Completed Event: Volleyball versus Arizona on October 23, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 0
Final
Volleyball
3
Arizona
0
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Iowa State University Athletics
Wednesday, September 15
Ames, Iowa
TBA
Iowa State
1
vs
3
Texas A&M
Iowa State Falls To No. 12 Texas A&M, 3-1
09.15.2004 | Volleyball
AMES, Iowa - The Iowa State volleyball team had an upset in mind early in a match against the No. 12 Aggies of Texas A&M, but were unable to sustain their early success against the powerful Aggies. ISU was defeated by A&M, 3-1, in the Big 12 and home opener for the Cyclones at Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State won game one, but the Aggies regrouped, capturing three straight for their first conference victory of the season.
"We expected two things from Texas A&M," said head coach Linda Crum. "They would have a high level of defense and they would be a very physical team, hitting and blocking hard all night. We needed to be better and we let them get more aggressive tonight."
The Cyclones jumped out of the gate quickly in the match, capturing game one in exciting fashion. Nicole Lorenzen led the way in the initial game, pounding four kills on eight attempts for ISU. Amanda Craig notched 17 assists, and Iowa State used a late scoring run to win game one, 30-24. Iowa State out hit the Aggies, .292 to .146, and notched six more kills than Texas A&M.
Texas A&M, whose two losses this season have been to top-15 competition, showed the offensive firepower and defensive prowess that has made the Aggies a top-15 this season, jumping out to an early lead and cruising to a 30-21 game two victory. A&M hit .314 for the game, but more importantly, the Aggies stepped up their defensive effort, recording four blocks and holding ISU to a .075 hitting percentage.
Game three was a hard-fought affair, with two teams holding even throughout most of the contest. Katie Jessen began to warm up, as she notched five kills on 15 attempts in game three. Brittany Dalager added four kills for ISU and setter Amanda Craig caught the A&M defense off-guard three times, recording three kills on as many attempts. Texas A&M capitalized on a scoring run late in the game to beat Iowa State, 30-26.
The deciding game was another close one, as ISU jumped out to a quick lead only to see A&M storm back to take a late advantage. Jessen was the go-to player again in the final frame, pounding six kills on eight attempts for a .650 hitting percentage in game four. Lorenzen notched four kills for ISU while Dalager added three. Texas A&M was tough defensively again, slamming four blocks to thwart the Cyclone offense. The Aggies took a late lead and held on to win the fourth and final game, 30-23.
"The key for us was to keep the ball at the net so our hitters could be one-on-one, that's what we did in game one," Crum said. "But we weren't able to do it all night and A&M's defense was just too tough. We didn't handle the ball as well as we could and we didn't work as hard as we could defensively after game one."
Iowa State was led offensively on the evening by Jessen, Dalager and Lorenzen. Jessen, a Kansas City, Mo., native, smashed 19 kills, a season-high, on 39 attempts. The sophomore added four digs and a service ace to the ISU effort.
"One thing I thought was that Katie had a great match in the sense of hitting with confidence," Crum said. "Seeing her transform tonight, from her freshman year to this year is really amazing. She really has matured and really helped us come back in game four. I was proud of the way she played tonight, she played like a good Big 12 player."
Dalager had perhaps the finest all-around performance for the Cyclones, leading the squad with 23 digs, tying a team season-high. The senior from Minneota, Minn., who has been hampered in the early season with a nagging shoulder injury, proved what she could do when healthy, recording a double-digit tally in kills for the first time this season with 15.
"Brittany just played with a lot of leadership and maturity," Crum said. "She had some great swings and she was a very complete player. She does a great job leading this team."
Lorenzen provided another fine all-around effort for ISU as well. The sophomore from Fremont slammed 11 kills, tallied six digs and had four block assists for the Cyclones. She led the way for ISU in the game one victory, recording four kills and hitting at a .273 clip in the game.
Katie Churm and Christine Smeele, ISU's libero/defensive specialist tandem, had solid nights defensively as well, each recording double-figures in digs. Churm, a sophomore from Irvine, Calif., notched 17, and Smeele, a senior from Mundelein, Ill., tallied 12.
Iowa State drops to 6-2 overall and 0-1 in the Big 12, while Texas A&M moves to 5-2 overall and 1-0 in league play. The Cyclones will travel to Norman, Okla., on Friday, Sept. 17, to play in the first Big 12 road contest of the season. The first serve against the Sooners is slated for 7 p.m.
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/ VolleyballVB Replay ISU at UCF 2025
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