The Cyclones went 1-4 in the JoAnne Graf Classic. While Cyclones did struggle in the JoAnne Graf Classic, there were positives and negatives.

Cyclones pitching and fielding are improving

Last season the Cyclones allowed nearly five runs per games. So far this season, in three of the Cyclones five games, the Cyclones held their opponents to three runs or fewer.

Against the Cyclones, with senior pitcher Savannah Sanders on the mound, the No. 1 Seminoles scored one run.

Senior first baseman Sally Woolpert leads the team with 34 putouts and senior catcher Kaylee Bosworth is second on the team with 23 putouts. 

The Cyclones had a fielding percentage of .978 this past weekend which is better than the .956 fielding percentage that the team posted last season.

Senior pitcher Emma Hylen made three starts and has a lower earned run average (ERA) so far this season. Last season, Hylen had an ERA of 4.09 but has an ERA of 3.39 in three games this season. Hylen is also fifth in the Big 12 with 14 strikeouts.

Although the Cyclones have not played a lot of games so far this season, the Cyclones are showing improvement in the field and on the mound.

The Cyclones are struggling at the plate

In the JoAnne Graf Classic, the Cyclones had 19 hits in five games which averages out to less than four hits a game. Meanwhile, the Cyclones opponents had 35 hits and averaged seven hits a game.

The Cyclones scored a total of 10 runs and averaged two runs a game in the JoAnne Graf Classic which is a run and half lower than what the Cyclones averaged last season.

Iowa State had some missed opportunities to score multiple runs with bases loaded in a game against Florida State and against the University of North Carolina Wilmington but came away empty-handed.

The Cyclones offense wasn’t able to get the bat on the ball and had a batting average of .152 in the JoAnne Graf Classic.

Freshman debuts

Freshmen Mikayla Ramos, Kasey Simpson and Shannon Mortimer made their debuts in the JoAnne Graf Classic for the Cyclones.

Ramos, a catcher from Riverside, California, played in all five games had one hit in eight plate appearances and scored one run.

Simpson, an infielder from Keller, Texas, played in four games and had an RBI.

Mortimer, a pitcher from South Grafton, Massachusetts, pitched in two games and made a start against the Seminoles.

What’s next?

After returning home for a couple of days, the Cyclones will travel west to Palo Alto, California, to play in the DeMarini Invitational where they will play Stanford, Pacific, Portland State and Colorado State twice.