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Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham opened to her personality in a team video released after she released her first double-double in the season Friday.
After Fever’s 99-82 victory over the Atlanta dream, with Cunningham having 16 points and 10 rebounds, the team released a video feature on social media with Cunningham talking honestly about who she is.
“I’ll bring the energy. I bring the feistinhed. I’m a little sassy,” Cunningham said.
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“I’m just the ultimate competitor. I want outwork someone and I think it’s something I can hang my hat on and my teammates can always expect from me.”
The wounded Indiana fever guard Sophie Cunningham, Left, and Guard Caitlin Clark responds from the bench during the first half against Chicago Sky at the United Center. (Kamil Krzaczynski/iMagn -pictures)
Cunningham’s recording comes in the midst of her climb to star status after she started a fight to defend teammate Caitlin Clark.
In a June 17th fight against Connecticut Sun, Cunningham made a fierce mistake on Connecticut Sun Guard Jacy Sheldon.
Cunningham and Sheldon’s warmed exchange turned into a pushing match before players from both teams intervened to break it up. Cunningham, Sheldon and Sun Guard Lindsay Allen were thrown out of the game with about 40 seconds left before the fever took the victory home.
The hard mistake came after Sheldon Poked clark in the eye in the third quarter. Sun Guard Marina Mabrey then pushed Clark on the floor during a game that became Chippy.
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Indiana Fever Guard Sophie Cunningham (8) and Connecticut Sun Guard Jacy Sheldon (4) Scuffle in the second half of a WNBA game in Indianapolis 17 June 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
As the fever removed the sun, 88-71, Cunningham was congratulated for stepping up as the team’s enforcement.
Cunningham saw an increase in popularity after the game. Her Instagram and Tiktok accounts each rose over 1 million followers.
With Cunningham earning the nickname “The Enforcer” to the fever, fans who count on her to protect Caitlin Clark can easily know to know that she is a black belt in the Korean martial arts in Taekwondo.
She earned the black belt at the age of 6.
Her father Jim played football at the University of Missouri and she followed in her father’s footsteps on the football field.
ONE 2014 article By Columbia Missourian reported that Cunningham was the first female in the story to score points for the team as she kicked two of four extra points instead of the team’s regular kicker who had ripped an ACL.
Cunningham even handled kickoff tasks.
“I was so nervous,” Cunningham told the business. “I mean, I’ve never played football before in my entire life. Just when I got the ball (on opening the kickoff), I couldn’t hear anything. I just put the ball down and kick it.”
Indiana Fever Guard Sophie Cunningham poses for a photo 17 May 2025, before a game of Aganst Chicago Sky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis 17 May 2025. (Grace Smith/Imag images via Indystar)
Cunningham comes from a family of farmers and credits that breed for the person she is today, according to a Five-part feature series by the University of Missouri.
“So much of our success goes back to what we learned here,” Cunningham said of working on the farm. “We loved to get out to the yard to help. We found out how we work hard and work together. It made us go into yard.”
