The Cyclones will travel to Arizona for the Sun Devil Classic this weekend. The tournament, hosted by Arizona State, will see Iowa State battle with New Mexico State, Grand Canyon, Portland State and No. 3 Florida. 

The Cyclones will enter the weekend at 4-5 following a 3-1 effort in their trip to California for the Wilson Invitational last weekend. 

A strong performance from the underclassmen has led to success for Iowa State early in its season. Freshman Jessie Clemons has been nothing short of excellent at the plate for the team, batting .448 thus far in the season. 

In the circle, sophomore Lauren Schurman has been a workhorse for the team, making an appearance in all nine outings for the team. She has 15 of the team’s 34 strikeouts on the season and boasts a solid 1.58 ERA.

New Mexico State

The Cyclones will meet the New Mexico State Aggies at 2:15 p.m. Friday for the first time since 2014. The Aggies are 8-4 heading into the tournament and will see Portland State earlier in the day on Friday. 

New Mexico State is on an absolute tear early in the season. The Aggies have three batters, Lauren Garcia (.609), Desirae Spearman (.556) and Kendal Lunar (.517) batting above .500. 

The Aggies beat Montana in their last outing 10-0 and are on a four-game winning streak. If the Cyclones can beat the Aggies to open their tournament effort, it will be a great sign of things to come and could get the ball rolling on an extremely successful weekend.

Grand Canyon

At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Iowa State will face the Grand Canyon Lopes on ESPN+. The Cyclones are 2-1 all-time against the Lopes, who enter the tournament at 10-2 on the season. 

Following a 4-0 loss to No. 20 Oregon, Grand Canyon is on a two-game winning streak, taking out North Dakota and Arizona State.

In their last year in the Western Athletic Conference, before they move to the Mountain West in July, Grand Canyon is making a statement. With wins over two Power Four conference members (Arizona State and Washington) already, it will certainly be looking to grab another one over Iowa State on Friday night. 

The Cyclones should look to shut down the momentum and build up confidence through wins, because they’re going to need it against No. 3 Florida on Sunday.

Portland State 

At 2:15 p.m. Saturday, Iowa State will take on the Portland State Vikings in the Cyclones’ third game of the weekend. Portland State has not been as hot this season, holding a record of 3-7. The Cyclones hold the lead in the all-time series at 3-1. 

The struggle thus far this season for the Vikings has been the pitching. The team has one pitcher in the bullpen with an ERA under five. 

Granted, Grace Kimball, the team’s primary asset in the circle, has been great this season, posting a 1.42 ERA. However, a lack of offense and fielding mistakes have cost Portland State games this year. 

Do not write this team off, though. With players like Ellie Babbitt and Natalia Martinez, who each have nine RBIs this season from the box, there is certainly room for this team to make their mark on the tournament. Ultimately, the Cyclones should look to take control early and rely on solid pitching and fielding to bring home a win in their lone Saturday game.

No. 3 Florida 

In the “main event” of the week for the Cyclones, they will meet No. 3 Florida at 9 a.m. Sunday. 

The Gators have been an absolute buzzsaw this season. At 13-1, their only loss was to a ranked Duke team, who they also beat 9-0 in five innings at one point.

In its 14 games, Florida has scored 88 more runs than its opponents. The Gators have only played six games that have not been stopped early because of the mercy rule.

Power at the plate has been one of the primary strengths of the Gators. Led by Taylor Shumaker with eight, the team has hit 22 home runs this year. The Cyclones have three. 

Florida’s pitching has also been top-notch. Its bullpen has a combined 2.06 ERA and has held opponents to an overall .196 batting average. 

There is no doubt that the Cyclones are the underdogs in this game. If they can knock off the Gators on Sunday, it will be a landmark moment for the Cyclones.