It was a strange day at the Cyclone Athletic Complex, as ISU softball was in a slugfest with in-state rival Drake, winning 15-12 Wednesday afternoon.

Both teams were put up some crooked offensive numbers with a combined 14 scored runs through the first two innings.

The Cyclone offense responded early to the Bulldogs offensive output, taking the lead back twice in the game, with run production coming from everywhere in the lineup.  

“After giving up three [runs] in the first and then to come back and score six [runs] is just great,” said coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler. “To consistently score throughout the game is not always something we do, so I thought that was really good to see too.”

Iowa State had contributions from everywhere in the lineup, as the team had five different Cyclones with multi-hit games.

Kirsten Caudle lead the way offensively for the Cyclones. The freshman drove in a team high three RBI’s on the day. Senior Brittany Gomez swiped two bags on the day, scoring both times she was on base.

Iowa State ended the day with 17 hits while also reaching on four Drake errors and taking total of four team walks. The Cyclones loaded the bases three separate times, scoring at least one run each time.

“I think we were playing a lot more together today, as opposed to [Texas] Tech,” Gomez said. “I think we felt a lot better about [this weekend], once we all started hitting today.”

The pitching on both sides was suspect, but the Cyclones went through three different pitchers by the third inning, as starter Savannah Sanders was pulled after the first inning for Emma Hylen. Hylen struggled, allowing four runs in the second, so Cyclones would turn to Kristine Kimberley.

Kimberley pitched strong in her 5.1 innings of work, allowing five runs on the day, with three of those runs coming in the final inning. But it was Kimberley that quieted Drake’s bats, as it was the freshman’s longest appearances of the season.

“I think that last inning, I was not mentally defeated, but physical I’m not really used to throwing that many innings,” Kimberley said. “At the end, my arm was just starting to get sore.”

Kimberley, a left-hander, kept Drake in check from the second inning all the way until the Bulldogs final at bats in the seventh, when pinch hitter Nicole Newman hit a three-run homer.

“I just want her to be able to close that out,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said. “And I know she wants to be able to do that, she’s super close, and she’s come a long way.”