Iowa Hawkeye athletes had a busy weekend representing the University of Iowa. Four major stories stood out from the weekend in Hawkeye sports.
Payton Sandfort was named a participant in the 2025 Slam Dunk and 3-Point Championships
Iowa senior guard Payton Sandfort will represent the University of Iowa one last time. The senior sharp-shooter from Waukee, Iowa, will participate in the 2025 State Farm Slam Dunk and 3-Point Championships during the Final Four on April 3.
The championships feature the best shooters and highest-flying dunkers in college basketball.
Sandfort will be the seventh Hawkeye to participate in the event. He will be the first since Jordan Bohannon in 2022.
Sandfort will put his career 37.5 three-point shooting percentage to the test during the contest in San Antonio, Texas.
Women's Tennis takes down rival Nebraska 4-1
No. 29 Iowa took down rival Nebraska 4-1 on Saturday at the Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex in Iowa City, Iowa. Iowa Women's Tennis Head Coach Sasha Boros achieved her 100 career dual win at Iowa.
Boros is the third Iowa coach to reach the 100-win milestone.
Iowa began the dual meet with doubles tennis. Tereza Dejnozkova and Nikita Vishwase defeated Nebraska's Ana Zamburek and Lucy Loy 6-2. In the other doubles match, Daianne Hayashida and Marisa Schmidt defeated Emma Rizzetto and Reya Lee Coe 7-5.
The final doubles match between Barbora Pokorna and Pia Kranholdt against Nebraska's Maria Taranovaand and Natalia Trigosso went unfinished, with Iowa leading 5-3.
Kranholdt began singles play for the Hawkeyes, defeating Loy 6-4, 6-0. Vishwase followed with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Miyoshi. The Cornhuskers would take the next match, but ultimately fell 4-1 to the Hawkeyes.
Iowa moves to 11-5 (5-2 Big Ten) after the victory and will travel to College Park, Maryland, on April 4 to take on the Maryland Terrapins.
Ryan Johnson posts a record-setting hammer throw
Iowa Men's Track and Field sophomore Ryan Johnson had a record-setting day during the Texas State Invitational in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, March 29. Johnson threw the hammer 71.87 meters to secure the win and an Iowa school record.
Johnson's 71.87-meter throw was also the fifth furthest throw nationwide.
Johnson beat the school record he set the previous week. He finished first, ahead of Iowa's junior thrower Sean Smith (65.52 meters). Sophomore thrower Austin Busch finished in fourth place (63.67 meters).
The Hawkeyes will travel to compete in the Mike Fanelli Track Classic (San Francisco, California) and the Stanford Invitational (Palo Alto, California) from Friday, April 4 to Saturday, April 5.
Cooper Koch withdraws from the transfer portal
— Cooper Koch (@CooperKoch_8) March 30, 2025
Iowa freshman forward Cooper Koch has decided to return home to Iowa City. Koch entered the transfer portal on March 19, but after speaking with new Head Coach Ben McCollum, Koch has decided to return to Iowa.
After staying in contact with the Iowa staff, Koch decided their interests aligned and he would not be transferring.
Koch was limited to 10 games during his freshman season due to an illness. He averaged 4.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game in limited minutes.
Koch gives McCollum a sharpshooter that can stretch the floor. Koch shot 42.9 percent from three-point range as a freshman.