ISU soccer preps for conference foes

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Tiffany Herring/Iowa State Daily

Freshman forward Maribell Morales runs the ball down the field during Iowa State’s 2-1 loss to South Dakota State on Sept. 21 at the Cyclone Sports Complex. This game ended the soccer team’s nonconference schedule.

Chris Wolff

After finishing the nonconference schedule with a 6-4 record, the ISU women’s soccer team will transition into the conference schedule this weekend with matchups against Oklahoma State on Sept. 26 and Baylor on Sept. 28.

Here are five quick kicks going into the weekend:

1. Iowa State’s 2013 season was ended by Baylor in the first round of the Big 12 tournament. It was the first time Iowa State made it to the Big 12 tournament since 2007.

2. Watch for Maribell Morales to have a big impact as she continues to get closer to full strength after a shoulder injury. With the Cyclones’ leading scorer, Koree Willer, facing plenty of defensive attention, watch for Morales to make an impact

3. Both Oklahoma State and Baylor have been solid at home this season. The Cowgirls are 4-2 at home and the Bears are undefeated at home with a record of 4-0-1.

4. Koree Willer has carried the load offensively for the Cyclones this season, scoring eight goals in 10 games. Watch for her to strike once again even though much of the defensive attention will be focused on her.

5. Watch for Courtney Dike to have a huge impact for Oklahoma State. Dike scored 13 goals as a freshman for the Cowgirls last season. Dike also played with the Nigerian National under-20 team.