The ISU softball team has won two games in a row and will attempt to extend its freshly earned winning streak to three when it faces a daunting Big 12 road challenge at Texas.

The Cyclones enter the three-game series after gaining their first Big 12 win of the season against Oklahoma State and then beating in-state rival Iowa in Iowa City.

“[Iowa] was probably the best I felt going into a game,” said ISU coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler. “With Maddie Reese and Aly Cappaert coming out with the big home runs, [that] was fantastic.”

In those two wins, the Cyclones have put up an average of five runs per game. Iowa State will need to come out strong on offense once again as it will face one of the best pitching rotations in the Big 12. The UT pitching roster has an average ERA of 3.26 and has allowed only a .243 batting average this season. Both stats rank third in the Big 12.

Not only do the Cyclones have to worry about the Longhorns’ pitching as a whole, but Texas has two of the top five Big 12 pitchers in senior Gabby Smith and freshman Erica Wright. Smith has allowed an opponent batting average of .227 through 14 games and Wright has allowed a .218 opposing average through 24 games.

“We have been preparing all week mentally on coming out strong,” Reese said. “And continue to put pressure on.”

Not only do the Cyclones need to bring their bats, but they need to limit the opponent’s bats as well. This year, Texas has averaged six runs per game, compared to Iowa State’s four runs per game. Many of those UT runs have been generated by Lindsey Stephens. 

“[Stephens] is a great player” Gemeinhardt-Cesler said.

Stephens has tallied 13 home runs in 39 games for the Longhorns. That puts Stephens third in the Big 12 in home runs.

“We definitely have to keep them in check,” said sophomore pitcher Katie Johnson.

If the Cyclones are able to keep the bats and pitching cold, they have a chance to pull out one or two wins in Austin, Texas.

Iowa State opens the three-game series against Texas at 6:30 p.m. April 17. The Cyclones then play the following two games at 4 p.m. April 18 and 1 p.m. April 19. All games are available on the Longhorn Network.