It was a promising season for the ISU soccer team, which scored the biggest win in program history with an upset at No. 10 Pepperdine on Aug. 30. But the season quickly deteriorated into a sub-par year as the Cyclones finished with a 6-12 record, 0-8 in Big 12 play.

The Cyclones missed out on the Big 12 tournament and now have their sights set on next season, which they hope will yield a different result than this season.

After two consecutive years of missing out on the Big 12 tournament, ISU coach Tony Minatta thinks his returning players are dedicated to turning around the program.

“I think they finally realize what it actually takes and that they haven’t been putting that full amount of effort into it these past couple of years,” Minatta said.

Next year, the Cyclones will return leading goal-scorer Koree Willer, defensive stalwarts Madi Ott and Kourtney Camy and multiple contributors who gained experience during the past few seasons.

Minatta is especially excited to see his seniors respond. Next year’s seniors were freshmen when Iowa State last qualified for the Big 12 tournament. After missing out on the tournament the last two years, Minatta is counting on his seniors to take the team back.

“I’m just excited to see them, because they’ve finally come to the realization they only get one more shot at it and to know that they’re going to put in everything that they have,” Minatta said.

Aside from his returning players, Minatta is excited about his incoming recruiting class. The team will have more depth than in the past years.

The added depth will allow for more competitive practices and give Minatta the ability to fluctuate his lineup from time to time.

“It helps because if a player in the starting role knows that there is someone behind them that could take their spot,” Minatta said. “It definitely helps them not overlook an opponent because they know if they slip in their performance then somebody else is going to step right in.”

Minatta felt that his players overlooked teams from time to time in the nonconference season, which brought the team into the conference schedule with little momentum.

After beating No. 10 Pepperdine, the team went into a small decline that turned into a sharp decline that the team never truly recovered from.

“When you lose that momentum that you had, it’s really tough to regain, especially in the middle of the season,” Minatta said.

With this season in the rearview mirror, Minatta is looking ahead to next year’s team. He said next year’s seniors remind him of the 2013 seniors, who led that team to the Big 12 tournament for the first time since 2007.

Now, they’ll be the ones trying to lead the team back.

“Nobody wants to end it like we did this year, especially when it’s their last year of play,” Minatta said.