Hawkeye women’s basketball celebration planned for Wednesday at Carver

IOWA CITY — Although Caitlin Clark, Gabbie Marshall, Kate Martin, Molly Davis and Sharon Goodman have played their final game in the Carver-Hawkeye Arena — as graduating seniors on the women’s basketball team — fans will have another chance Wednesday to pack the seats and celebrate them and their historic 2024 run.

Runner-up for the heralded NCAA championship for a second straight year, the Hawkeye women will make their return to Carver at 6 p.m. Wednesday to look back on and commemorate a season that many across the country have characterized as “game changing” — in the largest sense of the words.

Clark with her shocking threes — and a supporting cast that took turns sharing the increasingly bright spotlight — captured the heart, attention and admiration of the nation. From kindergarten girls signing up for their first basketball team to truck drivers chatting while getting gas about how to best listen to the game, the Hawkeyes’ successive runs to the NCAA finals shattered viewing records, amassed endless social media hype and amplified women’s athletics across the board.

Similar to the sea of fans who last April crowded the University of Iowa Pentacrest at the end of a 2023 season that took the Hawkeyes to the NCAA finals, UI officials expect a swell of support inside Carver for the coaches and players who have called the Hawkeye faithful the “best fans in America.”

Speakers for the event will include P. Sue Beckwith; head women’s basketball coach Lisa Bluder and many of the players, including Clark — recently crowned National Player of the Year, again.

The team’s trophies also will be on hand for the party, alongside the Iowa Spirit Squad, the Iowa Pep Band and the Herky mascot — approaching a 75th birthday.

Parking will be available in lots surrounding Carver-Hawkeye Arena beginning at 4:30 p.m. Parking for disabled attendees as available will be located in Lot 40.

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

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