After dropping its third straight game on Sunday, the ISU soccer team will begin the second half of conference play and push for a bid to the Big 12 tournament, starting with a game against Texas A&M on Friday.

After five conference games, the Cyclones (6-4-3, 2-2-1 Big 12) are tied for sixth place with Texas, just two points ahead of Kansas.

In order to qualify for the Big 12 tournament in November, the women will need to finish in the top eight – an accomplishment that coach Rebecca Hornbacher believes will happen.

“I definitely believe in my team,” Hornbacher said. “I think that we can compete with anybody, but we have to come out this weekend and make sure that we correct our mistakes.”

With Big 12-leading Texas A&M next on the schedule, the push for a postseason bid will not be an easy one. The Aggies enter the matchup riding a five-game conference winning streak, outscoring their opponents 14-4.

“We’ve got five games in front of us, and they’re all going to be difficult Big 12 games,” said Hornbacher, who has led the Cyclones to the Big 12 tournament three times in her five years as head coach. Following Friday’s game with the Aggies, Iowa State will host Baylor on Sunday.

“This next weekend is huge for us. I think this weekend, for all of the teams in the Big 12, is going to show who’s going to rise to the top and who’s going to sink to the bottom. [Texas A&M and Baylor] are both very quality teams.”

Iowa State qualified for the Big 12 tournament in both 2004 and 2005 before missing out last season because of a 2-8 conference record. In addition to making the conference tournament in 2005, Iowa State earned its only NCAA tournament bid that year.

Senior co-captain Erin Witte, who was a part of that 2005 squad, said she believes it’s a possibility that this team can make another NCAA postseason appearance.

“The potential is really high. We have a lot of teams during the second half that are ranked really high, and we have a great chance to be a top team,” said Witte, who led the Cyclones with four shots. “If we can go out and compete, then we’re going to secure a seed in the NCAA tournament. We enter the second half this weekend, and I think the rest of the seniors are ready to push off and finish off strong.”

Midfielder Stephanie Kaphingst, a co-captain along with Witte and Brittanie Waddell, remembers playing in the 2005 tournament and hopes to return during her final season at Iowa State.

“It was a great experience, and right now I feel like we have the potential to [get back to the NCAA tournament],” Kaphingst said. “I know as seniors we want to go out with a bang, so hopefully we get that chance.”