Persistency led the Cyclone softball team to something it had been missing for weeks: a victory.

After weeks of losing and facing tough opponents, the Cyclones (16-30, Big 12 1-11) took away a win on Saturday when they beat the Oklahoma State Cowgirls (28-16, 8-1 Big 12) 10-9 at the Cyclone Sports Complex in Ames. This not only ended a 14-game losing streak, but brought in the first conference win of the season.

This game also was the first time the Cyclones won at home this season, but they have played a mere six games total at the Cyclone Sports Complex.

“Winning is great,” head coach Jamie Trachsel said. “We didn’t lose confidence, and to be honest, I thought that was actually the biggest key to our success.”

The first two games of the three-game series did not end in Iowa State’s favor.

The double-header on Friday ended in wins for Oklahoma State, which won the first game 10-2 and the second 11-3.

The Cowgirls began each game striking first. 

After a bit of rallying back and forth, Oklahoma State led 6-2 toward the end of the game. The Cowgirls earned four more runs in the final inning of the first game, bringing the final score up to 10-2.

The next game had a similar result. The Cowgirls started out the game with a home run. Again, the Cyclones attempted to fight back, but were unsuccessful. The final score was 11-3.

The final game of the series ended much differently than the first two.

Just as the first two started, the Cowgirls earned the first runs of the game. However, the Cyclones’ first batter, freshman Sami Williams, smoked a home run in the first inning to get Iowa State on the board.

The Cyclones and the Cowgirls continued to battle, but the Cyclones fell behind. That changed in the fifth inning.

After senior Cathlin Bingham hit an RBI triple, she raced through home when freshman Sami Williams hit an RBI single. Then, junior Kelsey McFarland smacked a home run, giving the Cyclones a 7-4 lead. 

“It’s important that when we do have those high moments, we thrive off of them instead of shutting down, and just continuing to be fearless and use the intensity as an advantage,” Bingham said.

But with two outs in the next inning, the Cowgirls racked up five runs. The Cyclones managed to earn two runs in the bottom of the inning to tie the score up.

Ending innings has been a problem for Iowa State in the past. And it was a problem again, when Oklahoma State scored those five runs with two outs.

Trachsel said the problems Saturday came on the defensive side of the ball. 

“I think it was more defensively today,” Trachsel said. “I thought our pitchers did a great job. We made some adjustments after the first two games with our positioning.”

Pitcher Savannah Sanders held the Cowgirls from scoring in the seventh inning. When the Cyclones moved to offense in the bottom of the inning, freshman Megan Schweitzer made it to third base and stole home for a walk-off victory.

The Cyclones had won their first conference game and handed the Cowgirls their first conference loss. 

“I think that Kelsey’s home run really got us moving,” Schweitzer said. “I think a couple of times, we’re just missing that key hit that excites us with energy. It’s nice to see all of our hard work pay off.”