5-Star PF McKenna Woliczko Commits to Iowa, Talks Caitlin Clark's Influence on Program

Iowa women's basketball is bringing in its highest-ranked prospect since Caitlin Clark graduated last year as the NCAA's all-time leading scorer.

Five-star forward McKenna Woliczko has committed to the Hawkeyes as a member of the Class of 2026, she told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne.

Woliczko is listed as the No. 6 prospect in the nation by 247Sports composite rankings.

Woliczko told Shelburne she had noticed Clark reacting to a social media post about her recruiting visit to Iowa the weekend of Aug. 30.

She also told Shelburne that Iowa coach Jan Jensen informed her Clark had "checked in" on her recruiting process with the Hawkeyes.

"Obviously Caitlin's a great player, and obviously she put Iowa on the map. But I also watched a lot of other Iowa players growing up," Woliczko told Shelburne. "Megan Gustafson, Monika Czinano, I would always watch them and thought they were awesome."

Woliczko starred in 2024 for the U-17 American team at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, averaging 12.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in seven games while leading the Team USA frontcourt to a gold medal in Mexico.

The following winter, she suffered a season-ending injury during her junior season when she was diagnosed with a torn ACL last January.

Woliczko had resumed running and "careful side-to-side movements" by January as part of her ramp-up process for her senior year at Archbishop Mitty, Christian Babcock reported for the East Bay Times.

Iowa will hope to see her return to full strength during her final high school season before arriving in the Iowa City frontcourt next fall.