Keep moving forward.

Iowa state soccer travels to West Lafayette, Indiana, to play the Northwestern Wildcats on Friday and then to take on the Boilermakers of Purdue on Sunday. They hope to bounce back after an unfortunate loss last weekend at the hands of the Missouri Tigers.

“I think we just have to realize it’s early in the season,” said senior midfielder and co-captain Emily Steil, who acknowledged the disappointment of last weekend. “It’s just something to build off of.”

Steil was all over the field against Missouri, and had a couple chances early in the game to score, but she was denied both times. This came after scoring a goal in Iowa State’s first game against South Dakota State which they won 2-0.

Steil and the Cyclones will be shorthanded for a couple months due to a foot injury to senior defender and co-captain Riley Behan. Behan will be out for most of the season, but hopes to come back down the stretch.

The other senior defender and co-captain Jordan Enga will have to step up and take on a higher leadership role, specifically among the other defenders. Enga plays centerback, so she is tasked with keeping the defense together and keeping them organized.

“In order to play [well] the next game, we have to forget about the last one,” Enga said about the Missouri game. “Take what was good from it, and apply that.”

Enga was key in the win over South Dakota State, in which she played the whole game, and also did a nice job against Missouri.

Coach Tony Minatta is pleased with what he’s seen so far out of his two healthy captains. Now he is ready to move forward and is excited to play Northwestern, who has led the Big Ten for the past couple years and looks to be a challenging foe.

“They’re a very disciplined, hardworking, organized team,” Minatta said about Northwestern. “for us, it’s going to be a battle.”

Minatta is right to talk about their discipline because they have won both their games this year — against Miami of Ohio and Wake Forest — and have only given up one goal combined in the process.

Minatta also talked about the Sunday matchup against Purdue and compared them to Iowa State, with how they are positioned in their conference, and their team structure. Both teams will certainly prove to be tough competition for an Iowa State team that is ready to get back on the field after its loss.

Despite this, Minatta is still confident in his team.

“Everybody knows that when they face us, they can’t take us lightly,” Minatta said. “If they don’t come ready, it’s going to be a long day for them.”