Kate Martin Had Three Words for Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday
A special visitor dropped by before the matchup between the Golden State Valkyries and Minnesota Lynx on Saturday night at Target Center.
Jan Jensen, head coach of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team, has seen a litany of her former players go on to great heights in the WNBA after moving on from collegiate play. The most notable Hawkeyes alum is without question Caitlin Clark, who set the sports world on fire with her career in Iowa and has continued to do so as a member of the Indiana Fever.
But, Clark wasn't in Minnesota Saturday night, Valkyries guard Kate Martin was.
Martin had a different trajectory to the WNBA than the meteoric rise of Clark. She was selected in the second round, 18th overall by the Las Vegas Aces in the 2024 WNBA Draft. Notably, Martin had only attended the draft in support of her teammate Clark, and was surprised to her her name called at all, coming out of the ground when she was picked.
"Kate did not know she was going to get drafted, she was sitting in the stands," Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase mentioned postgame on Saturday (Via Valkyries). "Look, this what can happen if you work really hard and you stay focused on your goal. I think Kate is a great example of any dream can come true."
Jensen, who coached Martin her entire college career as both an assistant and heads coach, was in attendance and visited Martin on the court pregame. Iowa Women's Basketball shared a shot of the two on their Instagram, which Martin reposted with a message of her own.
"Go hawks always," she wrote
Martin, now a member of the Valkyries, has come into her own in the WNBA and has inspired her own legions of fans. She had family in attendance at Saturday night's game against the Lynx, but they weren't the only Martin diehards in the crowd.
Bio: Jack Haslett is a writer and photographer covering Golden State Valkyries basketball for Sports Illustrated. Jack has previously published work with the Sporting Tribune, the Long Beach Current and DIG Magazine, covering sports, community events and news. A graduate from Long Beach State University, Jack has a passion for writing, photography and all things sports.