1987–88 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team

Intercollegiate basketball season March 2026 February 2024 Women's Basketball 1987–88 Iowa Hawkeyes Big Ten Conference Big Ten 6 2 29–2 17–1 C. Vivian Stringer 5th Carver–Hawkeye Arena Big Ten Conference regular season championsOrange Bowl tournament champions NCAA tournament Elite Eight The 1987–88 Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team represented the University of Iowa as members of the Big Ten Conference during the 1987–88 NCAA women's basketball season. The Hawkeyes, led by fifth-year head coach C. Vivian Stringer, played their home games in Iowa City, Iowa at Carver–Hawkeye Arena. They finished the season 29–2 overall, 17–1 in Big Ten play, winning the conference championship. The team finished with the highest final ranking of any Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team at No. 2 in the final AP poll. For the second straight season, Iowa advanced to the Elite Eight in the women's NCAA basketball tournament. With big expectations entering the season, the Hawkeyes were ranked No. 6 in the preseason AP poll the lowest ranking they would have all year. The team won its first 22 games, including victories over five top 10 teams, highlighted by takedowns of No. 2 Auburn and No. 1 Texas in the Orange Bowl tournament in Miami. The Hawkeyes themselves rose to the No. 1 ranking, a first ever for a Big Ten women's program, a perch they would hold onto for eight weeks. Iowa's lone regular season loss was a 58–54 setback at No. 8 Ohio State. The Hawkeyes finished the regular season 27–1 (17–1 Big Ten). Ranked No. 2 in the final three AP polls, the Hawkeyes received the No. 1 seed in the West region of the NCAA tournament. Iowa defeated No. 8 seed, 19th ranked Stephen F. Austin and No. 4 seed, 15th ranked USC to reach the regional final. Iowa faced a team they defeated earlier in the season, No. 2 seed and 7th ranked Cal State Long Beach, but were beaten by 20 points in a virtual home game for the team from Long Beach. Senior guard Michelle Edwards would be the first Iowa women's basketball player to have her number retired in 1990. Roster w 1987 Iowa Hawkeyes y yes w Stephanie Schueler 10 G 5 6 Fr Lincoln Sioux Falls, SD w Lorelei Watts 12 F 5 10 Sr Alleman Rock Island, IL w Felicia Hall 14 F 6 2 Fr Green Oaks Shreveport, LA w Robin Christian 21 G 5 9 Jr Jamaica Plain Roxbury, MA w Jolynn Schneider 22 F 6 2 Sr Regina Grosse Pointe, MI w Franthea Price 25 F 5 9 So River Rouge River Rouge, MI w Michelle Edwards 30 G 5 9 Sr Cathedral Boston, MA y basketball w Pam Williams 32 G 5 9 Sr Lindblom Tech Chicago, IL w Jody Ratigan 33 F 5 8 So Tri-Center Neola, IA w Jolette Law 34 G 5 3 So Wilson Florence, SC y w Shanda Berry 42 C 6 3 Jr Oelwein Oelwein, IA w Marva Fuller 44 C 6 5 Sr Holly Holly, MI C. Vivian Stringer Jennifer Bednarek Marianna Freeman https://hawkeyesports.com/sports/wbball/roster/season/1987-88/ Schedule and results |- !colspan=9 style=Iowa Hawkeyes| Regular season Nov 28, 1987 yes 6 1987 women Missouri Tigers Missouri Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa Amana-Hawkeye Classic 85–71 1,588 1–0 Nov 29, 1987 yes 6 1987 none Georgia Lady Bulldogs Georgia Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa Amana-Hawkeye Classic 66–56 2,097 2–0 Dec 1, 1987 yes yes 6 1987 women Iowa State Cyclones Iowa State Hilton Coliseum Ames, Iowa 93–49 3–0 Dec 5, 1987 yes yes 6 Long Beach State 4 Evans Field House DeKalb, Illinois NIU Fastbreak Festival 82–75 4–0 Dec 6, 1987 yes yes 6 1987 women Northern Illinois Huskies Northern Illinois Evans Field House DeKalb, Illinois NIU Fastbreak Festival 81–73 5–0 Dec 11, 1987 yes 5 1987 women Nebraska Cornhuskers Nebraska Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 68–58 6–0 Dec 28, 1987 yes yes 5 Auburn 2 James L. Knight International Center Miami, Florida Burger King/Orange Bowl Tournament 73–69Iowa Women Steal Four-Point Victory Over No. 2 Auburn https://www.sun-sentinel.com/1987/12/29/iowa-women-steal-four-point-victory-over-no-2-auburn/ Sun Sentinel December 29, 1987 February 19, 2024 7–0 Dec 29, 1987 yes yes 5 1987 women Virginia Cavaliers Virginia 6 James L. Knight International Center Miami, Florida Burger King/Orange Bowl Tournament 75–59Women's Basketball; Top-Ranked Texas Halts Rutgers, 86-75 https://www.nytimes.com/1987/12/30/sports/women-s-basketball-top-ranked-texas-halts-rutgers-86-75.html The New York Times December 30, 1987 February 19, 2024 8–0 Dec 30, 1987 yes yes 5 1987 women Texas Longhorns Texas 1 James L. Knight International Center Miami, Florida Burger King/Orange Bowl Tournament 75–65Women's Basketball : No. 5 Iowa Upsets