A win is a win, but last Saturday, members of the ISU wrestling team were looking for more.

The Cyclones traveled to Arizona State last weekend for a dual with the Sun Devils in which Iowa State took control of the match early. Iowa State won by a final of 21-12.

Even though the Cyclones came home with the victory, they still feel like they left a lot out on the mat.

“I don’t think that we came out with enough fire,” said Kyven Gadson. “I feel like if we wrestle that same way up at UNI [University of Northern Iowa] this weekend, it won’t be fun at all. We need to come out like we have something to prove, and if we get 10 guys who can do that, we could have some fun.”

Gadson added another accolade to his collection last weekend as well. He pinned Arizona State’s Josh DaSilveira, marking his 25th dual win in a row, a record for the All-American.

While that stat might look nice on paper, it’s just a number for the Waterloo, Iowa, native.

“It’s nice not losing duals, but you don’t win a national title that way,” Gadson said. “There will be a lot to say after these next three weeks. It’s a nice opportunity to improve my seeding for the NCAA tournament.”

That win against the Sun Devils moved No. 18 Iowa State to 8-3 overall on the season, marking one of its best overall records in recent years.

With a tough portion of his team’s schedule looming, ISU coach Kevin Jackson said he will take whatever he can get to help keep the team’s confidence high.

“Any time you win a match, it’s going to give you major confidence,” Jackson said. “There might have been a little bit of a letdown at some of the weight classes, where guys have sort of expected to win, rather than grinding it out. So I’d say that the trip to Arizona came at the right time for us.”

Even though the team won the meet, it only won six out of the possible 10 matches. And while the matches Iowa State lost were close, redshirt sophomore Tanner Weatherman knows that finishing out close matches is what will make a difference in the future.

“We talked as a team, and among each other we lost a lot of close matches,” Weatherman said. “It’s really just getting tough in the third period and in tough positions that will make a big difference. If we can connect those fears, it’ll make the biggest difference overall.”

Next up for the Cyclones is a trip to Cedar Falls, Iowa to take on No. 8 UNI. The dual will begin 5 p.m. Saturday.