There is no denying the upcoming rise of women in sports. We can find examples of this in sports such as basketball and volleyball where they have broken several attendance records by holding their games in their college’s football stadiums.
On October 14th the Iowa women’s basketball team broke the NCAA attendance record for a single game with 55,646 people in attendance. On a different side of the sports world, the Nebraska volleyball team broke the world record for attendance at any women’s sporting event with 91,648 people.
The women’s NCAA tournament drew nearly 10 million viewers. In the final game where LSU played Iowa, there was an increase of 103%.
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark has made a lasting impact on not only basketball but the entire sports community. She has inspired girls to dream big when it comes to their love for sports and to never give up their love and passion for the game. After Iowa’s loss to LSU in the NCAA championship game she said “I want my legacy to be the impact I have on young kids and the people of Iowa,” Clark has not only impacted her own program but also other programs. The UNI vs. Iowa game has just recently sold out after UNI had never had or hosted a sold-out game. What’s the reason? Caitlin Clark.
We can also see her impact here at West High, when asked about her impact on our school’s women’s athletics the assistant girl’s volleyball coach and assistant girl’s basketball coach AJ Cassidy said, “I think anytime you have a high-profile athlete who’s a big role model and highly ranked and highly regarded people tend to take an interest…But I just remember even back then as a high school senior, she had this kind of aura this mystique about her that people wanted to play like her and they really admired her game.”
We can also see the increase in popularity of women’s sports with our new women’s wrestling team which IGHSAU unanimously voted to sanction. When asked about this year’s participation compared to last year, head coach Josef Kadlec said “In the room, the participation looks kinda similar but in the halls, everythings grown a lot more.”
Women’s sports are on the rise in high schools, colleges, and professional leagues across the country. Everyone is coming to love the competitive nature of women’s sports and have found appreciation in how they are showing their game and love for their sports.
