IOWA CITY, Iowa – The reigning National Player of the Year, Caitlin Clark, was unanimously tabbed as a Preseason All-American by the Associated Press on Tuesday. She is the first player in program history to receive this honor in three consecutive seasons.

Clark was voted 2023-24 Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year, while being a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection. She was also named to the Nancy Lieberman Watch List earlier this month.

In exhibition play this season, Clark posted the first triple-double in Kinnick Stadium history against DePaul. She added 24 points, nine assists, and four rebounds in Iowa’s win over Clarke University last Sunday in only 20 minutes of action.

The third ranked Hawkeyes are set to open the regular season against Fairleigh Dickinson inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena at 6:30 p.m. (CT) on Nov. 6. The game will air on BTN+ (subscription required) and on the Hawkeye Radio Network.

Class 3A

Region #1 – Forest City vs. Western Christian @ Western Christian (7:00 p.m.)
Region #2 – MOC-Floyd Valley vs Cherokee Washington @ Cherokee (7:00 p.m.)
Region #3 – Red Oak vs. Des Moines Christian @ Des Moines Christian (7:00 p.m.)
Region #4 – Wahlert Catholic vs. New Hampton @ New Hampton (7:00 p.m.)
Region #5 – West Deleware vs. Union Community @ Union (7:00 p.m.)
Region #6 – Mid-Prarie vs. Center Point-Urbana @ Center (7:00 p.m.)
Region #7 – Anamosa vs. Mount Vernon @ Mount (7:00 p.m.)
Region #8 – Solon vs. Assumption @ Assumption (7:00 p.m.)

Class 4A

Region #1 – Bishop Heelan vs. Lewis Central @ LC (7:00 p.m.)
Region #2 – Glenwood vs. Indianola @ Indianola (7:00 p.m.)
Region #3 – Dallas Center-Grimes vs. ADM @ ADM (7:00 p.m.)
Region #4 – Norwalk vs. North Polk @ North Polk (7:00 p.m.)
Region #5 – Xavier vs. Waverly-Shell Rock @ Xavier (7:00 p.m.)
Region #6 – North Scott vs. Knoxville @ North Scott (7:00 p.m.)
Region #7 – Ballard vs. Marion @ Marion (7:00 p.m.)
Reagion #8 – Oskaloosa vs. Clear Creek Amana @ CCA (7:00 p.m.)

Class 5A

Region #1 – Dowling Catholic vs. Linn Marr @ Dowling (7:00 p.m.)
Region #2 – Ankeny Centennial vs. Council Bluffs-Lincoln @ Ankeny Cent. (7:00 p.m.)
Region #3 – Sioux City East vs. Waukee Northwest @ Northwest High (7:00 p.m.)
Region #4 – Waterloo West vs. Cedar Falls @ Cedar Falls Main (7:00 p.m.)
Region #5 – Dubuque Senior vs. Pleasant Valley @ Pleasant (7:00 p.m.)
Region #6 – Valley vs. Iowa City High @ Valley (7:00 p.m.)
Region #7 – Johnston vs. Waukee @ Johnston (7:00 p.m.)
Region #8 – Ankeny vs. Iowa City @ Ankeny (7:00 p.m.)

Listed below are the individual rankings for both the girls and boys in the state of Iowa from 1A to 4A. The local athletes are listed in the rankings below.

1A Girls

The final 1A girls’ cross-country rankings feature Earlham’s Oliva Spurling in 13th, Panorama’s Kylie Rochholz in 15th, and ACGC’s Ava Campbell in 25th.

1A Boys

The final 1A boys’ cross-country rankings feature Woodbine’s Landon Bendgen in first, ACGC’s Andrew Mahaffey eighth, Woodbine’s Gunner Wagner in 16th, and ACGC’s Gavin Sloss in 25th.

2A Girls

The final Class 2A girls’ cross-country rankings feature Clarinda’s Raena Henke in eighth, Van Meter’s Emma McCoy in ninth, Hailey Egbert of Shenandoah in 14th, and Van Meter’s Laura Streck and Brooklyn FFryar in 21st and 26th respectively.

