Iowa State Volleyball Blows Past Baylor, 3-0

WACO, Texas - Mandi Harms had a game-high 17 kills and sophomore Brittany Dalager added nine kills and 15 digs to lead Iowa State to a 3-0 win over Baylor, Saturday night in Waco, Texas. It was Iowa State's first conference win of the season as it improves its record to 10-13 overall and 1-10 in league play. Tisha Schwartz led Baylor with 22 kills and five digs.

With the win, Iowa State won it first conference match since the squad defeated Oklahoma in four games last season and swept a conference opponent for the first time since the 1996 squad swept Kansas on Nov. 29, 1996.

The Cyclones dominated the match offensively, hitting .264 from the floor and collecting 46 kills to Baylor's 38. Iowa State committed just 14 hitting errors on 121 attacks. Baylor was held to .136 from the floor. The Bears held a slight edge defensively, with 55 digs to Iowa State's 51. Iowa State hit the ball extremely well tonight and passed well, setting up Harms and Dalager with 26 kills combined.

Junior Renae Pruess had eight kills and four digs and senior Sara Stribe added five kills, eight digs and 36 assists to help the Cyclone cause on the evening.

With the score tied at 10-10 in the first game, the Cyclones put together a 13-4 run to put the game away. Baylor closed to within five points, 26-21, late in the game, but the Cyclones held off the Baylor rally. Iowa State hit .275 from the floor to Baylor's .139 and won game one, 30-23.

"I thought game one was really key," Head Coach Linda Crum said. "In our last few matches, we've won game one, but haven't been able to win the match. Tonight, we did and I'm very proud of the way we played."

Iowa State remained steady in game two, hitting at a .270 clip, while holding Baylor to a .093 clip. ISU had another run to take control of the game. The Bears held a slim 21-20 lead before the Cyclones scored seven of the next nine points for a 27-23 lead. Baylor never got any closer as Iowa State went on to win game two, 30-25.

The Bears came out a stronger in game three, building an early 6-1 lead. However, the Cyclones rallied, scoring nine of the next 10 points and never relinguishing the lead. The Bears pulled within one point, 23-22, but Iowa State finished strong, winning game three, 30-26. Again, Iowa State's offense was steady as it hit .250, while holding the Bears to .179 from the floor.

"I thought our kids did a great job tonight," Crum said. "They kept their composure and they played very steady and aggressive. They did a good job of keeping Baylor's top player (Tisha Schwartz) in check. I thought Mandi, Brittany and Renae all stepped up and did a really nice job for us tonight. They competed and really played hard."

Iowa State will return home to play host to Kansas on Wednesday, Oct. 30, with first serve at 7 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Brittany Dalager

Brittany Dalager

Mandi Harms

Mandi Harms

Renae Pruess

Renae Pruess

Sara Stribe

Sara Stribe

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