"This is amazing": Kate Martin reacts to former teammate Gabbie Marshall becoming Bengals' Ruler of the Jungle ahead of Ravens matchup
Kate Martin forged some special relationships with her teammates during her college basketball career with the Iowa Hawkeyes. One such teammate was backcourt partner Gabbie Marshall, and the Las Vegas Aces guard showed another example of their bond on social media.
Earlier today, Marshall was the latest to be named 'Ruler of the Jungle', a modern Cincinnati Bengals pregame tradition in which a celebrity leads the team's famous 'Who Dey' chant.
Prior to the Bengals' game against the Baltimore Ravens, Marshall, a Cincinnati native, donned the Bengals jersey and showed off her passion for the Super Bowl LVI finalists.
Martin was among the first to celebrate her former teammate's special moment, replying to the Bengals' post featuring Marshall with a comment.
"This is amazing," said Marshall.
Besides Martin, some of Marshall's other Iowa teammates also celebrated the guard's special involvement with the NFL team that represents her homeland.
"Second pic is giving me game winning block vibes from big 10 championship. Love to see it," said Kylie Feuerbach.
"WHOO DEY SAY THEY GON BEAT DA BENGALSSSS," rejoiced Jada Gyamfi.
"Omg we know her!!" Said the official Iowa women's basketball account.
Marshall excelled for the Hawkeyes with her incredible defense. Alongside Martin and Caitlin Clark, she formed one of the most fearsome trios in women's college basketball.
While Clark and Martin scored big in this year's WNBA draft, Marshall chose to retire from basketball to pursue her master's in Occupational Therapy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Kate Martin makes the most of her opportunity with the Las Vegas Aces
Kate Martin was one of the top guards for the Hawkeyes in the 2023-24 season. In 39 starts, she averaged 13.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists, earning Second All-Big Ten honors.
The Las Vegas Aces picked Martin in the second round of this year's WNBA draft. She has emerged as a solid rotation option for the Aces this season, averaging 2.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in 34 games, during which she averaged 11.5 minutes per game.
Martin and the Aces have a mountain to climb in the ongoing WNBA postseason, as they trail the New York Liberty 2-1 in a best-of-five series in the semifinals. Game 4 takes place today, and the Aces will hope to keep their season alive in another do-or-die game.