Big 12 Championship Primer: Quarterfinals

Who: Iowa State (30-22, 15-9 Big 12) vs. winner of (11) Houston and (6) BYU

Where: Devon Park (13,000) – Oklahoma City, Okla.

When: May 8 // 7:30 p.m.

Leading Off
After earning its highest finish in Big 12 history, Iowa State will open postseason play on Thursday in the Big 12 Championship. ISU, who won six of eight conference series, secured a first-round bye and awaits the winner of Wednesday's BYU and Houston contest.

The Cyclones wrapped up the regular season this past weekend by taking the season-finale series over Baylor, 2-1. After dropping game one, ISU walked off the Bears in game two and held on for a 4-3 win in the rubber match on Senior Day.

The Cyclones have had success in the Big 12 Championship in the last five seasons, as the team has secured at least one win in four of the five conference tournaments. Last season was the first time since 2018 that ISU didn't win a postseason contest.

Leading the Cyclones
Iowa State's bats are led by unanimous First Team All-Big 12 member Jessie Clemons. Clemons, also a member of the All-Freshman Team, leads the team in batting average (.373), doubles (13) and is tied for the most hits with 63. The player she is tied with, Sereniti Trice, joined Clemons on the All-Freshman Team and was also named Second Team All-Big 12. Trice leads the team in runs scored (44) and stolen bases (14).

Rounding outs ISU's offensive attack are fellow All-Big 12 Second Team member Tatum Johnson, who leads the team in OPS (1.100), OBP (.507) and SLG (.593). Returning All-American Angelina Allen has the third-most hits (53) and leads the team in walks (27), while Illinois transfer Sydney Malott leads the team in RBI (36) and homers (11). Rookie catcher Karlee Ford has come on strong in conference play as she, along with Trice and Clemons, was named to the All-Big 12 Freshman Team.

In the circle, five Cyclones have seen action. Lauren Schurman leads the way with a team-low ERA of 3.43. Schurman has hurled 134.2 innings, a team-high, and owns 64 punchouts, also a team-high. Jaiden Ralston has 13 starts in 42 appearances with 56 strikeouts. Both Schurman (1) and Ralston (8) are top ten in the country in terms of pitching appearances this season. Freshmen Abby Huhn and Sami Potvin, as well as sophomore Aziza Rodriguez, round out the bullpen.

Overall, the Cyclones are hitting .289 and have produced 256 runs on 397 hits. The team has 130 extra-base hits with 233 RBI, while drawing 152 walks. ISU holds a collective 4.61 ERA and has allowed 426 hits in 332.2 innings of work.

Opponent Outlook: (6) BYU

Hits Leader: Ilove'a Brittingham (64)
RBI Leader: Ilove'a Brittingham (67)
Lowest ERA: Kaysen Korth (2.34)
Most Strikeouts: Kaysen Korth (97)

Overall, the Cougars are hitting .310 and have produced 295 runs on 388 hits. The team has 132 extra-base hits with 274 RBI, while drawing 148 walks. BYU holds a collective 3.33 ERA and has allowed 309 hits in 306.2 innings of work.

BYU leads the all-time series over Iowa State, 10-2, and was one of two series losses the Cyclones had in conference play this season. BYU has outscored ISU 46-23 in games played as Big 12 foes.

Opponent Outlook: (11) Houston

Hits Leader: Brooke Wells (47)
RBI Leader: Brooke Wells (47)
Lowest ERA: Gigi Solis (4.83)
Most Strikeouts: Rylee Michalak (35)

Overall, the Cougars are hitting .281 and have produced 247 runs on 331 hits. The team has 97 extra-base hits with 226 RBI, while drawing 241 walks. Houston holds a collective 5.38 ERA and has allowed 374 hits in 307 innings of work.

Houston leads the all-time series over Iowa State, 9-5, and took the last series between the two teams earlier this season in Houston. The Cougars and Cyclones have been evenly matched in the last ten outings, as the record sits at 5-5.

From the Notes:

The Cyclones spent the first seven weeks of the season away from the Cyclone Softball Complex, playing 28 straight games on the road or at a neutral site.
- March 28 was the latest season-opener since 2022. That squad didn't play at home until April 6.
Iowa State went 1-2 in its first Big 12 series, taking the opening game against Houston. For ISU, it was the program's first Big 12-opening win since 2006.
Iowa State earned its first road Big 12 sweep since 2019 in Orlando, defeating UCF in three straight games. The road series sweep also happened to be the team's first since 2021.
Iowa State snapped a seven-game skid to Arizona State in its third conference series, besting the Sun Devils for the first time since 1998, earning a second-straight Big 12 series win.
- For the Cyclones, it was their first back-to-back Big 12 series victory since 2023, when they downed Baylor and Kansas to close the season.
ISU took game one of the conference series against BYU, marking four straight series with a series-opening win.
The Cyclones earned their first road series win over a ranked opponent at No. 17 Oklahoma State, taking the series 2-1.
- The rubber match win over the Cowgirls gave ISU its ninth conference win of the season, setting a new single-season program high.
- The win also gave ISU its third conference series win of the season – the most in a single season in school history.
ISU took two of three games on Easter weekend to claim its fourth conference series win of the season.
In its penultimate week of the regular season, Iowa State played six games in seven days, earning a 5-1 record. As part of the five-win week, ISU claimed its fifth conference series win of the season and third on the road.
The Cyclones closed the regular season taking the home finale stand over Baylor, 2-1, and securing the team's sixth conference series win of the year.
- The Baylor series secured ISU's first-round bye as a three seed. The team's third-place finish is the highest ever in Big 12 play.
Iowa State hit the 30-win mark for the third time under Coach Pinkerton in 2025. Prior to his arrival in 2018, ISU's last 30-win season came in 1989.
After having 11 seniors leave, ISU only has two on this year's roster. Over half of the team, 14, are underclassmen.
- Of Iowa State's most-used lineup this season, just one position player started over 50 percent of last year's games (Angelina Allen).
- Only four players are over the age of 21.
Freshman pitcher Sami Potvin hurled a five-inning perfect game against Grambling State, striking out a career-high nine batters.

On Deck
Should the Cyclones defeat the winner of (11) Houston vs. (6) BYU, Iowa State would then play the winner of (2) Arizona and (7) UCF vs. (10) Utah in the semifinals. A potential semifinal game would be scheduled for Friday, May 9, at 5:30 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Angelina Allen

Jessie Clemons

Karlee Ford

Abby Huhn

Tatum Johnson

Sydney Malott

Sami Potvin

Jaiden Ralston

Aziza Rodriguez

Lauren Schurman

Sereniti Trice

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