Iowa State Takes Down No. 5 Texas

AMES, Iowa – Hilton Magic struck again, as Iowa State rallied to defeat No. 5 Texas in five sets, 3-2 (23-25, 25-21, 20-25, 25-21, 15-11) Saturday night in front of 3,187 at Hilton Coliseum. The win, Iowa State's sixth in a row, first over a ranked team in 2016 and first over Texas since 2012, moves the Cyclones to 16-9 on the year and 8-5 in Big 12 play. Texas is now 19-4, and falls to second in the Big 12 at 11-2 in league play.

The Iowa State offense powered down 70 kills, led by a career-best 16 from Samara West at a .400 hitting percentage. Also joining West in double figures was Jess Schaben with 15 and 12 each from Morgan Kuhrt and Grace Lazard. Hali Hillegas paced a Cyclone defense that recorded 88 digs with 26 of her own, while Schaben finished with a double-double with 18 digs. Suzanne Horner also had a double-double of 29 assists and a career-best 15 digs.

Cyclones Lose Lead Late to Longhorns
Iowa State was in command for most of the first set, with Jess Schaben being the primary pacer of the offense. The Cyclones were ahead by as many as four at 12-8 before Texas pulled it back to 13-13. The Cyclones and Longhorns exchanged the lead five times in the first, but ISU looked home free at 22-20 after a UT attack error. However, it was the Horns who reached set point first at 24-22, which they converted with a Micaya White kill at 25-23.

Dominant Offense Bounces Back to Take Second Set
Texas enjoyed an early lead, with a pair of 3-0 run keeping the visitors in front. However, Christy Johnson-Lynch made a strategic decision to move Genesis Miranda into Ciara Capezio's front row position. The move paid dividends immediately, as Miranda helped spark the Cyclones back ahead at 10-9, and by as many as five points at 18-13. The Longhorns hung tough, fighting back to two at 18-16, but the Cyclones had another urn in them to get the lead back to 23-17. Iowa State tied the match when Autumn Rounsaville's serve went into the net.

Texas Powers Way to 2-1 Lead
The Longhorns got in control early, with Paulina Prieto Cerame putting UT ahead at 7-6, and the Horns not looking back. UT used a few 3-0 runs to help build the gap up to five points at 16-11. ISU got a 3-0 run to cut that Texas advantage back to two at 16-14, but UT fought back, with its offense hitting .415 on the frame, and Prieto Cerame posting six kills. Texas got ahead 2-1 when Suzanne Horner sent a serve long.

Iowa State Scraps to Fifth Set
The passion on the court and in the stands was everywhere in set four. Both teams and coaching staffs wanted every point and let it show. Iowa State went on a 4-0 run via Miranda's serve to get ahead 12-9. UT cut it back to one at 12-11, but Alexis Conaway went behind the service line and fired a 7-0 run to put Iowa State ahead at 19-11. From there, the Longhorns were able to pull ISU back in, bringing the Cyclone lead down to three at 22-19, but Iowa State did what they needed to force a fifth, which happened when Morgan Johnson misfired on a serve to make it 25-21 Cyclones.

ISU All the Way in Set Five
Reflecting on the Cyclones' loss in Austin back on Oct. 8 in five sets, the value of not falling in a big hole early becomes apparent. This time, it was the Cyclones who made sure they were ahead. Lazard got a kill to make it 4-3 ISU, starting a 3-0 run to give the Cyclones a 6-3 advantage. The home team led at the switch at 8-4, and ISU got it to five when Miranda recorded another kill. Ebony Nwanebu fired a service error to bring up match point, which ISU earned when Texas' White was called in the net on an attack at 15-11.

Cyclone Notes
*Iowa State snapped a seven-match losing streak to Texas. This was ISU's first win over UT since 2012, fifth all-time over Texas, four of which have come under head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch.
*ISU has now defeated a ranked team in all 12 of Johnson-Lynch's seasons as head coach.
*Morgan Kuhrt posted 12 kills, her sixth match of the season in double figures and 31st of her career.
*Samara West had a career-high 16 kills, her previous high was 14 against North Dakota last year. It was her eighth match of the season in double figures and 15th of her career.
*Grace Lazard's 12 kills marks her seventh match of the season in double figures. All seven have come in Big 12 play.
*Jess Schaben had a double-double of 15 kills and 18 digs, her seventh double-double of the season.
*Hali Hillegas led ISU with 26 digs, her 14th-straight match in double figures and sixth with at least 20 digs.
*Suzanne Horner had a double-double of 29 assists and 15 digs, her fourth double-double of the season and 13th of her career.

Up Next
Iowa State will have a bye in the mid-week, and will be back in action next Saturday at No. 4 Kansas. The time for the match is still yet to be announced.

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Team Stats

Samara West

Jess Schaben

Morgan Kuhrt

Grace Lazard

Players Mentioned

Ciara Capezio

Alexis Conaway

Hali Hillegas

Suzanne Horner

Morgan Kuhrt

Grace Lazard

Genesis Miranda

Jess Schaben

Samara West

Players Mentioned

Ciara Capezio

Alexis Conaway

Hali Hillegas

Suzanne Horner

Morgan Kuhrt

Grace Lazard

Genesis Miranda

Jess Schaben

Samara West

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics