It will be Iowa against top ranked and unbeaten South Carolina in the Women’s Final Four in Dallas Friday night. The defending champion Gamecocks took control in the second quarter to beat Maryland 86-75, Monday night in Greenville, South Carolina. South Carolina takes a 36-0 record into the Final Four

That’s South Carolina coach Dawn Staley who was not ready to preview Iowa after Monday’s game.

It’s South Carolina’s third straight trip to the Final Four and their fifth in eight years.

Wide receiver and offensive line have been two trouble spots for Iowa’s struggling offense and both areas lack depth at the start of spring drills. Ankeny native Brody Brecht announced he is stepping away to concentrate on baseball and injuries have left the Hawkeyes short on wideouts.

That’s Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz. The offensive line struggled last season for one of the nation’s worst offenses and while that unit has experience, many of the players are sidelined this spring.

Despite being thin up front this spring Ferentz believes the offensive line will be improved next season.

The Hawkeyes finished 8-5 last season.

Iowa State football coach Matt Campbell says the Cyclones aren’t changing their style of offense but are hoping for better results. Campbell fired offensive coordinator Tom Manning after a 4-8 season in which the Cyclones finished at the bottom of the Big 12 in scoring and total offense. Nate Scheelhaase was promoted to offensive coordinator.

Campbell says they have looked at all facets of how the play offense.

Campbell says they did a deep dive into the offense.

The Cyclones close spring drills on April 22nd.

Girls Soccer

LeMars 2, Denison-Schleswig 1

Panorama 5, Harlan 1

Treynor 7, Missouri Valley 0

Tri-Center 5 Kuemper Catholic 0

Boys Soccer

Glenwood 5, Sergeant Bluff-Luton 1

Harlan 2, Panorama 1

Tri-Center 4, Kuemper Catholic 0

BOYS TENNIS

CB Abraham Lincoln 9, Harlan 0

Lewis Central 9, CB Thomas Jefferson 0

CLEVELAND – For the second time since 2019, Iowa State Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard has been selected as one of 28 Cushman & Wakefield AD of the Year (ADOY) honorees by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). Pollard was one of four 2023 winners from the Football Bowl Subdivision and will be honored in conjunction with the 58^th Annual NACDA & Affiliates Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Fla., June 13.

“I am honored and humbled to accept this award on behalf of our entire athletics program,” said Pollard, the 20^th individual to earn multiple FBS AD of the Year honors in the award’s 25-year history. “The award is a great testament to the success our department has experienced as the result of the hard work performed by our coaches, staff and student-athletes. In my opinion, this award not only recognized the Athletics Director of the Year, but also acknowledges the Athletics Department of the Year!”

Pollard, Iowa State’s longest-tenured Director of Athletics and fourth-longest serving individual at their current Power Five institution, is in his 18^th year leading the Cyclones. His vision for ISU student-athlete’s academic and athletic success, coupled with an unbridled passion to execute that vision, continues to impact the campus and Ames communities, the Big 12 Conference and intercollegiate athletics.

Based upon the NCAA’s 2022 Division I metrics, Cyclone student-athletes continue to thrive academically under Pollard’s leadership. ISU led the Big 12 and set school-records for both its overall (95 percent) and female (99) Graduation Success Rates, while its male GSR (90) was a school-record.

Pollard, who inherited a department whose average Learfield Directors’ Cup finish had been 67^th with a high of 41^st in 1996-97, has methodically engineered a competitive program that has averaged a final Directors’ Cup placement of 48^th over his tenure while producing seven Top 50 finishes, including a school-record 34^th-place showing in 2009-10.

Landmark highlights of Pollard’s tenure include:

• In September 2022, he unveiled plans along with ISU President Dr. Wendy Wintersteen and ISU Research Park Director Rick Sanders to build the nation’s first-ever multi-use entertainment district in the center of a college campus, CYTown, between Jack Trice Stadium and Hilton Coliseum
• An investment of more than $320M in new construction and facility renovations impacting nearly all Cyclone student-athletes; the most-recent being the $90M Stark Performance Center.
• Secured the largest donation ever received by ISU Athletics – a $25 million gift from the Reiman family – that was the lead donation for the south end zone enclosure at Jack Trice Stadium.
• Assembled, arguably, the strongest coaching staff in ISU history.
• The Cyclones have won 21 of their 29 all-time Big 12 team titles on his watch.

The only individual to have ever served as President of NACDA, the I-A Athletics Director’s Association and CABMA, Pollard currently serves on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee.

The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities. The award spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges) and honors four winners from each division annually.

Monday, March 27 — Elite Eight

• No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 2 Maryland | 6 p.m. | ESPN
• No. 1 Virginia Tech vs. No. 3 Ohio State | 8 p.m. | ESPN

Thirty years later The Hawkeye women are headed back to the Final Four.

Rob Brooks and Jamie Cavey Lang on the Hawkeye Network. Iowa blew the game open by outscoring Louisville 30-12 to close the third quarter in a 97-83 win in Seattle. It’s Iowa’s first trip to the Final Four since 1993 and the first for head coach Lisa Bluder.

It’s Iowa’s 30th win of the season and they head to Dallas this morning for Friday night’s semifinal round.

Junior guard Caitlin Clark had the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA Tournament history. She finished with 41 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

Clark made 11 of 19 shots, including eight of 14 from behind the arc.

Clark had a goal of leading the Hawkeyes to the final four when she signed with Bluder.

McKenna Warnock scored 17 points as the Hawkeyes had to regroup after falling behind 8-0 at the outset.

The Hawkeyes play the winner of tonight’s (Monday night’s) game between Maryland and top ranked South Carolina.

Sunday, March 26 — Elite Eight

• No. 3 LSU vs. No. 9 Miami (Fla.) | 6 p.m. | ESPN
• No. 2 Iowa vs. No. 5 Louisville | 8 p.m. | ESPN- ON KJAN 7:45 p.m.

Sunday, March 26 (Elite 8)

• No. 5 San Diego State vs. No. 6 Creighton | 1:20 p.m. | CBS
• No. 2 Texas vs. No. 5 Miami (Fla.) | 4:05 p.m. | CBS