Softball Set For Home Opener vs. No. 15 Texas Tech

Softball Header_TTU

CYCLONE NOTEBOOK
1. The Iowa State softball team (17-13 overall) it is set for its home-opener this weekend at the Cyclone Sports Complex. The Cyclones will take on No. 15 Texas Tech in a three-game series, starting Friday at 4 p.m. Game two is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m., and the series finale will be Sunday at 12 p.m.

2. The upcoming home stand will be a welcome reprieve from the road after Iowa State opened the season with 30 games on the road. 12 of ISU's next 13 games are slated to be played at the Cyclone Sports Complex. So far, just seven of ISU's 86 contests during the Jamie Pinkerton have been played at home.

3. The Cyclones will look to rebound from an 0-3 weekend to open conference play at No. 10 Texas. Kaylee Bosworth stayed hot at the plate in her home state of Texas, leading the team with a .429 batting average on the weekend, with two runs scored and a double.

4. Iowa State headed to Austin on a hot streak, having won eight of their last nine non-conference games. Iowa State's .630 winning percentage was its third-best mark ever going into the start of Big 12 play. Iowa State's seven-game win streak this season (March 8 - March 16) was the program's longest since the 2010 season.

5. Iowa State junior Sami Williams had a career-long 16-game hitting streak ended in game one vs. Texas, just two shy of tying the Iowa State all-time record of 18 set by Aly Cappaert in 2015. Over the 16-game streak, Williams hit .544 with eight doubles, two triples, four home runs and 14 RBI's in the lead-off spot. She also had a .965 slugging percentage and four stolen bases over that same period.

6. Williams already re-wrote the ISU record book in a different category this season, hitting her school record-breaking 42nd career double. Williams, now ISU's all-time leader, broke the previous program record of 41 set by Lexi Slater (2012-15).

7. Senior hurler Emma Hylen also placed her name atop the ISU record books, picking up her ISU record-breaking eighth career save on March 16 vs. Harvard. It was the cherry on top of a dominant weekend for Hylen at the Easton Invitational in Fullerton, Calif. Hylen went 3-0 with a save and a 0.36 ERA in four appearances at the tournament. The native of Roseville, Minn., allowed just one earned run in 19.0 innings of action.

8. Bosworth is known for being among the Big 12's top defensive catchers, but she has turned in a career-best year so far at the plate. The senior from Manvel, Texas has the second-best slugging percentage on the team at .549 and is hitting .317 with a team-best 19 RBI's on the season. Bosworth had the second multi-home run game of her career, going yard twice to lead Iowa State to a 7-5 win over Harvard at the Easton Invitational.

9. The Cyclone defense has continued to show marked improvement this season under head coach Jamie Pinkerton and assistant Courtney Martinez, who has been charged with tutoring the infield. The Cyclones now rank No. 3 in the Big 12 with a .972 fielding percentage on the season. ISU has already turned a conference-leading 15 double plays in 30 games after turning 17 all of last season.

10. Williams continues to climb the ISU career record charts during her junior campaign. The native of Laguna Niguel, Calif., is already No. 2 on Iowa State's all-time list in batting average (.379), No. 1 in doubles (45) and No. 7 in home runs (25). Williams currently ranks No. 1 in the Big 12 in doubles per game at .37.

11. Iowa State hit a single-season school record 45 home runs in 2018, breaking the previous program mark of 40 set during Pinkerton's first stint at Iowa State as an assistant coach in 2013. Williams led the way with 12 homers on the year, as ISU returns 36 of its 45 dingers from a season ago.

COMPLETE GAME NOTES
For complete game notes, click here (PDF).

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Kaylee Bosworth

Aly Cappaert

Emma Hylen

Lexi Slater

Sami Williams

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics