they care deeply about team success. To us all, team success is more than just winning games. It also means cultivating an environment where everybody feels welcomed, valued and excited to contribute to the Yale Women's Basketball family."

That includes one of the newest members of that family. Emsbo is the first captain under Dalila Eshe, who was named Yale's Joel E. Smilow, Class of 1954 Head Coach of Women's Basketball in April. Eshe had spent the previous three seasons as an assistant at Princeton – coaching Emsbo's identical twin, Kira, a forward for the Tigers. In her short time in New Haven, Eshe has already seen Camilla Emsbo make a difference. 

"She's an incredible anchor for us," said Eshe. "She's going to be a huge part of the team throughout the entire year. Her voice will be very impactful."

An ecology and evolutionary biology major, Emsbo is pre-med and plans to resume her playing career as soon as she is able. First, though, her focus is on making the most of her final – and Eshe's first – season at Yale. 

"I am incredibly honored that my teammates chose me to lead our team," she said. "And I cannot wait to help Coach D make this season one to remember!"