A promising season for ISU soccer took a turn for the worse last season when the team hit a rough patch during Big 12 play and lost eight of its last nine games.

The late-season struggle led to Iowa State missing out on the Big 12 tournament during ISU coach Tony Minatta’s first season at the helm.

Minatta is back for the second year of his tenure and returns a lineup with some serious weapons. Koree Willer returns as a junior after leading the team in goals as a sophomore with 10.

Joining her on the Cyclones’ offensive attack is Adalie Schmidt, who scored four goals and dished out two assists during an injury-riddled season. Schmidt only played in 10 games on the season, but her production is expected to rise if she can stay healthy for the whole season.

Maribell Morales was a heralded freshman who showed flashes of brilliance during the season, but also had injury issues and struggled at times. As a sophomore, she will attempt to rebound from an on-and-off freshman campaign and bolster the ISU offensive attack.

The Cyclones will feature a new face in the back of the net after losing senior Andrea Swanson to graduation.

A pair of sophomores in Emily O’Grady and Lindsey Hendon battled for the backup job last season, but Swanson ate up the majority of the minutes. Hendon logged one game in the back of the net, where she played 27 minutes and made three saves while not allowing a goal.

Whoever takes over the goalkeeper position will be aided by a pair of junior defensive players in Kourtney Camy and Madi Ott, who acted as the defensive backbone of the team last season and likely will again this season.

Despite a disappointing end to last season, Minatta is eager for the upcoming season. Last year’s young team has had a year to grow, and Minatta said he was excited by what he saw from his team throughout the exhibition games in the spring season.

Those improvements will be put to the test come Aug. 21 when the Cyclones officially kick off their 2015 campaign with a South Dakota road trip.

Iowa State’s first seven games will be on the road, meaning ISU fans’ first opportunity to watch the Cyclones in Ames will be at 1 p.m. Sept. 13 when they take on North Dakota State.