2A Boys

The Class 2A boys’ cross-country rankings feature Clarinda’s Treyton Schaapherder and Kyle Wagoner in 10th and 13th respectively.

3A Girls

The final Class 3A girls’ cross-country rankings feature Glenwood’s Grace Berglund in second, Harlan’s Lindsey Sonderman in sixth, Lewis Central’s Delayna Reece in 12th, Atlantic’s Claire Pellett in 14th, and Lewis Central’s Madelyn Hoss in 24th.

3A Boys

The final Class 3A boys’ cross-country rankings feature Lewis Central’s Ethan Eichhorn in second, Glenwood’s Andrew Smith and Bryant Keller in sixth and seventh respectively, Lewis Central’s Kevin Coots in 13th, followed by another Lewis Central runner Kade Diercks in 23rd, and Winterset’s Collin Kessler in 26th.

4A Girls

The final Class 4A girls’ cross-country rankings feature Oliva Verde of Johnston in first.

4A Boys

The final Class 4A boys’ cross-country rankings feature Waukee’s Joseph Lawry in 14th.

ATTACHED: Full meet notes for this Friday’s Big Ten Championships in Madison, Wisconsin. The University of Wisconsin hosts this year’s Big Ten Championships at the Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course. The men’s 8,000-meter race begins at 10:45 a.m. (CT), with the women’s 6,000-meter race to follow at 11:45.

FOLLOW ALONG: For an inside look at the Iowa cross country program and to access exclusive coverage, “like” The University of Iowa Cross Country and Track and Field Facebook page and follow the Hawkeyes on X (@IowaXC_TF) and Instagram (@iowaxctf). Follow live results on the official social media channels for Iowa Cross Country and at hawkeyesports.com/tracklive.

For the first time in program history the UNI women’s basketball team is the preseason favorite in the Missouri Valley race. The Panthers return their top three scorers from last year’s that that finished 23-10 and third in the Valley race.

That’s UNI coach Tonya Warren says added experience will help the Panthers make even more progress.

Warrenm says this year’s team has added depth.

The Panthers open the season at home on November sixth against Wisconsin-Green Bay.

• Conference action continues this week, with five Big Ten contests highlighted by a pair of divisional matchups. Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Rutgers will enjoy byes this week, with the complete schedule appearing to the right.

• Four Big Ten teams appear in the AP Poll this week. Michigan leads the conference at No. 2, followed by No. 3 Ohio State and No. 10 Penn State, while Rutgers and Wisconsin are both receiving votes. The Big Ten (three teams) is the only conference with more than two teams ranked in the top-10 of the AP Poll.

• There are just nine undefeated teams remaining in the FBS, including two Big Ten teams: Michigan (8-0) and Ohio State (7-0). The Buckeyes travel to Madison this weekend to face Wisconsin, while the Wolverines enjoy a bye.

• Michigan and Penn State currently rank among the top 10 nationally in both scoring offense and scoring defense. The Wolverines lead the nation in scoring defense (5.9 points per game), while ranking No. 6 nationally in scoring offense (40.6 points per game). The Nittany Lions rank No. 2 nationally in scoring defense (9.7 points per game), while ranking 9th in scoring offense (39.7 points per game).

• Five additional Big Ten teams rank in the top 25 in terms of scoring defense: Ohio State (3rd, 10.0 points per game), Iowa (8th, 14.5 points per game), Rutgers (12th, 15.8 points per game), Wisconsin (20th, 18.3 points per game) and Maryland (21st, 18.6 points per game).

• Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy threw a career-high four touchdown passes in Michigan’s 49-0 victory against Michigan State. He is 20-1 as the Wolverines starting quarterback, moving in to sixth all-time in touchdown passes (45) and No. 10 all-time with 5,034 career passing yards in program history. He’s the first Michigan quarterback this century with at least 275 passing yards, four touchdown passes and a 75% completion rate in a single game. Led by McCarthy, Michigan is the only team at the FBS level to be undefeated and win each of its games by 20-plus points through eight weeks.

• Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. led the Buckeyes to a 20-12 victory over previously unbeaten and No. 7 Penn State Saturday with a career-high 11 receptions, including the game-winning touchdown with 4:07 left to play. The junior had 162 receiving yards – his fifth time over 100 yards this season – against the No. 1 total defense and No. 1 passing defense in the nation, and his game-winning score was a catch-and-run from 18 yards out. Nine of his receptions went for an Ohio State first down, giving him 19 first down receptions the past two seasons against the Nittany Lions. Harrison Jr. is currently tied for sixth in Ohio State history with 24 career touchdown receptions, matching the total set by Brian Robiskie (2005-08).

• Wisconsin’s Braedyn Locke led a 14-point fourth quarter comeback against Illinois in his first collegiate start, propelling Wisconsin to a 25-21 win. The newcomer threw for a pair of touchdowns, including the game-winner to OL Nolan Rucci with 0:27 remaining, and finished with 240 passing yards and two touchdowns on 21-for-41 passing. Locke’s 240 yards were the third-most in the Big Ten this week, trailing Michigan’s JJ McCarthy and Ohio State’s Kyle McCord.

• Penn State held Ohio State to 79 yards rushing last weekend, marking the sixth-straight opponent the Nittany Lions have held under 100 rushing yards in 2023. Over those six games, Penn State is allowing just 2.02 yards per carry. Since the start of the 2022 season, Penn State has held 15 opponents under 100 yards, tied second in the nation, and since 2014, the Nittany Lions have limited opponents to less than 100 rushing yards on 54 occasions.

• Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers have all secured bowl eligibility by reaching six wins this season, while Maryland and Wisconsin need just one more win to become eligible. The Big Ten will continue to feature the largest bowl lineup in conference history.

• Seven Big Ten Conference programs appear in the top 20 of the latest NCAA attendance rankings, including the nation’s top three schools: No. 1 Michigan (109,787 fans per game), No. 2 Penn State (108,921), No. 3 Ohio State (103,399), No. 12 Nebraska (86,973), No. 18 Wisconsin (75,732), No. 19 Michigan State (71,626) and No. 20 Iowa (69,250). Additionally, Big Ten teams own 12 of the top 15 single-game attendance highs this season, including the top eight spots.

• The 2023 Big Ten Football Championship Game will be played at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, Dec. 2, at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium and will be televised nationally on FOX. The winner will earn the Amos Alonzo Stagg Championship Trophy and a chance to play in one of the six bowls that comprise the College Football Playoff.

• This season’s Playoff Semifinals will take place Monday, January 1, 2024, at the Allstate Sugar Bowl and the Rose Bowl. Houston will host the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 8, 2024, at NRG Stadium. The College Football Playoff matches the No. 1 ranked team vs. No. 4, and No. 2 vs. No. 3 in semifinal games that rotate annually among six bowl games – the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl Game.

• Twelve Big Ten Conference students are among the 201 semifinalists for the 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy. Now in its 34th year, the Campbell Trophy is presented annually to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete. Representing the Big Ten as this year’s Campbell Trophy semifinalists are Illinois’ Isaiah Williams, Indiana’s Trey Walker, Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa, Michigan’s Zak Zinter, Michigan State’s Maverick Hansen, Nebraska’s Brian Buschini, Northwestern’s Bryce Gallagher, Ohio State’s Cody Simon, Penn State’s Olu Fashanu, Purdue’s Gus Hartwig, Rutgers’ Mayan Ahanotu and Wisconsin’s Maema Njongmeta.

• The 2023 campaign will feature 99 All-Big Ten honorees (first-, second-, third-team or honorable mention) selected by either the coaches or the media last season, with Ohio State leading the way with 16 all-conference returnees. The East Division welcomes back 56 all-conference players, while the West returns 43. Illinois is the only West team with double-digit all-conference returnees with 10, while each team has at least one All-Big Ten performer returning.

CHICAGO, Ill. – Saturday night’s five-set match between No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 2 Nebraska delivered 612,000 viewers, the most-watched regular season volleyball broadcast across any network and the most-watched volleyball broadcast in Big Ten Network history.

