When the Cyclones (22–16) walked off the field Tuesday after their third straight loss the general mood of the team was one of frustration and disappointment.

After losing their third straight game by two runs or less, coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler took it upon herself to remind the team of why they play the game.

“We need to take the night off to decompress and just relax,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said.

“We need to remember that it is just a game and it should be fun. That’s ultimately what’s most important. When we play with that fun approach, we tend to do better.”

On Thursday, Iowa State will try to rebound and start having fun again when the team travels to Des Moines to face Drake in a rematch of Tuesday’s one-run pitcher’s duel that left a sour taste in the Cyclones mouths.

Junior pitcher Rachel Zabriskie tossed a complete game gem against the Bulldogs but allowed two home runs that proved to be the deciding factor of the game.

Despite the loss, the Cyclones believe they can use Drake’s dependency on power to their advantage.

“They obviously think they can beat us just by home runs because that’s how they scored their runs,” said senior catcher Alex Johnson. “But I don’t think you can win every ball game like that, especially with the way we come out and we hit the ball and put runs together; I just think we’re a better team.”

Thursday’s game could potentially be one of the most important games Iowa State has played this season.

The Cyclones currently sit at 22 wins and are now just four wins shy of tying last year’s win total.

And with the possibility of the first 30-win season in 21 years, the way the Cyclones rebound from this three-game losing streak could play an important role with how the Cyclones perform the rest of the season.

But in order to reach that 30 win plateau, the Cyclones will have to avoid what the 2008 team did toward the end of the season.

That year the team began the season 23-11 but ultimately struggled in the latter part of the season to a 6-18 record and ended the season at 29-29.

What proved to be problematic for the 2008 team was its inability to get past long losing streaks.

In order to not have a repeat of that season, this team hopes to get back to the basics by staying focused and not getting ahead of themselves.

“I think we just pushed and pushed [versus Drake on Tuesday],” Zabriskie said.

“We thought we had to win that game because it’s hard to beat teams three times in a row and we have to prove we can do that. There’s just too much thinking going on and I think we just need to learn how to play softball again.”

In order for the Cyclones to get back to winning, the team said it’ll have to start doing a better job collecting timely hits.

This will be no easy task as Drake ranks first in the Missouri Valley Conference in pitching and successfully made the Cyclones’ bats a non-factor in their three previous meetings.

Iowa State has posted a .178 batting average against the Bulldogs but still managed to win two of the three games against the interstate rivals.

“We know we can beat them,” said freshman infielder Erica Miller. “[On Tuesday] we were pushing for hits and thinking too hard and that causes the ball to not fall where you want it to fall. It’s just the way it goes but we’ll grow from it next time because we know what to expect. Pitchers will throw the same sequence and throw the same pitches and it’s just a matter of adjusting to what she throws.”

First pitch is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start at Ron Buel Field in Des Moines.