The Iowa State softball team is hoping to keep up its winning streak this weekend at the Samford/UAB Tournament held in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Cyclones (7-3) were successful last weekend in Nashville, going 5-0 in the Tennessee State Tournament. They not only played their first undefeated tournament since 2015, but broke a school record in runs scored in a single game. Two players, Emma Hylen and Sami Williams, were named pitcher and player of the week by the Big 12.

“I think any time you accomplish something, you feel proud about it, especially when you put in the work to do it,” head coach Jamie Trachsel said.

Iowa State will get the chance to continue its streak as it plays four teams this weekend, starting at 11 a.m. on Friday when it faces Indiana. The team will       play Samford, UAB and Murray State in the remaining games.

Trachsel is hoping to build off the team’s accomplishments from last weekend into the upcoming games in Alabama.

“You’re always looking to make improvements, to make adjustments and to build off of certain things,” Trachsel said. “Each opportunity is its own, but there’s definitely confidence that comes with being successful.”

Pitcher Brianna Weilbacher is also looking forward to seeing how the team will perform this weekend.

“Building off of this weekend and going into next weekend, I think that we can only get better,” Weilbacher said. “I think we can build off [last weekend] by tweaking the little things and staying confident.”

Iowa State’s pitching will be something to note, as the Alabama pitching staff is currently ranked No. 1 in the Big 12 with 77 strikeouts. Savannah Sanders has totaled 35 strikeouts this season, and Weilbacher is ranked No. 2 in the nation for strikeouts per seven innings, with 19 in 10 innings.

“Thinking about how my defense helped along with getting those strikeouts was exciting,” Weilbacher said. “I think going off that and having my team behind me was really encouraging.”

Offense will also be something to watch this weekend. Outfielder Kelsey McFarland is ranked No. 2 in the Big 12 with a batting average of .536. Infielder Sami Williams hit three home runs and two doubles in last weekend’s tournament.

“I wasn’t really focusing on trying to hit a home run, it just sort of came,” Williams said. “I think when you do usually hit home runs, you’re not really trying to hit it out of the park.”

Even with the result of last weekend’s games, the team used its time this week to prepare for the Samford/UAB Tournament with a strong mentality, and clean up errors made in the games from last weekend.

Trachsel is excited to watch the team develop and grow with each play.

“If you want to be a good team, let alone a great team, you have to be able to win different ways and I thought we did a really good job of that this weekend,” Trachsel said. “I think that says a lot about our growth and our development with this group.”