Caitlin Clark puts up a shot, hoping to break the Division I all-time scoring record.

By Lily Smith

Lily Smith is a first-year undergraduate at BGSU from Oregon, Ohio. She is majoring in Sport Management with a Marketing minor. 

February 14, 2023

Caitlin Clark was just in sixth grade when Iowa head coach, Jan Jensen first recognized her. Clark grew up in West Des Moines, playing on boys’ basketball teams. She was said to have a “sassy 3 pointer” in middle school, and that skill positioned her where she is today. 

Growing up playing girls basketball is a different animal. I personally played, and I can say that there is a different kind of emotion attached to it. The highs are up in the clouds, and the lows, well I’m not even sure where I’d place those. Clark has mentioned that during her early years of play, she would cry after every loss. Undoubtedly, Clark has been criticized for showing these big emotions, even in her college years. 

This emotional tie can be negative in some respects, but it further proves her attachment to her sport and her willingness to work hard. With these attributes, it’s no surprise she is in position to break records. Currently, she sits with 3,520 points, and averages 32.1 points per game. Kelsey Plum of the Las Vegas Aces, holds the record with 3,527 points from her days at Washington. To break the NCAA Division I scoring record, she needs just eight points. On February 15th, the Hawkeyes are set to play Michigan at home, and this is the game predicted to break that record. 

Most recently, Clark snagged the spot of the all-time leading scorer in the Big Ten on January 31st. Clark is also on track to overcome the NCAA’s all-time scorer. This achievement belongs to “Pistol” Pete Maravich who played for Louisiana State University from 1967-1970. Maravich sits with 3,667 points in his Division I career. This 55 year old record is about to be impressively beaten by a female athlete in the near future.

“Pistol” Pete Maravich in a game during his time at LSU. 

Most records between women’s and men’s sports are at different levels. There is just a different level of physicality and ability between the sexes, which proves in athletic records like this. However, Clark is proving that women and women’s sports are just as impressive and high-achieving as men’s sports. There are several sources who are critical of Clark passing Maravich’s record, due to the immense amount of change in the actual sport of basketball, as well as eligibility concerns, claiming that her breaking the men’s record is not quite the same as breaking the women’s.

Either way you view it, that number of points and dedication are not something to look past or discredit. Clark brings a new sense of skill, ability, and motivation to all women, and all sports. Not only has NCAA Women’s Basketball seen an uptick of interest in the past few years, but young girls and women everywhere are opening their eyes to new opportunities. These female athletes are bringing about a new interest and leveling the playing field of women’s and men’s sports as well as their coverage in the media.