Kim (McCaffrey) Davis Enters the CB Sports Network Hall of Fame

There are athletes who are remembered for their statistics. There are athletes who are remembered for championships.

And then there are athletes like Kim (McCaffrey) Davis, whose high school career at Carroll High School left an imprint that went far beyond the scorebook.

A member of the Carroll High School Class of 1997, Davis excelled in volleyball, basketball, track and softball, establishing herself as one of the most accomplished multi-sport athletes in Carroll sports history. Her high school résumé includes four state championships, multiple state tournament appearances, All-State honors in volleyball and basketball, and countless moments that remain part of Carroll’s sports history.

For those accomplishments and the impact she made as an athlete, Davis has been named to the CB Sports Network Rewind Hall of Fame.

Davis’ championship résumé began on the track.

In both 1996 and 1997, she won a state championship in the 400-meter hurdles, becoming a two-time state champion in an event that demanded speed, endurance and technical precision.

On the basketball court, McCaffrey helped Carroll reach the state tournament three consecutive years.

The Tigers made the trip in 1995, although their season ended in the opening round. Carroll returned in 1996 and captured a state championship, then came back again in 1997 and won another state title.

During those championship runs, Davis was recognized as an All-Tournament selection as both a junior and senior, and she was named a team captain as a senior in 1997.

Her senior-year state tournament provided one of the most memorable moments of her career.

Carroll faced Vinton-Shellsburg with the game hanging in the balance. With just five seconds remaining, Carroll trailed by one point. Coach Don Oleson called timeout.

The ball went to Sara (Stribe) Vander Sanden on the inbound pass, who found Kim.

Davis drove and scored the game-winning layup.

Carroll won.

The moment was so memorable that the play was replayed on the television broadcast for years afterward.

It was the kind of moment that came to define Davis’ career: the pressure was at its highest, and she wanted the ball.

In 1998, Davis received the Jack North Basketball All-State Award, recognizing her as the top basketball player in the 1997 Iowa Girls State Basketball Tournament.

Basketball and track were only part of the story.

Davis was also an outstanding volleyball player, earning All-State honors in the sport.

Her senior season ended with Carroll finishing second at the state volleyball tournament in 1997, with the Tigers falling to Western Christian in the championship match.

Her volleyball accomplishments eventually earned her a place in the Iowa Girls Athletic Union Volleyball Hall of Fame, where she was inducted in 2001.

In 2003, her high school career received another significant honor when she was named to the Des Moines Register’s Top 50 Volleyball Players in Iowa High School History.

Those honors helped put Davis’ Carroll career into a larger historical context. She wasn’t simply a standout from her era—her accomplishments placed her among the notable volleyball players in the history of Iowa girls high school athletics.

The foundation for Davis’ success was established long before she became a state champion.

Her love of sports began when she was only six or seven years old.

She loved watching volleyball and spent time watching her coach at UNI, Bobby Becker, learning from what she saw.

One particularly memorable experience came when the Iowa Girls Coaches Association Senior All-Star volleyball game was moved to Carroll. Davis got to see many of the state’s top players come to her hometown.

For a young athlete who already loved volleyball, seeing those players compete in Carroll made a lasting impression.

At home, sports were just as much a part of everyday life.

Her father, Mike, played basketball with her in the backyard and took her to the gym regularly. They would hit volleyballs, take basketball shots and work on hurdles.

When the Haluska’s moved across the street, a young Adam Haluska would also shoot baskets with Kim.

Sports weren’t simply something Davis participated in—they were something she lived.

Talent alone doesn’t explain Davis’ success.

She wanted to get better.

She was never afraid to ask for help when she needed it, and she wanted to be the best at whatever she was doing. One of the clearest examples of that mindset came after games.

Davis loved watching videotapes of her performances.

She wasn’t watching simply to relive a victory. She watched to identify what she could improve.

What could she have done differently?

What could she do better the next time?

That approach earned her the respect of coaches and athletes throughout the area. She became friends with coaches such as Don Jenkins and Angie Spangenberg, among others, who recognized and respected her work ethic.

