iowa's clark a shining star her entire career

By: Victoria Wright

Caitlin. Clark. 

You’ve probably heard this name somewhere in the last few months. Clark is a talented basketball player for the Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team. Over the last few years she has gained incredible amounts of recognition for her scoring ability and overall influence on the game. 

Growing up in Iowa, Clark started her basketball journey playing for local teams. During sixth grade she joined the All Iowa Attack, a program part of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), which she played for until the end of high school.

​According to information on Gatorade’s Player of the Year, Clark led Ankeny Centennial High School to a 19-4 record and the Class 5A regional during her senior season in which she averaged over 33 points per game. In addition, she was a three-time First Team All-State honoree, and a member of the gold medal-winning USA Basketball U19 Women’s World Cup Team.

After Clark graduated, she headed to the University of Iowa for four years, and soon turned into a household name. 

Since Clark graduates this year, her days of collegiate basketball may be over, but that doesn’t mean the end of her basketball career. Clark announced in February that she will be joining the WNBA draft after her time with Iowa. 

Clark was able to make a name for herself by racking up points from anywhere on the court. Her scoring abilities led to massive amounts of attention in the media. Her innate ability for basketball makes her captivating to watch. Iowa’s recent game against Ohio State broke records when it brought in four million views, making it the most watched regular season women’s basketball game since 1999. 

Recently, Clark broke Pete Maravich’s record of 3,667 points, becoming the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer across both men and women's basketball. 
  
One of the reasons Clark is so successful is her unwavering passion for the game. As she said, “I knew in my heart I had to be here. I knew in my heart here, what we’ve been able to do has been so special.” 

Her infatuation and love of her teammates are what make her so successful in the game, and hopefully that love continues long into the next stage of her basketball career.