Cyclones Sweep No. 13 Kansas State

MANHATTAN, Kan. ? Iowa State used its serve to keep No. 13 Kansas State off balance all night en route to a 3-0 (25-19, 25-17, 25-16) win. It marked the first time this season that the Wildcats had been swept on their home court and gave ISU a season sweep of KSU for just the second time since 1995.

“I felt like we served them really tough and were able to keep their setter off the net, which was key,” Iowa State head coach Christy Johnson said. “We just did a great job executing the game plan and I'm proud of them for that.”

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Final Stats	_	Post-Match Notes

The Cyclones (18-12, 10-9 Big 12) got 11 kills each from Rachel Hockaday and Jen Malcom. ISU held the Wildcats to a .031 hitting percentage in the contest while hitting .213 as a team. It was the lowest offensive output for the Wildcats this season.

The Cyclones had six service aces in the match, including three from Ashley Mass and two from Diane Kieger.

Defensively, the Cyclones got 18 digs from Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week Mass and five block assists each from Diane Kieger and Kaylee Manns. Manns finished with 31 assists and seven digs as well in the match.

In the first set, ISU jumped out to a big lead early and never trailed en route to the 25-19 win. The Cyclones hit .312 as a team in the set and got four kills each from Victoria Henson, Hockaday and Malcom. ISU led early in the frame 8-2 following a block from Kieger and Petersen but KSU rallied back to get within one at 10-9. The Cyclones used a 4-1 run to go up 18-13 and held off the Wildcats the rest of the way.

Another big run to start the second set propelled the Cyclones to a 25-17 win and a 2-0 match lead heading into the intermission. ISU used a pair of service aces from Mass and solid all-around play to jump out to a 7-0 lead in the set. As was the case in the first set, K-State rallied to get within three at 16-13 but a Cyclone timeout calmed the nerves as ISU scored four of the next five to push the lead to 20-14. ISU overcame a .065 hitting in the set to fend off the Wildcats, who hit -.088, and get the win.

ISU fell behind for the first time on point one of the third set and looked in danger of losing Malcom, who went down on the play after tweaking her ankle. Trailing 6-2, ISU began getting back in it and tied it at 8-8 on a block from Manns and Malcom, who returned a few points earlier. The Cyclones took an 11-9 advantage with back-to-back kills from Malcom and pushed its lead to 20-13 following a kill by Hockaday. ISU would hold off the Wildcats the rest of the way for the 25-16 win, which was wrapped up a kill by Malcom.

“Malcom showed just how tough she is by coming back in that match,” Johnson said. “I was shocked to see her re-enter, but I'm glad she did.”

Kansas State was led by eight kills from Natalya Korobkova and six from Megan Farr. ISU held Kansas State outside hitter Rita Liliom to just one kill on the night. Liliom had been in double-figures in every match this season.

Lauren Mathewson finished with a team-high 11 digs in the match.

Iowa State closes out regular season play Saturday at 6:30 p.m. when it plays host to Kansas at Hilton Coliseum. The match will serve as Senior Night and Fan Appreciation Night with numerous giveaways throughout the contest.

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Players Mentioned

Victoria Henson

Victoria Henson

Rachel Hockaday

Diane Kieger

Diane Kieger

Jen Malcom

Jen Malcom

Kaylee Manns

Kaylee Manns

Ashley Mass

Ashley Mass

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