She also traveled to numerous camps, seeking opportunities to learn from different coaches and players. Among those experiences were camps where she worked with Russian national-team personnel and gained additional knowledge of the game.

For Davis, improvement was always part of the process.

While volleyball, basketball and track produced her most significant state accomplishments, Davis also competed in softball.

During her junior year, Carroll’s softball season ended in the regional final, another indication of the depth of her commitment to Carroll athletics.

Being a four-sport athlete required an extraordinary amount of time and dedication.

Davis embraced it.

Her accomplishments across multiple sports demonstrated not only athletic ability, but also adaptability. She could transition from the volleyball court to the basketball floor, from the basketball floor to the track, and then onto the softball diamond.

And she expected herself to compete.

The McCaffrey family has long been connected to sports.

Kim’s sister, Stacy McCaffrey, was involved in golf, dance and softball.

For Kim, though, the biggest influence may have been the countless hours spent with her father.

Mike didn’t just take her to games. He took her to the gym.

He worked with her.

He played with her.

He video taped all her games for her to watch later.

He helped create an environment where hard work and improvement became part of her daily routine.

Those early mornings, backyard basketball games, gym sessions, volleyball repetitions and hurdle workouts eventually became state championships and All-State honors.

The work started when she was a little girl.

The results came years later.

Davis’ high school career eventually opened the door to the next level.

The University of Northern Iowa had an interest in her basketball ability, but it was volleyball that ultimately brought her to Cedar Falls.

During her senior year, Carroll was playing Nevada in volleyball. UNI’s volleyball staff had come to watch a player from Nevada.

Instead, they discovered Davis.

The next day, UNI called Carroll to speak with Kim.

The day after that, she had signed a full scholarship to play volleyball at UNI.

It was another remarkable chapter in a career that had already been filled with them.

At UNI, Davis continued to excel, eventually earning First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors during her collegiate career.

Her connection to UNI would last far beyond her playing days.

She became an assistant at UNI volleyball, beginning in 2002, and has now spent 25 years with the program.

Today, Davis and her husband, Shane, are raising a family of their own.

Their children have also found their own connections to athletics.

Camden attends the University of Sioux Falls.

Taylor, a senior at Hudson, has earned a full scholarship to UNI in soccer.

And Paige, a sophomore at Hudson, considers volleyball her favorite sport.

The next generation is following a familiar path.

It would be easy to define Kim McCaffrey Davis by the numbers:

Two state basketball championships.
Three state basketball tournament appearances.
Two state 400-meter hurdles championships.
A state volleyball runner-up finish.
All-State honors in basketball and volleyball.
Basketball All-Tournament honors as a junior and senior.
Team captain as a senior.
The 1998 Jack North Basketball All-State Award.
Induction into the Iowa Girls Athletic Union Volleyball Hall of Fame.
Recognition among the Des Moines Register’s Top 50 Volleyball Players in Iowa High School History.
First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors at UNI.

But the numbers only tell part of the story.

The real story is about a young girl who fell in love with sports, a father who took her to the gym, and an athlete who was willing to put in the work necessary to turn ability into achievement.

It is about a competitor who watched her own game tapes because she wanted to know how she could improve.

It is about an athlete who wasn’t afraid to ask questions.

It is about a teammate who became a captain.

It is about a Carroll athlete who competed—and won—on some of the biggest stages in Iowa high school sports.

And it is about a legacy that continues through coaching, family and the athletes she has influenced along the way.

For a career defined by championship moments, relentless work and a genuine love of sports, Kim McCaffrey Davis takes her place in the CB Sports Network Rewind Hall of Fame.

And fittingly, one of the images that best captures that career remains the one from 1997:

Five seconds left.

Carroll trailing by one.

Timeout.

Sara to Kim.

Layup.

Championship.

A champion doing what champions do—wanting the ball when it mattered most.

The Hall of Fame Induction will be held on Saturday, July 17th, 2027 at the Carroll High School Softball Field

Here is the full list of inductees into the 2027 Hall of Fame Class

Female

Kim (McCaffrey) Davis- Carroll