Iowa State plans for a better result this weekend when it finishes its non-conference play Friday at South Dakota State and starts the Big 12 season against Kansas at home Sunday.

Last Friday’s loss to Iowa was not a game to remember by any means, but the Cyclones took away a few things from it they hope will help them come away with a couple wins.

“We got outworked in that game from the first goal on, and we didn’t win physical battles,” said coach Wendy Dillinger. “I think with a young team, to give up a goal like we did and to respond a little bit tougher and stronger, those are the things we got out of that night.”

Junior defender and co-captain Emily Hejlik said the Cyclone defense has improved since Friday’s loss, and have worked to fix their visible weaknesses.

“We went over film as three different groups; defense, offense, and another group, and we really got to breakdown the breakdowns and the goals and what led up to them and it was good to actually see and know what we have to fix.”

Prior to the Iowa game, the Cyclones had only allowed four goals all season, something the team had really taken pride in.

The offense wasn’t able to get going Friday either, but senior midfielder and co-captain Jordan Bishop has an answer.

“We have been doing a lot of combination play in practices and we’ve watched a lot of film and we’ve seen where the same mistakes have been made over and over again,” Bishop said.

Iowa State’s attacking offense has proved to leave them vulnerable to good counter-attacking teams like Iowa, and Bishop said some things are still being tweaked.

“We’re trying to see where the most effective players are playing in different positions and how they can make a difference,” Bishop said. “We’re going to try some things and hopefully have a more set formation by Sunday for Kansas for sure”

Iowa State’s first game will come against South Dakota State at 7:10 p.m. Friday in Sioux Falls, S.D. The game was originally supposed to be on the Jackrabbits’ campus in Brookings, but heavy rainfall has moved the game to the home field of the University of Sioux Falls.

The Jackrabbits are 4-1-3 on the season, and have faced many of the same teams Iowa State has, including Drake, Northern Iowa, Montana, Nevada and Creighton. South Dakota State was 2-1-2 against these teams compared to the Cyclone’s 4-0-1, but like all other games, the Cyclones said they will treat it with the same intensity as any other.

“South Dakota State has a number of speedy weapons,” Dillinger said.

SDSU junior forward Kayla Braffet gave Iowa State some troubles last year as well, scoring the late equalizer goal to end the game in a 1-1 tie.

Arguably, the more important game of the weekend will be at home Sunday, when the Cyclones take on Kansas to begin their conference season.

Kansas has let in 13 goals this season, a number the Cyclones plan to increase as they hope to capitalize off the Jayhawk defense.

“We need a link throughout the defense, midfield, and forwards and stay connected more and not have so many gaps all over the field. Make sure we’re high-pressuring and take risks, especially around the 18 [yard mark],” Bishop said.

The Jayhawks’ 4-5 record in the non-conference doesn’t appear threatening, but just like South Dakota State, there will be challenging players to mark on the field.

“Kansas has a couple of very dynamic attackers that are dangerous,” Dillinger said. “Whitney Berry is a player we have to keep an eye on. She’s very creative, crafty, and she can create goals individually so we have to keep a good eye on her.”

The Cyclones will get a change of pace with an away game and a home game in the same weekend, but the youth and traveling hasn’t proved to be a problem so far this year.

“It’s going to be really difficult, but it’s going to be like that the whole year so we’re going to have to get used to it. I know the first weekend’s probably going to be the toughest and it will prove a lot if we can get a W out of it,” Bishop said.

The Jayhawks are in a similar situation, having to travel to Missouri on Friday to play the Tigers before they head to Ames to take on the Cyclones.

“It’ll be a tough weekend with the travel, but hopefully we can pull through and get two wins this weekend,” said freshman forward Jennifer Dominguez.

The importance of winning the first conference game is always there in college sports, and as much as the team and Dillinger want to get that elusive W, Dillinger said something else is more important.

“I think the bigger omen is that we compete for 90 minutes. I think if we compete for 90 minutes regardless of the score, we’re going to have confidence and momentum going in. The team that plays the best doesn’t always win but in order to have a chance to win you have to play your best,” Dillinger said.

Senior goalkeeper Ashley Costanzo made a brief appearance against Iowa last Friday but Dillinger said she still isn’t 100 percent healthy.

The coach said she would monitor how practice goes and make a decision once Friday’s 6 p.m. game gets closer, as to picking which goalie will play Friday and Sunday.