Clarion-Goldfield/Dows senior Elliot Ennis told to ‘join the boys team’

November 29, 2024

Elliot Ennis grew up not only with the sport of basketball, but with the Clarion-Goldfield/Dows program as a whole.

Her mother, Elizabeth Ennis, has been the Cowgirls’ head coach twice, including the last three years, with her daughter being an integral part of a team that won 19 games during that time.

But Ennis won’t be allowed to end her basketball career at Clarion-Goldfield/Dows, where she plans to be valedictorian this spring. Instead, she told the education board that she had been told to simply “join the boys’ team” if she wanted to play for the school.

Clarion-Goldfield/Dows is one of the few programs in Iowa that will not play on the varsity schedule this winter. They are working on a junior varsity schedule that excludes those who returned a year ago.

“To say I’m disappointed by this would be an understatement,” Ennis said when he appeared before the Board of Education earlier this month. “I have dedicated countless hours of my time to playing basketball. It has always been my favorite sport. I have so many wonderful memories, I couldn’t even begin to list them all. When I found out we wouldn’t be able to field a basketball team this year, my heart sank.

“But when several members of the administration told me that they would do everything in their power to allow me and the other players to play. New coaches were hired, meetings were held and in the end we had the same result. Addy (Howell), myself and a handful of freshmen would be the only team members. After I was told that my best option was to ‘join the boys’ team,’ I realized you had lied to me.”

Howell, a sophomore who saw significant playing time last year, made the comments at the same session, where she also addressed significant differences in the school’s treatment of boys’ sports compared to girls’ sports.

* Clarion-Goldfield/Dows student speaks out about the school district’s treatment of girls’ sports

As a junior, Ennis started in all 21 games and scored a team-leading 230 points with 225 rebounds, 37 blocks, 30 steals and 20 assists. She scored 205 points and 233 rebounds as a second-grader and 88 points and 88 rebounds as a ninth-grader.

Ennis noted that she was told the school had been in discussions about joining Belmond-Klemme, but “when they said they weren’t interested in passing on, I was essentially told there were no other options.”

“In order to play competitive basketball at my level, I would have to enroll somewhere else,” she said. “Given that I am a senior citizen who has lived in this city and with this group of people her entire life, this was anything but my best interest.”

So Ennis remains at Clarion-Goldfield/Dows and is on track to graduate in the spring as a key member of the Class of 2025. She will leave the halls and move on to her next stop, but the lessons she has learned over the past few months will always stay with her.

“I don’t know if much has changed, but I’ve received a lot of messages from parents, teachers and friends from other schools asking me how I’m doing or telling me that they think I’m brave express,” Ennis told University Sports on SI. “I think that gave me a little perspective. School sports mean a lot to you when you play them, but it’s important to know that you will go on to bigger and better things in life.

“Still, I think sport is such a meaningful and developmental part of so many children’s lives. It’s sad that so many other girls across the state are going through similar issues.”

* Clarion-Goldfield/Dows, Charles City, Central City will not play girls varsity basketball in 2024-25

* Sibley-Ocheyedan, West Sioux, is the first to scrap its plans for varsity girls basketball this winter