The Cyclones kicked off their Rebel Invitational effort in Oxford, Mississippi, with a 5-4 win over Samford Friday. Later in the day, they lost to North Dakota State (NDSU) 8-6 in an extra innings battle.
Samford recap
Freshman Abby Huhn began the game in the circle for the Cyclones. Huhn had a solid outing in the circle, giving up just two runs through three innings, before eventually exiting the game in the fourth.
Junior Jaiden Ralston entered the game and was credited with the win, before sophomore Lauren Schurman came in to clean up. Schurman was credited with the save.
The game began slowly, with both teams going scoreless in the first two innings, before a single knocked in a runner for Samford in the bottom of the third, giving the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.
The Cyclones fired back in a big way in the fourth inning. Junior Tatum Johnson kicked off the inning with a deep home run to even the game up.
The rally continued with a single for junior Ashley Minor and a walk for sophomore Maddie Knowles. Junior McKenna Andrews brought everyone home with a three-run home run, her first of the season.
The scoring frenzy would continue with a pair of runs for Samford in the bottom of the fourth on a double to left center field, bringing the score to 4-3 in favor of Iowa State.
Andrews continued her excellent game in the fifth inning with an RBI single, giving the Cyclones a cushion entering the bottom of the fifth. When all was said and done, Andrews’ four RBIs were absolutely the difference maker in the game.
A home run for Olivia Shaw in the bottom of the fifth gave the Bulldogs a bit of life, but Schurman shut it down, giving up a just lone hit in the final two innings.
The save closed out a 5-4 win for the Cyclones to begin the tournament. Iowa State and Samford will not meet again tomorrow as previously planned, as the weather forced the game to be canceled.
NDSU recap
Freshman Sami Potvin served as the starting pitcher for the Cyclones against the Bison. In the third inning, Schurman entered the game and pitched until the top of the ninth before being relieved by Ralston.
Fielding errors were a pain point for the Cyclones today, as only two of the eight runs scored by the Bison were earned.
Freshman Jessie Clemons continued her outstanding season with a home run to open the game at the plate for Iowa State. Junior Sydney Malott continued a strong start for the Cyclones with an RBI double, giving the team a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first.
It would not last, as a sequence of errors and a sac fly run tied the game up for NDSU in the second. Another flurry of offense gave the Bison the lead 3-2 in the top of the third.
Junior Reagan Bartholomew brought in Clemons with an RBI sac fly to fire back and knot the game once again at three.
The scoring slowed to a halt until the top of the sixth inning, when a Bison double brought in two more runners.
Down 5-3 going into the bottom of the seventh, it looked like the game was drawing to an end for the Cyclones. The bats came to life though and a pair of clutch RBI’s for senior Angelina Allen and Malott tied the game 5-5 and sent it to extra innings.
The teams mirrored each other with a run each in the eighth inning. Iowa State’s came from an RBI single off the bat of Andrews, her fifth of the day.
A rally from the Bison in the top of the ninth gave them the lead 8-6 and it would remain that way, wrapping up the game. The loss moves the Cyclones to 11-12 on the season.
Iowa State looks to finish the Rebel Invitational strong with two games against the host team in No. 21 Ole Miss at 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Both games are subject to potential change barring the weather.
