FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The 2024 Puerto Vallarta College Challenge field and schedule was announced today as Iowa State will be one of the seven teams in the first session of the eighth edition of the event.

The Cyclones will compete in what figures to be one of the toughest fields of the spring, as the event as a whole will feature five members of the 2023 super regionals. Joining the Cyclones in session one (Feb. 8 – Feb. 11) are Duke, Long Beach State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Utah Valley and Washington.

The second session of the challenge will feature Auburn, UC Davis, UC San Diego, Clemson, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Utah and Wichita State and runs from Feb. 14 to Feb. 18.

The challenge is not a tournament, as all of the matchups are already scheduled. Iowa State will face four opponents across four days and is the only program to not have a doubleheader during the week.

The Cyclones get underway on the first day of action against Utah Valley in an afternoon matchup. ISU then kicks off the second day at 10 a.m. against Duke, a program that fell in the super regionals to Stanford last season.

Following its tough test with Duke, Iowa State will face off with Washington on Saturday afternoon, a program that made it to the Women’s College World Series last year. ISU will wrap competition play on Sunday, Feb. 11, against Long Beach State at 10 a.m. ISU and Long Beach State will be the only game that Sunday.

ISU will make its first-ever appearance in the Puerto Vallarta Challenge as it becomes the final Big 12 school to compete in the esteemed early-season challenge. Last season, BYU, Oklahoma State and Kansas all competed in the Mexico-based event.

Iowa State and Utah Valley will meet for the second time ever in the competition, with the Wolverines owning a 1-0 advantage over ISU thanks to a 1-0 win in eight innings back in 2017.

The Cyclones and Blue Devils will meet for the first time on the diamond in Puerto Vallarta. Iowa State will face Washington for the second time ever, having fallen short 1-0 to the Huskies in 2022 when UW was ranked fifth.

ISU and Long Beach State have met 13 times prior to their upcoming matchup. LBSU holds a 10-3 all-time advantage over Iowa State, though the Cyclones have won the last two meetings.

All games will be live-streamed by FloSoftball.

Games are played at Nancy Almaraz Stadium and the oceanside Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center is within walking distance of the stadium. Visit www.pvcollegechallenge.com for more information.

Challenge Schedule
Thursday, Feb. 8 

10:30 a.m. – Utah Valley vs. Oklahoma

1 p.m. – Duke vs. Oklahoma

4 p.m. – Iowa State vs. Utah Valley

6:30 p.m. – Nebraska vs. Washington

 Friday, Feb. 9 

10 a.m. – Duke vs. Iowa State

12:30 p.m. – Duke vs. Nebraska

3 p.m. – Long Beach State vs. Nebraska

6 p.m. – Utah Valley vs. Washington

8:30 p.m. – Oklahoma vs. Washington

 Saturday, Feb. 10 

10:30 a.m. – Nebraska vs. Utah Valley

1 p.m. – Oklahoma vs. Long Beach State

4 p.m. – Washington vs. Iowa State

6:30 p.m. – Duke vs. Long Beach State

Sunday, Feb. 11 

10 a.m. – Iowa State vs. Long Beach State

*All times Central

The (2-4) East Mills Wolverines are coming off a 58-20 win against Griswold last Friday. It has not been an easy season for Head Coach Kevin Schafer’s squad. He has seen both of his top quarterbacks Caleb Urban and Zach Thornburg go down with injury. All eyes were then on the third string junior QB Jackson Embree as he led a battered 1-4 East Mills into Griswold for his first start of the year. The 58-20 victory was one that Coach Schafer was pleased with.

The shift to a run heavy team worked well for East Mills. They carried the ball over 30 times and had 398 rushing yards. They averaged almost 14 yards a carry and had six rushing scores on the evening. The few times Jackson Embree needed to pass he made smart decisions. The junior quarterback went 2-4, 79 yards, and one touchdown. Coach Schafer complemented Embree’s play.

That win against Griswold broke a four-game losing skid for the Wolverines and gave them confidence. However, they have one of their toughest opponents up next on the road at (3-3) Exira-EHK. The Spartans are second in the district behind CAM. The run game has been critical to Exira-EHK’s success this season, as they have already rushed for over 1300 yards. The rushing attack for the Spartans has been led by senior quarterback Jameson Kilworth with 651 yards on the ground and junior running back Alex Hansen with 290 yards and 7 touchdowns.

Coach Schafer is aware of the threat that Exira-EHK’s ground game brings and the size they carry on both sides of the ball.

Kickoff is set for 7:00pm in Exira. KJAN will bring you the coverage as the pregame show begins at 6:30pm.

Reigning National Player of the Year Caitlin Clark has not set a timetable for a decision on her future. Clark is entering her senior season for an Iowa team that is coming off an appearance in the NCAA championship game and she could return for a fifth season.

