Three seniors. Four juniors.

The ISU softball roster consists of just seven total upperclassmen, which is exactly one-third of the team. 

But that isn’t a concern for a young ISU team that kicked off its five-week road campaign in Houston, Texas, this weekend. The Cyclones went 2-2 against opponents the first weekend, improving their record to 7-3. In those three losses, the scores have been decided by fewer than two runs. 

Iowa State’s ability to keep games close can be attributed to the young roster, which offers depth in all categories and contributes to the team’s success. The Cyclones continue to build the confidence of their young core through early success and leadership from the upperclassmen.

“We have people playing different positions everywhere,” said ISU coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler. “Even though it’s different, we’re still better player for player talent-wise [than last year].”

Iowa State’s pitching and defensive play have posted a 2.06 ERA and a .966 fielding percentage this season. Players on defense have covered the field with considerable speed to make plays at first base.

Gomez, who is playing her first season at shortstop, has tried to make her transition seamless. She has also tried to be a role model for her teammates. 

“I try to do more by action rather than communication,” Gomez said.

Gomez and company have been able to hold down a handful of opponents in dominating performances. Their success this season has given confidence to the young pitching staff.

“There’s not always going to be games where you can be [sitting] everybody down,” said freshman pitcher Savannah Sanders. “It’s going to take a defense behind you to get it done.”

With a four-win start by Sanders, last week’s Big 12 Pitcher of the Week, along with fellow freshman Emma Hylen have been at the center of a young pitching staff that has only one returning pitcher.

Hylen is leading in opponent’s batting average with .161 over 24 innings, while Sanders leads the pack with 36 strikeouts in 31.1 innings.

Gemeinhard-Cesler recognizes the defense and how its effort feeds into the pitching staff, but she also thinks a team effort is required to take the game off of the pitcher’s shoulders.

“If you have an offense that puts up runs, that takes the pressure off a pitcher,” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said.

And that’s what Iowa State’s offense has been doing. In the first 10 games of the season, the Cyclones have outscored their opponents 61-27 and have only lost in games when they scored four or less runs.

At a moment’s notice, Iowa State can get hot and drop five runs on an opponent, which is what it did against Ball State (4-7, 0-0 Mid-American Conference) in the first meeting between the two in Houston, Texas, this weekend, winning 8-5.

And the production can come from any player, as seven players currently have batting averages above .300

“Some teams only have the nine [starting] players that can hit, but we have such a big roster [that can hit],” said junior Cathlin Bingham. “I think that just adds to our confidence.”

Iowa State will travel to Davis, Calif., to play in the UC-Davis Invitational this weekend. Iowa State will play against UC-Davis (3-6, 0-0 Big West) at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.