Iowa State’s softball team fell to No. 9 Texas once again Friday by a score of 8-1 after a couple of errors plagued the team early on. 

The Cyclones now fall to a 12-21 record on the season, going 1-7 in conference play.

Senior Karlie Charles got the nod to start Friday as she looked to shut down the Longhorns early.

Charles was able to have a solid day on the mound as she was only responsible for one run in her two-and-a-third innings of work. She was able to collect two strikeouts in her appearance as well. 

The main problem on the day was the errors once again, but this time, it was all committed by one player. Shortstop Alesia Ranches had three errors in three innings that allowed Texas to jump out to an early 2-0 lead. 

Iowa State head coach Jamie Pinkerton doesn’t believe that today’s performance by Ranches will affect his decision to take her out from playing in the future.

“She just had a bad day,” Pinkerton said. “She’s one of the best shortstops I’ve ever coached, and she’ll have a better opportunity tomorrow to improve.”

Iowa State was able to score in the bottom of the second inning. Third baseman Sarah Tyree was able to reach on an error by the Texas third baseman. Kasey Simpson scored from second making it 2-1 Texas.

Freshman Jaiden Ralston was called in for relief of Charles in the top of the third inning, as she looked to limit any more runs by this Longhorns team.

Ralston performed exceptionally well in her appearance. She ended up going two and two-thirds innings while only giving up one run on one hit and one walk. She was also had a strikeout in her relief appearance as well.

“I just think when I got there, I just needed to help my team out as best as I can to try and help us win,” Jaiden Ralston said.

Senior catcher Mikayla Ramos was able to have a solid day at the plate. In her three-plate appearances, she recorded a hit and a walk in two of the three at-bats.

Ramos continues to be a workhorse for Iowa State, as she looks to close in on Iowa State’s all-time record for RBIs.

“I gotta give credit to my teammates,” Ramos said. “I was just talking to a teammate to see what I could do better my next at-bat, and I don’t think I can have that kind of success without the people around me.”

The Cyclones will have one final matchup against No. 9 Texas as they look to get one back from the Longhorns. The final game of the three-game series is currently scheduled to start at 1 p.m. Saturday.