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Caitlin Clark, OU women's basketball coach share Iowa origin story: 'That was the hometown team'
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- Caitlin Clark, OU women's basketball coach share Iowa origin story: 'That was the hometown team'
Iowa 's Caitlin Clark is a superstar.
The senior guard boasts 3,569 career points, which is the most of any player in NCAA women's basketball history. And one person she admired while growing up was OU head coach Jennie Baranczyk .
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Baranczyk served as Drake 's head coach from 2012-21. The campus is located in Des Moines, Iowa, which is a short drive from Clark's hometown of West Des Moines.
"Growing up, I loved going to Drake men's and women's basketball games," Clark told reporters last week . "That was just the hometown team. That's where I grew up, 15 minutes from my house. Coach Jennie was a tremendous coach there, obviously. ... I loved watching them."
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That isn't the only connection between Clark and Baranczyk. Both of them attended Dowling Catholic High in West Des Moines, and both of them played for Iowa.
Baranczyk spent four seasons with the Hawkeyes from 2000-04. The Urbandale, Iowa, native earned an All-Big Ten first team selection in 2003 with averages of 16.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Baranczyk left Drake in 2021 to become OU's head coach. She's experiencing success this season with the Sooners (19-7, 13-2 Big 12), who are ranked No. 23 in the nation.
Still, Baranczyk has followed Clark's rise to national stardom over the years from afar.
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"I am so proud of her," Baranczyk told Hawk Central in April. "I've seen her play for a long time. And just to see her grow and develop, I think what makes her so special is she's not just elevated her teammates. She's elevated this state and this sport. ... She's been phenomenal."
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Iowa's Caitlin Clark grew up watching Sooner coach Jennie Baranczyk
