Iowa guard Taylor McCabe, left, celebrates with teammates Caitlin Clark and Sydney Affolter during a basketball game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City on Feb. 12, 2023.
By Lindsay Steele
The Catholic Messenger
(Editor’s note: This is the final in a series about the intersection of faith and sports.)
IOWA CITY —University of Iowa guard Taylor McCabe is known for draining three-pointers at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, but with God in her court, she knows life is about more than just basketball. “I know that God made me to be a person, not just an athlete, and that my athletic abilities are only part of what he has planned for me,” said McCabe, who recently began her senior season with the Iowa women’s basketball team.
McCabe attends Mass at Newman Catholic Student Center and participates in a weekly Bible study. The Iowa Athletic Department recently selected McCabe as its 2025 Newman Catholic Student Center Athletic Scholarship recipient. “My faith has been a steadfast foundation for me all my life,” she said, crediting her parents and grandparents for emphasizing the importance of being kind to everyone and trusting God.
The civil engineering major joined the Hawkeyes during a historic run, playing alongside future WNBA star Caitlin Clark during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. McCabe achieved her 100th three-pointer earlier this year, and has started several games this season.
The Nebraska native’s interest in basketball began at a young age. She dabbled in other sports, including softball, track and cross country, but basketball was always on the roster. At Fremont High School in Fremont, Nebraska, McCabe accumulated over 2,000 career points — the first Nebraska Class A guard to achieve the feat — and helped the team to a state championship in 2022. She also experienced success with the All Iowa Attack, earning the U16 national championship in 2021. “Being an athlete means so much to me because it has opened a world of doors and opportunities that I never could have imagined,” she said. “Sports have brought me so many friends and mentors that I will be forever thankful for, and I have been so fortunate to have been able to travel all over the country and even the world for sports.”
McCabe’s Catholic faith has helped her through some of life’s most pressure-filled moments. “During my recruiting process, which started in seventh grade and ended once I committed to the University of Iowa at the beginning of my junior year, there was a lot of pressure on me to perform well, because I knew my future was riding on it. But I also knew that my performance did not define God’s love for me, and that he would find the right place for me. I am so thankful he brought me to Iowa.”
Before games, she prays that God will keep all the players safe and healthy, and that her presence on the court will be pleasing to him. No matter the outcome, “I know that after each game I have a God that will be proud of me, and that means everything when sports are such a huge part of my life.”
She admits it hasn’t always been easy to balance faith and sports. In high school, her family traveled to a different state every weekend for tournaments. “We almost always had a Sunday morning game, which made it challenging to attend Mass.” The family “never felt right” about missing Mass, she said, “but like so many other busy families, we were caught up in sports. We did the best we could, and tried to do differently for my younger siblings.” She tries not to punish herself for the growing pains she’s experienced. Instead, she focuses on learning and improving. “Now I have gotten into a routine, and am able to go to Mass in the morning before practices each Sunday.”
McCabe’s faith and confidence occasionally come up short. “There have been plenty of times where I have struggled in sports and questioned God because I thought I knew better and I thought I knew what I deserved. Looking back, it is almost laughable that I would think that way.”
Persistence in faith, as in sport, has been key. “In the end, the strength of my faith prevailed, and I never gave it up,” she said. “It has empowered my basketball story and led me to keep putting in hard work, treat everyone with respect, and have confidence in myself, since God believes in me, too.”
