INDIANAPOLIS — With hopes to meet Caitlin Clark, Kestas Jociuf and his 8-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, left their seats in section 119 and went to the tunnel next to the Indiana Fever bench. Before her family started their nine-hour drive from Minnesota to Indiana, Elizabeth painted a picture draped with Fever logos and a “Caitlin, we love you” message. 

The Jociuf’s attempt to meet Clark was successful. Elizabeth’s painting now has a new owner. 

“Caitlin actually took the picture,” Jociuf said. “Elizabeth probably wrote Caitlin Clark at least 14 times on that drawing.”

Elizabeth and her father also told Clark to feel better soon, to which she thanked them. The Fever announced Monday that Clark would miss at least two weeks with a left quad strain. Since Clark’s injury, the Fever played the Washington Mystics and Connecticut Sun, losing both matchups. Indiana will be without their star guard for at least the next two games, when they host the Mystics on Tuesday and travel to the Chicago Sky on June 7.

Jociuf and his wife, Sulema, had taken their daughter and 10-year-old son to see Clark when she visited the Minnesota Lynx last season. Elizabeth and her brother fell in love with Clark, so Sulema and Jociuf bought seats closer to the court for the family’s first visit to Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

While Sulema admitted she was worried for Clark after hearing of her injury, she said her kids were “upset” when they learned Clark wasn’t playing. 

“The visit was worth it even though she’s not playing because we wanted to experience Gainbridge and it’s been great. They have a lot of cool things for the kids. Also, there are other good people on the team,” Sulema said. “I told them we can get more tickets later in the season (to watch Caitlin).”

The family of four spent $900 on their tickets. On game day, the price for the same tickets in section 117 was $174.70. The price difference reflects the impact of Clark’s injury on tickets.

IndyStar collected data from Ticketmaster and found that selected ticket prices for Clark’s future matchups against the Sun, Mystics and Sky, in which she is expected to play, increased by as much as 366%.

Note: These are resale prices and may change daily. These numbers were logged up to two hours before the Fever and Sun tipped off Friday.

The most expensive ticket in section 120 for Friday’s contest against the Sun cost $86.25. When Indiana hosts the Sun on June 17, a ticket in the same section will cost $140.30, a 62.7% increase. 

The price difference for a seat nearer to the court when the Mystics return to town Aug. 15 is more consumer-friendly. A seat in section 116 on Tuesday will cost $391.95. The price will increase 11% when Washington makes its final regular-season visit to Indiana.

Sky and Fever games are always a hot ticket, with Clark and Sky forward Angel Reese headlining the matchup. If a fan desires to sit in section 225 at the United Center and watch Indiana and Chicago square off in their WNBA Commissioner’s Cup matchup, the cheapest ticket will cost $57.50. 

When the two teams reconvene in Chicago on July 27, the cheapest seat in section 225 will cost $267.95. 

More: What happened to Caitlin Clark? Here’s what we know about her injury and when she’ll play again

Although Clark’s availability may alter ticket prices, the impact of her presence remains the same. 

”My 8- and 5-year-old daughters were sad not to see her play, but they were still glad to see her in the building,” said Chris Gerrity, a Fever fan who bought tickets for his family before Clark’s injury was announced. “We are still excited to support the city, the rest of the players and the WNBA.”

More: Indiana Fever taking ‘long-game approach’ to Caitlin Clark’s strain; star out at least 2 weeks

More than 200 employees are expected to be laid off at Ivy Tech campuses across the state as a result of the Indiana General Assembly’s decision to cut funding to the college system.

This announcement was made by Ivy Tech’s president, Sue Ellspermann, on May 30, as she broke the news to many who were affected by this sudden development. Layoffs began the same day and continue into next week.

Emily Sandberg, Ivy Tech’s assistant vice president of communications, confirmed in an email to the IndyStar that the Indianapolis campus is expected to lay off seven faculty and 14 staff members, and the Hamilton County campus is expected to lay off two staff members.

In Ellspermann’s letter, she notes that the Indiana government’s decision to cut 5% of the school allocated fund, on top of the 5% cut from the state budget agency, would equate to an expected loss of $54 million over the next two years.

These cuts, coupled with Gov. Mike Braun and the Indiana Commission for Higher Education recommending a 0% tuition increase for all state educational institutions, left the school with another revenue option.

“Because the college’s primary revenue sources are state appropriations, tuition, and fees, these developments have had an immediate effect on our planning,” Ellspermann said in her letter. “We have reached the difficult decision to adjust our staffing levels, in addition to efforts to reduce our operational expenses.”

During the 2023 budget session, the General Assembly appropriated about $243 million and $245 million for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, respectively. For 2025-26 and 2026-27, that will drop to about $236 million each. That doesn’t count additional reductions.

Laid-off Ivy Tech workers will receive separation packages, according to Ellspermann’s letter. However, details regarding the separation packages were not provided in the email, noting that laid-off employees will meet with human resources representatives to determine their package.

In total, 202 people will be affected by these layoffs across Ivy Tech’s 45 locations in the state.

“This is a challenging moment for our college, but I know Ivy Tech is strong,” the letter reads.

“I remain confident in our resilience and in our commitment to our students and to one another.”

Contact IndyStar reporter Noe Padilla at npadilla@indystar.com, follow him on X @1NoePadilla or on Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social. Courier & Press reporter Jon Webb contributed to this story.