ROSEMONT, IL— Monika Czinano. Megan Gustafson. Addison O’Grady. In Iowa City, a place prioritizing women’s basketball, these and other names have stood out in recent years as true bigs and vital players to the Hawkeyes’ success.
Now, fourth-year Hannah Stuelke looks to add her name to that list by making her own lasting impression on the Hawkeyes. A member of both the Coaches and Media Preseason All-Big Ten Teams, Stuelke is quick to give credit to others who have bolstered Iowa’s success.
“I think it’s just so exciting,” Stuelke said in a press conference Wednesday. “Our fans, like always, have been so amazing. They love us so much and we love them, and they’re always there to support us, which is so cool.”
For the third straight season, season tickets to see the Hawkeye women sold out, officially keeping alive a trend from the tail end of the Caitlin Clark and Lisa Bluder days. Once again, Iowa City’s Carver-Hawkeye Arena is expected to be nothing short of electric.
“It gets so fun in Carver and loud,” Stuelke said. “I think it’s a good place to play.”
Head coach Jan Jensen, whose own coaching experience includes working with bigs like the aforementioned Czinano, said Stuelke has done a great job of working on her game.
“She’s just a versatile threat,” Jensen said. “I’m pleased with what I’m seeing. I believe in the post play. A lot of people want their bigs to be guards, that’s lovely if you can have some do that. But I also think it’s lovely to have a really dominant force that can play with their back to the basket and stretch to the short corners, the elbows.”
Jensen also shouted out the role of the team’s other bigs, namely second-year Ava Heiden and first-year Layla Hays.
“I think there’s just a little bit of versatility with that size,” Jensen said. “They’re all really special players. They have a different skill set that I’m pretty excited to see. There’s a lot of good things in the big.”
This year, Iowa’s roster features 14 athletes, five of whom are first-year or transfer players. Stuelke and a handful of others, including fourth-year Taylor McCabe and fifth-year Kylie Feuerbach, represent the program faces with more experience as Hawkeyes.
Feuerbach expressed admiration for Jensen, whose initial 8-0 run last season was the best start to a coaching tenure in program history.
“The way that she handled it last year was phenomenal,” Feuerbach said. “If I had just come this year and I had no idea who she was, I would never have assumed that it’s her second year.”
The fifth-year, who initially began her career at Iowa State, opted to return for her final season of eligibility, and also shares the sentiment of an ambitious final season with Stuelke.
“It’s a completely new day and age,” Feuerbach said. “It’s a really cool opportunity. I’m glad that players are able to experience it and get a little piece of the way that they perform.”
Stuelke, also in her final season of eligibility, reflected on her time with the program so far, also emphasizing the importance of staying focused in the present.
“Coach J has been saying our next is now,” Stuelke said. “We’ve been trying to live in the moment each and every day, growing with our teammates and just enjoying everything as it goes, which has been really great.”