ISU Reverse Sweeps No. 23 Utah

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Iowa State (11-1, 1-0 Big 12) reverse swept No. 23 Utah (8-4, 0-1 Big 12) on the Utes' home court to begin the Big 12 schedule strong. It's ISU's first win over Utah since 1995.

Christy Johnson-Lynch notches the 45th win of her career over a ranked opponent, while it is the 17th ranked win in program history as the visitor. Johnson-Lynch moves to 15-6 in Big 12 openers.

After keeping it close but falling behind 2-0 in the match, ISU fought back taking the next three to pull off the reverse sweep. Set scores on the night were 22-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-16, 15-13.

Big 12 Rookie of the Week Alea Goolsby put up a career-high tying 24 kills at .316 hitting, the second of her career with over 20. She had her fifth match in a row hitting 10-plus kills, while bringing in her third total double-double with 11 digs.

Maya Duckworth moved up the all-time ISU ranks to No. 15 with 953 career kills, hitting 13 at an efficient .370 in the match. Tierney Jackson also hit 10-plus with 12 at .435.

Rachel Van Gorp had match No. 17 in a row with 10-plus digs, totaling 13. Nayeli Ti'a also showed her defense with 13 digs.

SET ONE
Iowa State took a timeout after falling behind 12-7, and Goolsby responded with her third kill right after. Utah continued to hold the momentum, finding its largest lead of eight (17-9) as ISU called its final timeout of the set. Utah reached 20 as ISU held 12, but the Cyclones followed with a 5-1 run. The Cyclones hit another run as ISU fought off five set points, but Utah prevailed in the opening frame 25-22.

SET TWO

ISU took its first lead at 7-6 after a Ti'a ace, and a back-and-fourth battle followed. Five ties came next, before a 4-0 Utah run made it 14-11. ISU came back knotting things up at 15 after Goolsby went back-to-back with kills and entered double figures. The Cyclones then won the race to 20 (20-19) as Ti'a laid down a kill and a Ute timeout came next. Utah took the lead for good out of the timeout, matching the first set score of 25-22.

SET THREE

Duckworth and Pam McCune sent the ball back to give Iowa State an early 4-3 lead, and another block by Goolsby and Hendricks-Walker made it 6-5, ISU. Goolsby continued to send kills to the floor, notching her 16th at .371 hitting as ISU went up 14-10. ISU then made it 22-20 as Duckworth collected her ninth kill, and set point was reached on a Jackson kill as the run continued. A 40-second rally broke out featuring crucial saves by Van Gorp, with ISU coming out victorious on a Hendricks-Walker kill.

SET FOUR

McCune fired off an ace to put the Cyclones up 4-1, and Duckworth and Jackson followed joining Goolsby in double figures to stay up at 9-7. ISU was the first to 15 (15-13), hitting the media timeout on yet another Hendricks-Walker kill. A 4-0 ISU run brought things to 19-15 after a Van Gorp ace, and out of the Utah timeout the Cyclones kept rolling stretching it to eight as ISU put up the block. The Cyclones kept control, extending the match to a fifth after a block by McCune and Duckworth (25-16).

SET FIVE

The fifth began with five ties up to 6-6, and Goolsby delivered her 22nd kill next. ISU held the lead of 8-6 as the teams switched sides and kept it at 10-8 after a clutch Duckworth kill. ISU forced a Utah timeout after a block by Jackson and Hendricks-Walker (12-9), and the visitors pressed on reaching match point on a block at 14-11. Utah fought it off twice, but the Cyclones came out victorious 15-13.
NEXT UP

The Cyclones continue their Utah road trip meeting No.14 BYU Saturday at 1 p.m. CT.

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Team Stats

Alea Goolsby

Maya Duckworth

Tierney Jackson

Amiree Hendricks-Walker

Players Mentioned

Maya Duckworth

Alea Goolsby

Tierney Jackson

Pam McCune

Nayeli Ti'a

Rachel Van Gorp

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics