When Callie Levin was in sixth grade, she would tag along with her sister for basketball practice with coach Darryl Moore’s Court 45 training program. Levin wasn’t working with Moore yet, but she would substitute in if there was a player missing.

Even while playing against girls two or three years older than her, Moore said she was one of the best players on the court.

“You can see right away that she was good and that she was determined,” Moore said. “She wasn’t just a kid that knew how to play, but a kid that was really motivated to play, and get better, and do well all the time.”

Now, Levin is approaching the end of her senior year of high school as the Iowa women’s basketball team’s only recruit from Iowa in the class of 2028.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I always wanted to go to Iowa,” Levin said. “Going to the games and stuff watching them play — I always wanted to be a Hawkeye.”

According to Prep Girls Hoops, Levin is the No. 2 recruit from Iowa. The 5-foot-10 point guard from Solon High School is second only to Aili Tanke, an Iowa State commit from Johnston, Iowa.

Moore, who is now her personal trainer, started working directly with Levin in high school, aiming to refine her skills for a bigger stage.

The trainer has worked with other players who now play professional collegiate basketball — including Iowa’s Hannah Stuelke from Cedar Rapids — and said intrinsic motivation and willingness to learn make these players stand out.

“Players like that actually give me energy,” Moore said. “When we’re working out with Callie, she brings the energy all the time, and it boosts my energy as well.”

Levin said her positivity has been rooted in her from a young age and she is grateful to her family for instilling positive values and faith into her life at a young age.

Over the years, Levin said she learned to value herself and her identity outside of basketball, allowing her to enjoy the sport even more.

“You’ll see on the basketball court just after I make a three with my teammate, and it’s definitely awesome,” Levin said, “Just celebrating because basketball is fun, so that’s how it should be played.”

Jamie Smith, the head coach for the Solon girl’s basketball program, said he saw the passion the point guard brings to the table his first year coaching for the Spartans when Levin was in seventh grade.

When Levin’s older sister played for Smith, Levin had already “bought into the program” before she started playing. Smith said there was a particularly tough loss the team faced where Levin came down tearing up.

Smith asked why she was crying, and Levin responded that she was just sad the team she cared for lost.

“There’s just a lot of other memories, you know? There’s just so many,” Smith said. “I’m gonna miss the van rides and the team meals and stuff.”

Both Smith and Moore commended Levin for her positive mentality and ability to uplift her teammates. Maintaining that energy under stress, however, is a learned skill.

Smith said that near the beginning of her career, Levin was putting a lot of pressure on herself. As the leading scorer for her team putting up 20 points a game for the Solon Spartans as a 14-year-old, Smith said there was a lot of pressure on her as a player.

Smith said the pressure culminated in the last game of her freshman season with a loss against Davenport High School’s team. With chants of “overrated” from the opponent’s crowd, Smith said Levin wasn’t playing her best.

“It was hard for me to watch her go through that,” Smith said. “As time went on, that didn’t faze her. I think that drove her more than anything.”

Four years later, and that mental growth is beyond clear. Levin ended her senior season averaging 22.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 4.8 steals for the year. The Spartans went 24-3 this year, and have been 79-20 since she joined the team.

Levin was named Miss Iowa Basketball 2024 by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association: a lofty achievement for the state that prompted the explosive growth of women’s basketball with Iowa’s Caitlin Clark.

Now, Levin is onto her next endeavor with the Iowa women’s basketball team.

When Levin first got the call from head coach Lisa Bluder asking her to visit campus after a tournament game with All Iowa Attack — a youth basketball program in Ames, Iowa — it was a manifestation of her childhood dreams coming true.

“I was going crazy in the car,” she said. “I was like, ‘Lisa wants to call me? Are you kidding me?’ It was an insane moment.”

Even before that call, however, Levin had connections to both Iowa and the women’s basketball program. With both of her parents finishing their college careers at the University of Iowa, plus her sister’s current position as a member of the rowing team, Iowa was a natural choice.

The recent notoriety surrounding Iowa’s program also helped, which Smith said will only grow as more Iowans are recruited and come into the program.

“Callie is going to draw a lot of people to be Hawkeye fans that maybe weren’t, or women’s basketball fans that maybe weren’t,” Smith said.

As the only incoming first-year on the Iowa women’s basketball team, Levin said she was excited to represent Iowa on a team she has been watching since the second grade.

“I think it’s pretty cool that I can be a hometown Hawkeye,” she said. “I’m just so grateful for that kind of fan base that’s gonna follow me along.”

Levin also had the opportunity to work with current players on the team during her time at All Iowa Attack. She said  Stuelke, Taylor McCabe, Jada Gyamfi, Kylie Feuerbach, Sydney Affolter, and herself all played together on the team in Ames, and she is looking forward to continuing their connections and chemistry.

Both the coaching staff and the fans surrounding the program also influenced Levin’s choice to commit to Iowa. She said the culture she experienced while visiting campus valued every player, both as athletes and humans, which played an important role in her decision.

“Coach Bluder and all the other coaches, they just — they make the girls better women, and I think that’s something to look at,” Levin said.

In terms of melding into the team, Moore and Smith said while it will require hard work, Levin undoubtedly has the skills to succeed at the collegiate level.

Smith said Levin’s ability on defense and her strategic mind are two undervalued components of her play that he’s excited to see flourish under Iowa’s program.

Moore said while Levin might not be putting up 30 points a game, there are other benchmarks that Levin is sure to meet in order to excel.

“I’m really excited to see her at the next level,” Moore said. “I really don’t worry about Callie because her motor runs at such a high level that she will succeed no matter what.”

Ultimately, Levin said she is excited to take this opportunity to improve with Iowa’s program, the coaching staff, and her future teammates.

“I’m definitely looking forward to growing and just getting better, on the basketball court and off the basketball court,” she said.