Cyclones Host Iowa State Challenge

AMES, Iowa - The No. 19 Cyclones open their home slate this weekend, hosting Southern Miss, Arizona State and Iowa at the 2011 Iowa State Challenge Friday Sept. 2 and Saturday Sept. 3.

Iowa State will meet Southern Miss for the first time in program history on Friday. The Golden Eagles are 3-0 this season and return all of their starters and their libero from last season's 19-12 team. Helping hold opponents to .073 hitting to start the season is senior libero Lisa Knecht who is averaging 4.90 digs per set. On offense, Southern Miss is led by outside hitter Halie Ecker who boasts 4.40 kills per set.

Another new opponent for Iowa State is Arizona State, whom the Cyclones have played once in school history, the Sun Devils earning a 3-2 win over the Cyclones back in 2007. The Sun Devils have compiled a 3-1 record to start the season led by Ashley Kastl and Erica Wilson who lead the team with 4.00 kills per set and 3.29 kills per set, respectively.

On Saturday, the Cyclones close the tournament with the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series match against the Iowa Hawkeyes. In the 44th meeting between the intrastate rivals, the visitors from Iowa City will try to even the series at 22 wins apiece. Iowa State won its sixth-straight match over the Hawkeyes last season to give the Cyclones a 22-21 edge in the all-time series.

After hitting .313 last weekend, the Cyclone offense will have its work cut out for it against Iowa middle blocker Mallory Husz who picked up 12 block assists and a solo block last weekend as the Hawkeyes started the season 1-2, their lone win coming against Central Michigan.

Arizona State and Iowa kick off the weekend with a 10 a.m. match on Friday before Iowa State makes its home debut against Southern Miss at noon. The complete Iowa State Challenge schedule of matches is below. All times central.

Friday Sept. 2
Arizona State vs. Iowa - 10 a.m.
Iowa State vs. Southern Miss - Noon
Southern Miss vs. Iowa - 4:30 p.m.
Iowa State vs. Arizona State - 6:30 p.m.

Saturday Sept. 3
Arizona State vs. Southern Miss - 11 a.m.
Iowa State vs. Iowa (Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series) - 2 p.m.

Cyclone Notebook

Iowa State opens the home slate this season when Southern Miss, Arizona State and Iowa come to Hilton Coliseum for the Iowa State Challenge, Sept. 2-3.
Sophomore libero Kristen Hahn was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week after leading the league in digs, 69, and digs per set, 6.27, over the weekend.
After the first weekend of play in 2011, Carly Jenson leads the Big 12 with 5.22 kills per set.
For her offensive prowess, Jenson was named one of College Volleyball Update's top performers of the weekend.
In typical Christy Johnson-Lynch fashion, the Cyclones out-dug their opponents 200-157. Only 53 times since Johnson-Lynch took over at Iowa State have the Cyclones been out-dug in a match.
Iowa State out-hit opponents .313 to .144 over the weekend.
Caitlin Mahoney's five service aces against Cincinnati on Friday were the most of any Cyclone player since Ashley Mass had five aces against Florida International in 2008.
The Cyclones had 10 aces against the Bearcats, the most since the 2008 match with FIU where Iowa State had 10 aces.
Iowa State leads the Big 12 with 18.18 digs per set in the opening weekend. Texas A&M is second with 17.30.
Part of Iowa State's strength in hitting percentage last weekend was their ability to guard against the block. The Cyclones allowed only one block per set, ranked second in the conference.
Alison Landwehr had 133 assists in the Cyclones' first three matches of the season, moving her to 10th all-time at Iowa State with a career 1,399 assists.
Landwehr also tied her career record for digs in a match with 13 against Northern Illinois.
Iowa State is ranked No. 18 by both the American Volleyball Coaches Association and Volleyball Magazine to start the 2011 season. This marks the fourth-straight season the Cyclones have been ranked in at least one preseason poll.
The Cyclones received two first-place votes, finishing behind only the Texas Longhorns in the Big 12 coaches preseason poll and tied with Oklahoma.
Redshirt freshman Hannah Willms was named the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year by league coaches.
Juniors Jamie Straube and Alison Landwehr were named preseason All-Big 12 selections.

Streaks and Trends

Iowa State opponents have hit over .300 just 15 times in 195 matches under Johnson-Lynch.
Landwehr has 40+ assists in two of the first three matches of 2011.
Iowa State went 12-1 in three set matches in 2010. Under Johnson-Lynch, Iowa State is 76-29 in three-set matches.
Iowa State has collected 20 wins for four-consecutive years under head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. The Cyclones have had 10 20+ win seasons since 1982.

Scouting Southern Miss

This is the first meeting between USA Conference member Southern Miss and Iowa State.
The Golden Eagles return all of their starters and their libero from last season's 19-12 team.
Southern Miss is 3-0 this season, led by outside hitter Halie Ecker who is averaging 4.40 kills per set.
Senior libero Lisa Knecht is averaging 4.90 digs per set for Southern Miss.
The Golden Eagles are hitting .231 coming into Ames, having held opponents to a .073 hitting percentage.

Scouting Arizona State

Arizona State has won the only meeting between the squads, a five set match in 2007.
The opponents from the Pac-12 finished last season with a 13-18 record.
The Sun Devils are 3-1 this year and are lead by Ashley Kastl and Erica Wilson who are averaging 4.00 and 3.29 kills per set, respectively.
Both Stephanie Preach and freshman Nora Tuioti-Mariner are averaging over four digs per set for Arizona State. Preach leads the team with an average of 4.86 while Tuioti-Mariner is sitting at 4.00 digs per set.

Scouting Iowa

Iowa State defeated the Hawkeyes in straight sets last season and has swept the rivals from the Big 10 in three of the last four years.
The Cyclones have won the last six meetings between the teams.
The Hawkeyes, with a 1-2 record in opening weekend, have a balanced attack this season with no player averaging more than 2.30 kills per set, led by Alex Lovell.
Bethany Yeager leads the squad with 4.00 digs per set.
Senior middle blocker Mallory Husz is a force at the net, picking up 12 block assists and one solo block last weekend.

Players Mentioned

Kristen Hahn

Kristen Hahn

Carly Jenson

Carly Jenson

Alison Landwehr

Alison Landwehr

Caitlin Mahoney

Caitlin Mahoney

Ashley Mass

Jamie Straube

Jamie Straube

Hannah Willms

Hannah Willms

Sponsors

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