2024 Season Recap: Softball

The Lead
Iowa State completed its 51st season of softball in 2024, earning 20 wins under seventh-year head coach Jamie Pinkerton. The Cyclones knocked off three ranked opponents on the year despite dealing with injuries to its battery and losing four games to weather-related issues. ISU's Angelina Allen recorded one of the best seasons in team history this year, becoming the program's fourth All-American.

Key Storylines
-Junior outfielder Angelina Allen ranked among the nation's best this year. She finished with the 11th-best batting average (.435), the third-most doubles (22) and the 28th-most hits (74).

-One of the major highlights of the season came in the form of a Camille Marin walk-off home run over #5 OSU, as Iowa State secured the highest-ranked series win in program history.

-Milaysia Ochoa recorded her 200th hit against BYU, while Carli Spelhaug recorded hers against St. Thomas, as they became two of six ISU players to ever achieve the mark.

-Angelina Allen was named to the All-Big 12 Second, marking the fourth-straight year an ISU player achieved All-Big 12 Second Team status. Allen earned Big 12 Player of the Week (3/5/24) early in the season, becoming the first Cyclone since Sami Williams in 2021 to receive the recognition. Angelina was named a Second Team All-American by D1Softball and earned First Team All-Midwest distinction from the NFCA.

-Iowa State has had just four All-Americans in school history. Two of them have been coached by Pinkerton, as Sami Williams (2021) and Angelina Allen (2024) have helped the Cyclones reach unprecedented success.

-Iowa State earned its first winning season at home since 2019, despite losing four games due to weather.

-ISU went 3-6 against the league newcomers, taking two from Houston and one from UCF, and was swept by BYU. The increase in league size meant that the Cyclones played more Big 12 games. The team tied the program record for most league games in a season with 24. Had the TTU series not been canceled, the 27 league games would have been a program record.

-This year's senior class - a group of 10 - was one of the best in program history, as multiple Cyclones earned top-10 appearances in the record books. Milaysia Ochoa, Carli Spelhaug, Alesia Ranches and Karlie Charles all had spectacular careers and will always be talked about as some of the best Cyclones to ever do it.

-Assistant Head Coach Lindsey Ubrun returned to the Cyclone dugout this season, and her plate approach was immediately adapted by the team. The Cyclones belted 51 homers on the year, the second-most in a single season in team history. It was just the second time that ISU has had 50-plus homers in a year, with both coming under Pinkerton.

-The Cyclones scored 10-plus runs in five outings this year, more than double last year's games (2).

-Coach Pinkerton led the Cyclones to their fourth-straight 20-plus win season. Just four Cyclone head coaches have done so during their tenure.

-Eight of the top 10 most attended Iowa State softball games have come under Pinkerton. This year's 4/14 game against No. 5 Oklahoma State cracked the top 10.

-A pair of Cyclones, Olivia Wardlow and Ashley Minor, earned CSC Academic All-District for their production both on the field and in the classroom this season.

Players Mentioned

Angelina Allen

Karlie Charles

Camille Marin

Ashley Minor

Milaysia Ochoa

Alesia Ranches

Carli Spelhaug

Olivia Wardlow

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics