Des Moines, IA - The Bulldogs fell to Iowa State 9-8 in a mid-week matchup in Des Moines on Wednesday, May 1. Iowa State took an early 5-0 lead, which Drake erased with an 8-run fourth inning, but their efforts were ultimately not enough to stop the Cyclones.
 
Iowa State tagged Drake's starting pitcher Jayme Scheck for five runs in the first inning. The Cyclones smacked three RBI doubles in the inning to spark an early rally. Angelina Allen, Alesia Ranches and Tatum Johnson were the RBI-double hitters for Iowa State.
 
Scheck settled in after the first inning and shut down the Cyclones in the second, third and fourth innings. Iowa State's starting pitcher, Tatum Johnson, was cruising through three innings but she ran into trouble in the fourth inning. Carey Koenig hit a solo shot to begin the fourth inning, plating Drake's first run and kicking off a Bulldog rally. Johnson allowed a walk to Skylar Rigby after the home run, which prompted Iowa State to bring in Aziza Rodriguez to pitch.
 
The Bulldogs proceeded to tally five earned runs against Johnson. Emma Dighton singled to drive in two runs, Abby Martin hit a three-run home run and Destiny Lewis hit a solo shot, all off Rodriguez. Karlie Charles replaced Rodriguez in the circle, and Koenig homered for the second time in the inning on a solo shot to give Drake an 8-5 lead. The Bulldogs finished the inning with eight runs and four home runs.
 
Iowa State evened the game at eight apiece in the top of the fifth inning when Carli Spelhaug hit a three-run homer off Scheck. The Cyclones took their deciding one-run lead in the top of the sixth inning when Milaysia Ochoa scored on a passed ball. Emma Richards was the Bulldog pitcher when Iowa State scored the winning run. 
 
Drake failed to score in the final three innings and dropped the game 9-8 to the Cyclones. Frankie Rita finished with three hits, Lewis had two hits and Koenig smashed two homers in the losing effort.
 
Drake (21-24, 9-12) will remain at home for its final series of the regular season for a three-game set against Belmont from May 3-5.