The Hawkeyes return three starters but Clark says it is a much different team.

Clark says she is embracing the popularity that her and the team are enjoying and the opportunities that come with it.

Clark says the Hawkeyes are embracing the expectations.

Clark says one area she hopes to improve in this season is in the half-court offense.

Iowa women’s basketball coach Lisa Bluder calls it a new season and a new challenge. The Hawkeyes are coming off an historic run to the NCAA championship game last season and with three starters returning are a consensus top ten team in the preseason polls.

Three starters return from a year ago including national player of the year Caitlin Clark. While the expectations are high Bluder says the Hawkeyes are not approaching it as national title or bust.

Clark has become one of the most recognizable athletes in the country but Bluder says there is never an issue with chemistry because she is such a good teammate.

Because of the popularity of the team the Hawkeyes will make several appearances on national television. A challenging schedule awaits against 11 teams ranked in the preseason top 25.

They open the regular season at home on November eighth against Fairleigh Dickinson.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa women’s basketball team was selected No. 1 in the Preseason Big Ten Coaches and Media polls. Junior guard Caitlin Clark was voted Preseason Player of the Year in both polls. Clark was unanimously selected by the coaches and media on the All-Big Ten Team, the conference office announced on Wednesday.

The Hawkeyes return a plethora of talent from a year ago including all three starters and the B1G Sixth Player of the Year that led the team to the Big Ten Tournament title and a National Championship appearance. Iowa earned the No. 2 seed the NCAA Tournament in 2023, after another successful campaign under head coach Lisa Bluder.

Clark nabbed both Preseason Player of the Year recognition for the second time in her career. During her junior campaign, Clark led her team to its first-ever NCAA Championship game and helped post the Hawkeye’s most wins in a single season. During the NCAA Tournament, she posted the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA Tournament history (men’s or women’s) and broke the NCAA single-tournament records for most 3-point FG made (24) and most points scored (191). This season, she is the only player in the nation with 1,000 points, 240 rebounds, 310 assists and 45 steals.

Clark also won the 2023 Big Ten Female Athlete of the Year Award, Honda Cup and was named Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year as by THE Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA). She also won the 2023 Naismith, Wooden and Wade Trophies along with the Associated Press, USBWA Ann Drysdale Player of the Year and the 93rd AAU James E. Sullivan Award.

2023-24 Preseason All-Big Ten Women’s Basketball Teams and Polls

Coaches Big Ten Preseason Rankings

1. Iowa
2. Ohio State
3. Indiana
4. Maryland
5. Illinois

Coaches Preseason All-Big Ten Team*

Makira Cook, ILL

Mackenzie Holmes, IND (Unanimous)

Caitlin Clark, IOWA (Unanimous)

Shyanne Sellers, MD (Unanimous)

Laila Phelia, MICH (Unanimous)

Mara Braun, MINN

Alexis Markowski, NEB

Jaz Shelley, NEB

Cotie McMahon, OSU (Unanimous)

Jacy Sheldon, OSU

Makenna Marisa, PSU

*Additional player due to tie in voting

Coaches Preseason Player of the Year

Caitlin Clark, Iowa

Media Big Ten Preseason Rankings

1. Iowa
2. Indiana
3. Ohio State
4. Maryland
5. Michigan

Media Big Ten Preseason All-Big Ten Team

Makira Cook, ILL

Mackenzie Holmes, IND

Caitlin Clark, IOWA (Unanimous)

Shyanne Sellers, MD

Laila Phelia, MICH

Alexis Markowski, NEB

Jaz Shelley, NEB

Cotie McMahon, OSU

Jacy Sheldon, OSU

Makenna Marisa, PSU

Media Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year

Caitlin Clark, Iowa

ROSEMONT, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference office announced the dates and opponents for the 2023-24 women’s gymnastics season on Wednesday. The schedule features nine conference opponents over six weekends for each of the 10 Big Ten programs and concludes with the 2024 Big Ten Women’s Gymnastics Championships, to be held over the fourth weekend in March at Michigan State.

The final weekend of the women’s gymnastics’ regular season will feature the annual Big Five Meets, which will be hosted by Penn State. Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State and Rutgers will compete on Friday, Feb. 23, at 6 p.m. ET while Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan and Penn State will compete on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 4:30 p.m. Both Big Five meets will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.

The 42nd Big Ten Women’s Gymnastics Championships will be held March 23 at Michigan State’s Jenison Field House in East Lansing, Mich. The meet will be conducted in two sessions, with six schools competing in the afternoon session and four schools competing in the evening session. Team seeding is determined by the final Big Ten regular season standings. In the event of a tie, head-to-head results shall be used. If there is still a tie, team NQS following the Big Five meets shall be used.

The 2023-24 Big Ten women’s gymnastics schedule can be found in the link above. Times and television designations will be announced at a later date.