AMES, Iowa ñ The Iowa State softball team is off and running now that it is at the halfway point of the 2011 season. |AMES, Iowa ñ The Iowa State softball team is off and running now that it is at the halfway point of the 2011 season. After opening Big 12 play with a split series with No. 17 Oklahoma State last weekend, the Cyclones (15-9, 1-1 Big 12) travel to Northern Iowa on Wednesday, host a make-up doubleheader against Creighton on Thursday and fly south to take on No. 21 Texas A&M on Saturday and Sunday.
Sophomore designated hitter Tori Torrescano found a groove against the Cowgirls, blasting two home runs during the season, one in each game. Torrescano has five four-baggers on the year, eclipsing her total of three from her freshman campaign.
Since 2009, the Cyclones are 3-1 against Creighton, including a 7-0 shutout at the Cyclone Indoor Invitational earlier this season. The Panthers and Cyclones have split the last two games, with Iowa State walking away with a 6-0 win in 2010.
Last year playing the Aggies at home, Iowa State pushed the 22nd-ranked squad to eight innings in the first game of the two-game series before falling, 4-2. In game two, the Aggies got hot on offense, defeating the home team, 9-1 in six innings.
Wednesday’s action gets underway at 4 p.m. in Cedar Falls. On Thursday, game one of the doubleheader with the Bluejays gets underway at 2 p.m. with game two scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday’s game with the Aggies begins at 2 p.m. and Sunday’s finale is scheduled for noon. All times CDT.
Cyclone Notebook
ï The Cyclones travel to UNI on Wednesday, return home on Thursday for a doubleheader with Creighton before heading south to Texas A&M on Saturday and Sunday.
ï Iowa State beat No. 17 Oklahoma State, 4-3, on Saturday for the program’s first win over a ranked opponent since beating No. 10 Missouri in Columbia on April 22, 2009.
ï The win is the Cyclones’ first home win against a ranked opponent since No. 22 Oklahoma came to Ames on April 22, 2006.
ï The weekend split with the Cowgirls is only the fourth conference-opening split for Iowa State since 2000. The other seven league-opener series were sweeps with only the 2002 squad earning the sweep win.
ï The Cyclones’ extended their win-streak to six on Saturday before Sunday’s loss.
ï Heidi Kidwell (1), Tori Torrescano (4) and Erica Miller (3) each hit home runs on Saturday, the first time since last season against Missouri that three Cyclones have hit a homer in the same game.
ï Torrescano hit her second dinger in as many days on Sunday, giving her five on the year, already two better than her total of three as a freshman in 2010.
ï Rachel Zabriskie pitched the 77th complete game of her career on Saturday and is one CG shy of the Iowa State record of 78 set by Alyssa Ransom (2004-07).
ï Patterns held true for Iowa State over the weekend as the team improved to 9-1 in games when scoring in the first inning. The team is 13-2 when it scores first in a game, regardless of the inning.
ï The Cyclone pitchers continued their late-inning strong hold when handed a lead after four innings. The team is 13-0 when leading after four frames.
ï Kidwell ranked eighth in the Big 12 this season with a .411 batting average through 24 games.
ï Freshman Sara Davison’s six-game hitting streak ended on Saturday
ï Kidwell has her own six-game hitting streak going after the opening conference weekend.
ï Amandine Habben got her first two career conference-play starts against the Cowgirls.
