In Iowa, Nikki Haley flubs Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark's name

CORALVILLE, Iowa — Failing to mention slavery as the cause of the Civil War was not the only mistake Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley made this week. On Saturday morning, at the Iowa Athletic Club in Coralville, Haley misspoke and misnamed Iowa Hawkeyes superstar Caitlin Clark, calling her by the wrong surname.

The former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina governor flubbed Clark's last name while speaking to a crowd that gathered at a local restaurant for a tailgate-style event ahead of the Hawkeyes women's basketball game.

"We're excited to see the Lady Hawkeyes team. What a great coach they have. Caitlin Collins is phenomenal," said Haley, in an apparent reference to CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins.

Collins responded to a tweet about Haley's misstep that has since gone viral, saying: "I can assure you her free-throw percentage is better than mine."

CAITLIN CLARK: Can she break the NCAA scoring record?

Haley's stop in Coralville — which included catching the Hawkeyes game with her son, Nalin Haley — was among a string of events the Haley campaign team held over two days. Haley hosted town halls Friday in Dubuque and Cedar Falls. Her trip concluded Saturday night with an event in Cedar Rapids.

Haley received backlash this week from her Republican and Democratic rivals after failing to mention slavery as the cause of the Civil War while answering a voter's question. On Wednesday, at a Berlin, New Hampshire town hall, a voter asked the presidential hopeful what sparked the Civil War.

“Well, don’t come with an easy question or anything," Haley responded. "I mean, I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how the government was going to run. The freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do.”

Haley has since walked back her comments and said "of course the Civil War was about slavery." She also has suggested that the questioner may have been a Democratic plant in the audience.

F. Amanda Tugade covers social justice issues for the Des Moines Register. Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @writefelissa.