The Cyclones are set to host the Baylor Bears in Ames for a three-game series beginning Friday. The series will wrap up the regular season before both teams head to Oklahoma City for the Big 12 Championship.
After getting hot in late April, Iowa State hit a bump in the road last week. They’re on a two-game losing streak. The Cyclones dropped the last game of last weekend’s series to Utah 7-6 and then lost to Iowa 5-0 to even this year’s Cy-Hawk softball series. Wednesday’s game against Drake, likely to be a bounce-back game, was canceled due to forecasted rain.
It’s not all doom and gloom for the Cyclones, though. They are in the midst of their best conference season of all time, cruising to a program record for Big 12 wins several weeks ago. Currently, Iowa State sits third in the conference with a 13-8 record.
The team has also received votes for the NCAA rankings in the past two weeks, something that would have been inconceivable a few years ago. Iowa State is 28-21 this season and has found its groove as the season has gone on.
The Cyclones stormed to a 12-6 record in April and after battling around .500 for a large portion of the season, propelled themselves fully over that hump in the month.
All that to say, when Iowa State gets hot, it has the potential to go on a run. That’s why this weekend’s series against Baylor is so important for momentum heading into the Big 12 Championship.
Baylor, meanwhile, has been middle of the pack in the conference this season. The Bears are 25-24 and 10-11 in conference.
It has not been an easy road for Baylor, which had to take on a barrage of ranked opponents early in the schedule. The Bears are 1-13 against ranked teams this year. The lone win came over Oklahoma State in a 1-0 defensive battle.
Historically, Iowa State has not been great against Baylor. It is 24-47 all-time against the Bears, but things have been trending up as of late. In the last 10 games the programs have faced off, the Cyclones have had the advantage, winning seven.
Shaylon Govan leads the Bears at the plate, hitting an even .400 with six home runs. Govan has also walked a team-leading 44 times this season, contributing to a .587 on-base percentage.
Karynton Dawson has also been a scoring threat for Baylor this season. She has hit .240, but leads the team in RBIs with 25.
Lillie Walker, Sadie Ross and Lexie Warncke are the standouts in the bullpen for the Bears. Walker has a 2.60 ERA and a 10-8 record with three saves. She has also struck out 88 batters this season.
Baylor has not been at the top of its game on the road this season. It is 6-9 on the road and the Cyclones are 9-4 at home. Home-field advantage at the Cyclone Sports Complex could be a factor in the matchups.
The series begins in Ames with the first pitch at 4 p.m. Friday. The second game of the series is slated for 1 p.m. Saturday before the series finale and Senior Day at noon Sunday. All three contests will be live-streamed on ESPN+.
