"She was D-I material" - Caitlin Clark's high school coach once revealed her record-breaking talent in soccer

Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark took the WNBA by storm in her rookie season. However, basketball wasn't the only sport she showed incredible skills in, as revealed by her coach at Dowling High School.

Caitlin Clark's soccer coach at Dowling High, JP Pearson revealed this in a February 8, 2024, story with Hawk Central. Pearson described her as a D-I material although she had to choose basketball over soccer.

"She was D-I material in soccer, easily," JP Pearson said. "She did have a way to go, but if she would have stayed in soccer and made that her No. 1 sport ... she was good."

"The way she used her body, even as a freshman … with her back to a defender, the defenders couldn’t win the ball," coach Pearson added. "As you can see on the (basketball) court, she was really good at turning players."

Clark in high school was a two-sport athlete where she played soccer as well as basketball. Her focus switched to basketball after her sophomore year at Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, Iowa.

Her stats as a soccer player as a freshman were impressive. She scored 26 goals in six games which earned her a spot on the first-team all-state.

Now, she's taking women's basketball to another level. The WNBA, through Clark's popularity, is seeing record attendance numbers and increased viewership.

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Caitlin Clark's father believed in her soccer skills

Caitlin Clark's father Brent Clark in an April 2024 interview with Hawk Central was confident about her daughter's soccer skills. He believed that she would have excelled in the sport if she had chosen it over basketball.

"Quite frankly, and I’m not trying to brag about it, but I think she probably could have been the same sort of talent in soccer that she is in basketball," Clark's father said. "She could have been on USA, junior-national type teams."

Her highlights in the competition back up the claims made previously by her coach and now her father.

While no one knows if she would have excelled in soccer. She has gone on to shine bright in basketball. Her impressive career from Iowa to the Indiana Fever has seen her break and create records.