Clinging to hopes of a Big 12 Tournament birth, the ISU soccer team travels to Texas this weekend to play two crucial conference games.

The Cyclones will kickoff against Texas Tech at 7 p.m. Friday at the R.P. Fuller Stadium in Lubbock, Texas.

With a conference record of 1-6-0, the Red Raiders are one point behind the Cyclones, Missouri and Baylor — all tied for eighth place — in the Big 12 standings.

ISU head coach Rebecca Hornbacher said the team has been preparing all week to solidify a spot in the Big 12 Tournament. The top eight teams will advance to the championship Nov. 6-9 in San Antonio.

“We’ve made sure that we have tried to do everything we could to be as healthy as we can,” Hornbacher said. “We are going to go for the win and prepare ourselves for two games that are very important for us and our standings in the Big 12 Conference.”

The last time the two teams met, the Cyclones defeated the Red Raiders 3-0. Then-freshman Kristina Baumann scored all three goals in the match.

Last Sunday’s loss to No. 4 Texas put ISU at 4-8-3 for the season and 1-5-1 in Big 12 play.

The Cyclones will get a chance to gain ground on the Bears on Sunday as they go head-to-head with Baylor at 1 p.m. The game will be played at Betty Lou Mays Field in Waco, Texas. Baylor hosts Missouri Friday night.

At the start of the season, George Van Linder, first year head coach for the Bears, said he had great hopes for his team. But the Bears’ only conference win came Oct. 3 against Nebraska.

Junior forward Ginny Rosario-Tull leads the Baylor offense with eight goals and two assists.

Senior goalkeeper Beth Chapman said the Cyclones are aware of the importance of the weekend’s games and the team is approaching these games with a little more ambition.

“Our next three games are teams that we are tied for the last spot,” Chapman said. “It could be anyone’s game, so we have to go out even harder than in the past.”

Arlene Samuel, a senior defender, said she is trying to let the underclassmen know the importance of the Big 12 Tournament.

“Since we’re upperclassmen, we let the underclassmen know what San Antonio is all about and how much different the atmosphere is down there,” Samuel said. “San Antonio is a great place. We want to qualify to get in tournament so we can all experience it together.”