Iowa Women's Basketball has been on a tear to start the season.
In Head Coach Jan Jensen's second season at the helm, the Hawkeyes have a balanced offensive attack and have excelled on defense.
The Hawkeyes have started the season winning their first four games in dominating fashion, and have soared into the top 20 of the recent AP Top 25 poll.
Iowa is currently ranked No. 19 overall, and the squad will face its biggest test of the season so far when it travels to Orlando to take on No. 7 Oregon at the WBCA Showcase tournament.
Before the Hawkeyes traveled to Orlando, a few of the newcomers to the squad discussed how they are fitting in so far.
During media availability this week (posted by "The Hawkeye Report"), freshmen Layla Hays and Journey Houston spoke about their acclimation to the program.
Hays (No. 65 overall) and Houston (No. 88 overall) are two members of a talented 2025 class that 247Sports ranked as the No. 2 overall recruiting class in the Big Ten.
Hays and Houston echoed that they have had a great experience so far and are starting to settle into their roles.
While their roles are far from being set, both players believe they know what their roles are and will go out and compete every night.
The experience has been slightly different for Hays, who moved to Iowa City from Alaska.
She mentioned she has been homesick, but everyone on the team has been very supportive, especially Ava Heiden and Hannah Stuelke.
Hays stated that they push each other extremely hard on the court and spend a lot of time together outside the court as well.
Houston also stated that everyone has been supportive, and they are both excited to play in front of such a great crowd at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Hays and Houston have been key bench members for Jan Jensen to start the season, and it will be interesting to see how they develop.