It is a Cyclone state in softball for the first time since 2003.

Iowa State (22-13) topped Iowa (16-13-1) by a score of 7-3 in Ames on Wednesday, following an 8-2 victory over the Hawkeyes back on Feb. 13 in Minneapolis. This marked the first instance of back-to-back wins for the Cyclones over Iowa since 1990.

“It was perfect, especially since we shared a lot of recruits when they were in high school and they took a few of ours,” said senior center fielder Kelsey Kidwell.

The stands at the Southwest Athletic Complex were nearly full for the mid-week contest between the in-state rivals with 532 fans in attendance.

“When you fill stands like that, with so many fans cheering us on, that is what Iowa State is,” said coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler. “It makes it a lot easier to play here and to play well compared to those first 34 games on the road.”

The fans enjoying an ISU victory over Iowa was a sight the fifth-year head coach had not yet seen at Iowa State.

“It is just like any team here at Iowa State when they play Iowa, there is that in-state rivalry and it’s a lot of fun,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said. “To be able to get them twice in one year when nobody here has ever gotten them once is great.”

The win was especially satisfying for the senior class that had not beaten the Hawkeyes coming into the season.

“We have always wanted to beat them in the past four years,” said senior infielder Courtney Wray. “We beat them earlier this season and some people might have thought it was a fluke; [Iowa] might have thought that it was a fluke just because we haven’t beaten them in so long.

Beating them twice just proves that we are better than them. We’ve worked harder the last four years than they have and we are finally better than they are.”

The Cyclones started to believe they were better following the 8-2 win over Iowa in February.

“It gave us a lot of confidence because we knew that we beat them fair and square last time, all eight runs were scored on hits,” Wray said.

But confidence was not the only thing aiding the Cyclones on Wednesday; they were also motivated to take down their rivals for the last time.

“We had already won once this year, but I was not going to end my career against Iowa with a loss,” Kidwell said.

Yet, for how much this victory may mean to the senior class, the underclassmen may be the ones that are affected the most.

“I know it is a big deal for the younger because now they know what to expect and now they know that they can beat teams like this even when us five seniors are gone,” said senior catcher Alex Johnson.

The victory may also turn up the heat on the series that had gone a bit stale during the Hawkeyes’ domination over the past couple years.

“Next year it will be interesting to see,” Wray said. “I will definitely come back to watch that game.”

Gemeinhardt-Cesler also expects these victories to aid the Cyclones in future recruiting battles between the two teams.

“It’s a huge difference,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said. “I know we go head to head a lot with the in-state kids, and even recently we have gone head to head with some out of state kids, so it helps a ton.”

The win gives the Cyclones yet another victory on the season against a team that perennially qualifies for the regional tournament.

“It says a lot about how far our program has come and I think we are just going to keep on going,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said.