The previous record was also delivered by Nebraska and Wisconsin on BTN, as 587,000 viewers tuned in on Nov. 25, 2022. The top three regular-season volleyball matches across all networks, and four of the top five, have aired on BTN.

Volleyball broadcasts on BTN are averaging 142,00 viewers this season, a +13% increase over last year’s performance.

The Northern Iowa men are eyeing a bounce back season after an injury plagued campaign that ended with a 14-18 record. The Panthers have nearly their entire roster and better than 90 percent of their scoring returning.

That’s UNI coach Ben Jacobson, who enters his 18th year at the helm. He expects the Panthers to be improved in a number of areas.

Jacobson says roles are being defined in preseason practice.

The Panthers open on the roads on November seventh at North Texas.

Oklahoma State’s Ollie Gordon II (offensive), BYU’s Eddie Heckard (defensive), Oklahoma’s Nic Anderson (newcomer) and Baylor’s Isaiah Hankins (special teams) picked up Big 12 football awards for week eight. Gordon earned his second consecutive accolade while Anderson was also recognized for the second time this season. Additionally, Gordon collected his second straight Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week award.

Gordon rushed for career-highs of 282 yards and four touchdowns on 29 carries in OSU’s 48-34 win at West Virginia. The performance marks the most rushing yards for an FBS player in a game this season. Three of his scores came in the fourth quarter on 16-, 46- and 53-yard rushes. Gordon had five runs that gained more than 25 yards, with his longest carries on the day going for 53, 46, 34, 32 and 27 yards. He is the first Cowboy with four rushing touchdowns in a game since Rennie Childs did so on September 17, 2016, against Pittsburgh. It is the most rushing yards by a Cowboy since All-American Chuba Hubbard scampered for 296 yards against Kansas State on September 28, 2019. Gordon is the first OSU player with four straight 100+ yard rushing games since Jaylen Warren during the 2021 season. The sophomore has eight rushing touchdowns on the season and 10 in his career. He has found the end zone in three consecutive games, with seven total touchdowns during the span.

Heckard led the BYU defense with two takeaways in the Cougars’ 27-14 win over Texas Tech. The senior grad transfer recovered a fumble in the end zone with 2:10 remaining in the first quarter to give BYU a 14-0 early lead. With 2:33 remaining in the second quarter Heckard intercepted a Red Raider pass at the BYU 22-yard line and returned it 38 yards to the TTU 40. Six plays later, BYU kicked a field goal for a 24-7 advantage right before the half. The CB also recorded four tackles, including a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. Heckard earned his bachelor’s degree with a double major of professional sales and mechanical engineering.

Anderson caught five passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns in No. 6/7 Oklahoma’s 31-29 come-from-behind win over UCF. His scores came from 29 and 42 yards as he helped the Sooners improve to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in Big 12 play. The redshirt freshman has eight touchdown catches this season on 16 total receptions. The 50% rate of receiving scores is the highest nationally (min. 5 receiving TDs). Only one FBS player since at least the start of the 1996 campaign finished a season with a higher rate of receiving TDs (min. 8 receiving TDs). Anderson ranks second nationally this year with his 24.2 yards per catch and leads the Big 12 with his eight touchdown receptions.

Hankins was outstanding for the Bears in their 32-29 victory at Cincinnati, making all four of his field goal attempts and adding two PATs. The sophomore Entrepreneurship and Corporate Innovation major hit a career-long 54-yarder in addition to makes from 43, 46 and 43 yards. He became the ninth kicker in school history to connect on four FGs in one game, tying for the Baylor record. His 14 points scored were a career-high, and he also handled kickoff duties for the first time this season, recording three touchbacks in eight attempts.

Big 12 Players of the Week
September 4
Offense: Emory Jones, UC, QB, Sr.
Defense: Jeremiah Cooper, ISU, DB, So.
Newcomer: Emory Jones, UC, QB, Sr.
Special Teams: Ryan Rehkow, BYU, P, Jr. and Gavin Freeman, OU, WR/PR, So.

September 11
Offense: Quinn Ewers, UT, QB, So.
Defense: Danny Stutsman, OU, LB, Jr.
Newcomer: Adonai Mitchell, UT, WR, Jr.
Special Teams: Colton Boomer, UCF, K, So.

