The ISU tennis team will be hoping to end its four-match slump, when it takes on Oklahoma and Oklahoma State this weekend.

The Cyclones, 5-9 on the season and 1-7 in the Big 12, play the 40th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowgirls on Saturday and will finish their road trip with a match up against the 49th-ranked Oklahoma Sooners on Sunday.

“We are anxious to get a Big 12 win and have a lot of motivation to get that done,” said Noortje Cornelissen, Iowa State’s most valuable player for the past three seasons. “… It is important that we close out our points and finish the matches off because so many of our matches have been close this season, but we haven’t been able to close them out.”

Both of the weekend matchups may pose some problems for the Cyclones.

The Cowgirls are 9-9 on the season and 3-4 in the Big 12, but will play the Colorado Buffaloes on Friday, before hosting the Cyclones. Oklahoma State’s No. 1 doubles duo of Linda Faltynkova and Katia Kolodynska is ranked No. 10 nationally.

“Oklahoma State has been good in the past, which gives us extra inspiration and motivation to play well,” Cornelissen said.

Oklahoma tied for the Big 12 championship last year, so the Cyclones know they will be very competitive this year. The Sooners are 11-7 on the season and 1-4 in the Big 12. Oklahoma, like the Cyclones, has had four consecutive losses, so will be looking to break out with a win. Their lineup also is young with no seniors on the team.

“Oklahoma is a young team, and it is important for us to be open to any game style and try different things,” Cornelissen said.

Iowa State, however, may have one advantage it didn’t have a week ago – with the nice weather, they’ve been able to get outside to practice.

“It is wonderful to get outside and play when you have played inside for so long,” Cornelissen said.

Practicing outdoors has helped the team work hard and gear up for the weekend.

“Practice has been very upbeat this week and the athletes are working very hard to make individual improvements to prepare for this weekend’s competition,” ISU head coach Michele Conlon said.

Although the players are disappointed they have not been able to pull out their close matches this season, Conlon said they hope to use that as motivation.

“Sometimes when the team loses and they know they could have done better, they leave the court not satisfied, which leaves them hungry,” she said.

Conlon said the team has the ability to be competitive the rest of the season.

“There is no one left on our schedule that we can’t compete with,” she said. “We just have to go into each match with a we-can-win attitude.”