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Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall to return for another season

On3 imageby:Kyle Huesmann•02/20/23•

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Photo by Dennis Scheidt

The Iowa Women’s Basketball team got some good news on Monday morning, regarding their 2023-24 roster. It was announced that guard Kate Martin will be returning for her sixth year of eligibility, while guard Gabbie Marshall will return for her fifth year of eligibility. The Hawkeyes will return three starters next season, as they will join point guard Caitlin Clark.

“We were just so hopeful that these guys would comeback,” said head coach Lisa Bluder. “What they’ve meant to the program and how much success they’ve had and what quality young women they are. You just want to hang on to those people.”

KATE MARTIN

“It was a lot of talking with the coaches and talking with my family. Just reflecting on what my goals were for next year,” said Kate Martin. “It was really a no brainer, with finishing my master’s degree and getting to finish school debt free is pretty huge. Then, when I think about being done with basketball, it just killed me…there’s nothing I’d rather do. I’m not really ready to start my real job.”

Over her career, Martin has started 89 games and has done a little bit over everything for the Hawkeyes. This year, she is averaging 7.0 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. She joins Caitlin Clark, as the only other player on the roster to have a game with 20+ points, a game with 10+ rebounds and a game with 10+ assists.

For Kate, it isn’t always about what she puts on the stat sheet that helps the team. She has been called “the clue”, the “team mother”, “the captain” and the “heart and soul of the team” among others. She brings a calm presence to the floor and a high basketball IQ. The type of player that you want on your team for another season.

“Kate’s one of those people that is able to hold everybody else accountable. Motivate everybody,” said Lisa Bluder. “She’s your coach in the locker room, as far as making sure that people are saying the right things. You just can’t understand the value of somebody like that. It really is amazing that somebody with great leadership skills is returning and helping us again.”

“There’s once in a lifetime players like Caitlin, but there’s once in a lifetime leaders like Kate,” said Gabbie Marshall. “Not everything she does shows up on the box score, but what she does inside the locker room and in our team meetings, there’s no words to describe it.”

GABBIE MARSHALL

“I talked with Kate a lot and my family. My family was always like, ‘you want to stay in college as long as you can,'” said Gabbie Marshall. “Playing with these girls and this team is so special and under these coaches. It was a really a no brainer for me. There were thoughts of, can I do this mentally and physically for another year, but I mean this place is very special to me.”

Marshall has started 88 games over four years with the Hawkeyes and ranks 12th in school history with 161 made three-pointers. On the defensive end of the floor, Gabbie ranks 13th in school history with 170 steals. Her return to the Hawkeyes next season means a boost from behind the arc on offense and a boost on the defensive end of the floor.

Marshall has had the assignment of guarding the other teams best player in most games. Most notably, she helped hold Penn State PG Makenna Marisa to 3/23 shooting in two games, while she also helped hold Ohio State’s Taylor Mikesell to 2/10 from 3pt range.

While Gabbie has had a down year from three-point range, it is not far-fetched to believe she will bounce back next season. She has 20 games with 3+ three-pointers made and is a career 42% three-point shooter.

POTENTIAL 2023-24 STARTING LINEUP

6’0 PG Caitlin Clark

5’9 G Gabbie Marshall

6’0 G Kate Martin

6’2 F Hannah Stuelke

6’4 C Addison O’Grady

This is how the Hawkeyes could take the floor next season if you had to put a starting lineup together today. Three returning starters, with McKenna Warnock and Monika Czinano moving on. Molly Davis, Sydney Affolter and Taylor McCabe, as well as a healthy Kylie Feuerbach give the group plenty of guard depth. It will be interesting to see what happens from a transfer portal standpoint. Currently, the roster is full with 15 scholarships, but if someone decides to leave, the Hawkeyes could be in the market for a forward or a center.

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