September 18
Offense: Dillon Gabriel, OU, QB, Sr.
Defense: Tyler Batty, BYU, DE, Jr.
Newcomer: Nic Anderson, OU, WR, Fr.
Special Teams: Matthew Golden, UH, KR/WR, So.

September 25
Offense: DJ Giddens, K-State, RB, So.
Defense: Cobee Bryant, KU, CB, Jr.
Newcomer: Parker Jenkins, UH, RB, Fr.
Special Teams: Chase Contreraz, ISU, K, Sr.

October 2
Offense: Jonathon Brooks, UT, RB, So.
Defense: Caden Jenkins, BU, CB, Fr.
Newcomer: Adonai Mitchell, UT, WR, Jr.
Special Teams: Loic Fouonji, TTU, WR, Sr.

October 9
Offense: Dillon Gabriel, OU, QB, Sr.
Defense: Beau Freyler, ISU, DB, Jr.
Newcomer: Cameron Epps, OSU, CB, Fr.
Special Teams: Trevor Wilson, KU, WR/PR, Jr.

October 16
Offense: Josh Hoover, TCU, QB, Fr. and Ollie Gordon II, OSU, RB, So.
Defense: Kobe Savage, K-State, S, Sr.
Newcomer: Avery Johnson, K-State, QB, Fr.
Special Teams: Chase Contreraz, ISU, K, Sr.

October 23
Offense: Ollie Gordon II, OSU, RB, So.
Defense: Eddie Heckard, BYU, CB, Sr.
Newcomer: Nic Anderson, OU, WR, Fr.
Special Teams: Isaiah Hankins, BU, K, So.

DES MOINES, Iowa – Drake women’s basketball opens the 2023-24 season slotted in second place in the MVC Preseason Poll. Individually, a trio of Bulldogs were named to the Preseason All-MVC teams including First Teamers Katie Dinnebier and Grace Berg as Second Team selection Anna Miller.

The Bulldogs garnered 482 total points in the preseason poll with 12 first-place votes

Berg played in all 32 games for the Bulldogs last season, averaging 12.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. Dinnebier also played in all 32 games, averaging 11.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game. She also finished with 185 total assists, which led the Missouri Valley Conference. Berg and Dinnebier were both named Third Team All-MVC and All-MVC Tournament Team, with the latter being named All-MVC Defensive Team. 

Miller played in all 32 games last season, with an average of 10.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. She finished with 72 blocks, good for second in the MVC. Miller was named the MVC Defensive Player of the Year, MVC Sixth Player of the Year, an All-Defensive Team member, and the Elite 17 Award recipient. 

UNI was picked to win the league for the first time in program history with 33 first-place votes and 517 overall points. Two of the Bulldogs’ opponents in last year’s MVC Tournament rounded out the top four as Illinois State received two first-place nods and Belmont got one. The entire MVC Preseason Poll and Preseason All-MVC teams are listed below.

The Bulldogs will look to build on a 22-10 season with a fourth-place regular season conference finish, MVC Tournament, title and a berth into the NCAA Tournament last year. Fans can check out the Drake women in two exhibition contests on Sunday, Oct. 29 and Wednesday, Nov. 1 before the 2023-24 regular season tips off on Monday, Nov. 6.

Team (First-place votes)    Points

1. UNI (33)                             517

2. Drake (12)                         482

3. Illinois State (2)                433

4. Belmont (1)                       401

5. Missouri State                  382

6. UIC                                      311

7. Murray State                     308

8. Southern Illinois               295

9. Indiana State                    200

10. Valparaiso                       162

11. Evansville                        137

12. Bradley                            116

PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR:  Grace Boffeli, UNI

FIRST TEAM
Grace Boffeli, UNI

Grace Berg, Drake

Katie Dinnebier, Drake

Maya McDermott, UNI

DeAnna Wilson, Illinois State

Katelyn Young, Murray State

SECOND TEAM
Tuti Jones, Belmont

Jade Masogayo, Missouri State

Jaida McCloud, UIC

Anna Miller, Drake

Kennedy Taylor, Missouri State