Iowa State returns to Lied Recreation Athletic Center this weekend for the Big 12 Indoor Championships with one key word in mind: production.

On the women’s side, the Cyclones will be led by distance runners Betsy Saina, Meaghan Nelson and a solid throwing crew. Sisters Ejiro and Ese Okoro will play vital roles in the Cyclones picking up points in the 600- and 800-meter events.

Iowa State is hosting its fifth meet of the season, having only competed in one meet away from home. Last season, the Cyclones finished tied for fourth at the Big 12 Championships, but this year’s team is working on building off that finish.

Five of the 10 teams in the Big 12 are ranked in the top 25; the Cyclones are ranked No. 12. The step up in competition will be a factor, but Saina, a defending Big 12 Champion in the 3,000- and 5,000-meter runs, is not phased.

“Competing at home will be a great help,” Saina said. “If we execute and have a good strategy, I think we can be very successful.”

Saina has started off her indoor season with a bang, running the fastest 5,000-meter time of any college athlete this year at the ISU Classic on Feb. 9. Coach Corey Ihmels is confident in Saina’s ability to defend her Big 12 title.

“She is just on a different level than her competitors; I think she is definitely one of the top distance runners in the country,” Ihmels said. “And as a whole, distance running in the United States is at a higher level than it’s ever been.”

Travel became an issue for the other nine teams due to Winter Storm Q, which hit Ames the night of Feb. 21. Big 12 officials met Thursday and ultimately decided that the meet would be pushed back to Saturday and Sunday, in order to better accomodate the arriving athletes.

Another factor that may have an effect is that the indoor track at Lied is 300 meters, while most indoor tracks are only 200 meters.

“We’re hoping with having the home-field advantage we can do some overachieving this weekend, but if you look at the performance lists, we have athletes at the top of those lists and we’re excited to be at home,” Ihmels said.

The women’s track team has found success in many areas this season and Ihmels expects his team to finish with the best of the Big 12.

“We trained really hard early on this indoor season, and I think we can do some great things on the women’s side team-wise,” Ihmels said.