Girls 6-on-6 Basketball: Preparing for Gameday in Rural Iowa

Playing in the barn, cattle calls to disrupt practice shots, and mom and dad taking over the chores were all part of game day preparation for some rural Iowa girls basketball players. This segment from Iowa PBS’s More Than a Game: 6-on-6 Basketball in Iowa documentary features first-hand accounts from players.

Narrator: Players who came from farm families remember game days when their parents took over the chores to keep their girls fresh for competition. Mom and dad milked the cows, and then the whole family would head in for the game together. They often practiced in old corn cribs or barn haylofts at hoops their fathers put up.
 
Lynne Lorenzen-Ward, Ventura H.S. (1983-1987): I recall being at Iowa State (University) at a camp, and someone said, "oh yeah, you're that girl that plays in the barn." I had no idea that was unique and different. You know, I was like, what do you mean? "You're that girl that plays in the barn."

That's where we played!
 
Jeanette (Olson) Lietz, Everly H.S. (1964 - 1968): I have a lot of fond memories of Six-on-Six.  Some of them are on the farm with my dad. We would be playing and he would be guarding me. Of course, being the farmer that he was, he'd use cattle calls to try to disrupt my attention.