Top-Ranked Texas, 75-65 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-12-31-sp-7568-story.html The Los Angeles Times December 31, 1987 February 19, 2024 9–0 Jan 8, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Wisconsin Badgers Wisconsin Wisconsin Field House Madison, Wisconsin 81–71 10–0 1–0 Jan 10, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Northwestern Wildcats Northwestern Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 81–43 11–0 2–0 Jan 15, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Minnesota Golden Gophers Minnesota Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minnesota 84–41 12–0 3–0 Jan 22, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Illinois Fighting Illini Illinois Assembly Hall Champaign, Illinois 90–63HAWKEYES TAKE WING: Under the Leadership of Coach C. Vivian Stringer, Iowa's Women's Basketball Team Has Become No. 1 https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-01-24-sp-38200-story.html The Los Angeles Times January 24, 1988 February 19, 2024 13–0 4–0 Jan 9, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Purdue Boilermakers Purdue Mackey Arena West Lafayette, Indiana 67–57 14–0 5–0 Jan 29, 1988 1 1987 women Indiana Hoosiers Indiana Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 72–48 15–0 6–0 Jan 31, 1988 1 1987 women Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State 8 Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 75–64 16–0 7–0 Feb 2, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Michigan State Spartans Michigan State Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, Michigan 77–52 17–0 8–0 Feb 5, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Michigan Wolverines Michigan Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, Michigan 89–54 18–0 9–0 Feb 12, 1988 1 Minnesota Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 100–51Winning Votes in Iowa https://vault.si.com/vault/1988/02/15/winning-votes-in-iowa Sports Illustrated February 15, 1988 February 19, 2024 19–0 10–0 Feb 16, 1988 yes 1 1987 women Drake Bulldogs Drake Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 74–38 20–0 Feb 19, 1988 1 Purdue Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 66–52 21–0 11–0 Feb 21, 1988 1 Illinois Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 87–36 22–0 12–0 Feb 26, 1988 yes 1 Ohio State 8 St. John Arena Columbus, Ohio 54–58 22–1 12–1 Feb 28, 1988 yes 1 Indiana Assembly Hall Bloomington, Indiana 71–47 23–1 13–1 Mar 4, 1988 2 Michigan Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 76–55 24–1 14–1 Mar 6, 1988 2 Michigan State Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 52–46 25–1 15–1 Mar 10, 1988 yes 2 Northwestern Welsh-Ryan Arena Evanston, Illinois 76–66 26–1 16–1 Mar 12, 1988 2 Wisconsin Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa 98–50 27–1 17–1 |- !colspan=9 style=Iowa Hawkeyes| NCAA tournament Mar 18, 1988 yes 2 1 W 1987 none Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Stephen F. Austin 19 8 W Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, Iowa Second round 83–65Edwards Scores 30 as Iowa Romps to 83-65 Win https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-21-sp-944-story.html The Los Angeles Times March 21, 1988 February 19, 2024 28–1 Mar 24, 1988 yes yes 2 1 W 1987 women USC Trojans USC 15 4 W Long Beach Arena Long Beach, California West Regional Semifinal Sweet Sixteen 79–67USC Must Settle for 79-67 Loss: Iowa Moves Into West Regional Final at Long Beach https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-25-sp-46-story.html The Los Angeles Times March 25, 1988 February 19, 2024 29–1 Mar 26, 1988 yes yes 2 1 W Long Beach State 7 2 W Long Beach Arena Long Beach, California West Regional Final Elite Eight 78–98West Regional : CS Long Beach Is on Its Way to Tacoma https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-27-sp-460-story.html The Los Angeles Times March 27, 1988 February 19, 2024 2,179 29–2 AP Poll W West 1987-88 Women's Basketball Schedule https://hawkeyesports.com/sports/wbball/schedule/season/1987-88/ University of Iowa Athletics February 19, 2024 2023-24 Iowa Women's Basketball Media Guide https://storage.googleapis.com/hawkeyesports-com/2023/11/ae112bd4-2023-24-media-guide.pdf University of Iowa Athletics February 18, 2024 Rankings 1987–88 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings AP 0 16 6 6 5 5 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 Coaches 0 17 7 6 5 5 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 3 3 6 References Iowa Category:Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball seasons Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa