Caitlin Clark, a 6’0 Senior for Iowa City Women’s Basketball made history on Thursday February 15th, by becoming the all-time leading scorer for NCAA women’s college basketball. Clark has a total of 3,569 career points and could still set herself apart as the most prolific scorer in women’s college basketball. Clark’s original goal was to break the record on Super Bowl Sunday against Nebraska but unfortunately, she came up eight points short and the Hawkeyes ended up losing to Nebraska 79-82.
Despite the loss, Clark and the Iowa City Hawkeyes came out big for their game against Michigan. Not even twelve seconds into the game Clark scored a lay-up making it only 6 points away from breaking the record and five from tying it. Seconds later on the Hawkeyes second possession Hannah Stuelke passes the ball to Clark and she scores a three-point shot to only need one point to break the record. Caitlin Calrk is notoriously famous for hitting logo three’s and on the Hawkeyes very next possession Clark has the ball and hits a logo three to go down for history. This accomplishment did not happen easily for Clark, and the journey started four years ago in her first games as a freshman.
Caitlin Clark is now used to playing in sold out arenas, but it wasn’t always that way. Her freshman year in 2020
spectators were not allowed inside the arena due to covid, so it was just both teams without any fans. That didn’t stop Clark from having an incredible first game. Clark’s journey to over three-thousands points began when she got fouled and got to shoot two free throws both of which she made. Against Norhtern Iowa she scored 27 points, grabbed eight rebounds, dished four assists, and drained three 3-pointers in her first college game. The Hawkeyes ended up winning 96-81 and to no one’s surprise she was the game’s leading scorer. Her freshman year she averaged 26.6 points a game and her sophomore year she averaged 27 points a game.
By time her junior year rolled around fans were back in the arena and were excited to get a glimpse of the legend that is Caitlin Calrk. Calrk’s junior year in 2022-2023 the Hawkeyes had an incredible season. They made it all the way to the national championship but that was not until they had beaten the returning champions of women’s college basketball. The University of South Carolina. The Hawkeyes crushed South Carolina’s undefeated season, besting the Gamecocks 77-73. 41 of those points came from non-other than Caitlin Clark which is the most points in history ever scored in a semifinal game. With a ticket to the national championship, the Hawkeyes were hopeful that they would bring home the title of first ever national champions for Iowa City Basketball for both men and women. Unfortunately, they lost to LSU 102-85.
That loss just fueled the fire for the Hawkeyes as they have come back better, faster, and stronger this season. There overall record is 23-3 with an average of 75 points per game. They home to make it back to the national championship this year, and with the all-time leading scorer on their team that is more than possible. Clark’s average per game for the 2023-2024 season has been 32.8 points per game. In the game against Michigan, she not only broke the record for all-time leading scorer, but she also scored 49 points which is a record high for Iowa City Women’s Basketball points in a game. She also had thirteen assists and 19 rebounds which made it one of the best games she has had in her college career. It is likely that the Hawkeyes will make a great run in the NCAA tournament this year. It is still uncertain at this time if she will enter the draft after this season or come back next year since she still has a year of eligibility. For now, fans continue to cheer on Caitlin and the Hawkeyes as they try to make it back into the National Championship.
