The Cyclone softball team will open Big 12 play this weekend with a pair of games against Oklahoma State at the Southwest Athletic Complex in Ames.

The Oklahoma State Cowgirls will be the Cyclones’ first opponent in almost two weeks after having their last nine games either canceled or postponed due to weather.

“It’s difficult when you take this much time off, but I think we will definitely be prepared for Saturday,” coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler said.

Since the Cyclones played their last game against Wichita State on March 13, Oklahoma State has stayed busy on the diamond, stringing together a seven-game winning streak. The time off is not the only thing about this weekend’s games that has Gemeinhardt-Cesler concerned.

“They have two very good pitchers that they throw pretty equally,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said. “They don’t walk a lot of people and they both move the ball very well. They both have won a lot of games.”

The OSU duo of sophomore Kat Espinosa (12-2) and freshman Simone Freeman (7-4) are a big reason why the Cowgirls are 26-6 heading into conference play.

Espinosa, the workhorse of the pitching staff, has an ERA of 1.86 while holding opposing batters to a .163 batting average on the season.

“We just need to go out and control the things that we need to control to compete,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said of her young squad.

The Cyclones are eager to get back to action after such a long, unwanted break from action.

“It’s like the beginning of the season, everybody gets really revved up to start Big 12 play,” pitcher Rachel Zabriskie said.

Oklahoma State may be a daunting opponent but the Cyclones know nothing will come easy throughout the conference schedule.

“They’re just like everyone else in the Big 12,” said catcher Amandine Habben of Oklahoma State. “When you look at the conference standings, everybody has a record over .500.”

In fact, every Big 12 opponent the Cyclones will face has a winning percentage of .788 or better so far this season, led by Texas Tech, with a 35-1 record.

The Cyclones and Cowgirls are scheduled to play their first game of the weekend at 2 p.m. Saturday. The two teams will meet again at noon Sunday.