The Iowa State soccer team ended its 1997 season last Thursday in San Antonio, Texas, with a loss to the Baylor Bears in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Championships. The Cyclones finished with an overall record of 12-9, going 4-6 in the Big 12 Conference.

Baylor, the third seed, lost in the semifinals to Nebraska on Friday.

ISU made team history this season, by making its first-ever Big 12 Tournament. In the team’s second year as a varsity sport, it improved on an 8-12 record from the 1996 season.

“Playing in the Big 12 Championships is an outstanding accomplishment for our young team, an accomplishment we are proud of,” Coach Cathy Klein said.

The Bears put the Cyclones down early on Thursday, scoring three unanswered goals during the first half.

“We started slow, and Baylor took advantage of us, scoring three goals in twenty minutes,” Barb Lavergne said.

“Once we got momentum, we were playing well. If the game could have gone on longer, we could have come back.”

Lavergne said at halftime, the team realized it needed to regroup in order to compete for the match win.

In the second half ISU regrouped and played to their ability, answering two of Baylor’s first-half goals with two for the cardinal and gold.

At the 58-minute mark, Krista Odenwald crossed the ball to Patti Reed who used her head to knock one in for the Cyclones.

The game remained 3-1 until the 85-minute mark, when ISU was awarded a direct free kick. Senior Dawn Weber, playing her last game for the Cyclone team, picked up a goal on a trick play.

With less than five minutes to play, the Cyclones scrambled to tie the game.

But with only 13 seconds left, Baylor put the game away, as Britt Talley took a breakaway at 20 yards, battled one-on-one with Cyclone goalkeeper Hayley Mercer and scored to bring the final score to 4-2.

The team did not play too well during the first half, Klein said, but came back during the second half to be competitive.

She said with a little luck, the team would have been able to snag a tie, but the ball just didn’t roll the right way.

Klein said the second-half efforts that led to the Cyclone comeback showed the ISU team’s “tremendous character.”

Klein said two players who shined during the second half were Lindsey Rector and Alicia Rollison, who “played the best second half of their careers.”

Their efforts showed “a very high- level and aggressive approach to the game. They had an overwhelming desire to compete at the highest level,” Klein said.

“Reflecting back on the weekend, we played as well as we ever have in the second half,” Klein said. “We hope to use this experience to learn what it takes to succeed at the next level and use it as a springboard to the next level.”

Lavergne said the season was “pretty good. I’m happy, the team improved a lot. Our heads are still up after Thursday’s game.”

“The season was a resounding success. I think we are well on our way to becoming a nationally-ranked program,” Klein said.

Thursday’s game was the last game for seniors Weber, Jo Hinks and Lauren Muser. Muser and Weber were members of the original 1995 Cyclone soccer club team, and Hinks transferred to ISU in 1996.

Hinks finished the 1997 season as a second-team all-Big 12 selection and the regular season Big 12 scoring champion.