With the sting of being eliminated from the NCAA tournament still fresh in her mind, ISU volleyball coach Christy Johnson-Lynch had mixed feelings about this season.

Her team made history on more than one occasion, pulled out victories against seven ranked opponents and made it to a sixth regional semifinal. 

The Cyclones also played some of their worst volleyball once the NCAA tournament began. Nonetheless, Johnson-Lynch still said it was one of her best seasons yet.

“It was, for me, a tremendous season — I think one of my most enjoyable from where we started to where we finished,” Johnson-Lynch said. “[We] turned what was kind of an up and down season into something that was really great through the second half of the Big 12 and getting a bid to host and getting to the Sweet 16.”

Calling the season an up-and-down one is just the tip of the iceberg.

After losing to Florida State and Tennessee and splitting with Illinois to start the season, the Cyclones returned to Hilton for what was supposed to be some much easier competition.

That wasn’t the case, when Iowa State took five sets to beat Iowa and lost in five to Syracuse. At the time, it looked as if Johnson-Lynch’s team wouldn’t be able to compete like it had in recent years.

And that’s where the roller coaster took its first turn. No. 1 Nebraska came to town a few days later and Iowa State got its first-ever win against a No. 1 ranked opponent and first-ever win against Nebraska at home. 

“I think the way we responded to those things really says a lot about the team and why we finished so strong,” said senior Jamie Straube. “I take a lot out of just knowing we lost to Syracuse, we were so upset, but then we came back the next weekend and beat Nebraska and I think it shows a lot of character and resiliency to do that.”

Out of the team’s eight total losses, four of them came in the nonconference season.

Johnson-Lynch purposefully scheduled more competitive opponents than normal to help get her team ready, but added she was surprised they didn’t win more of them.

“I scheduled tough but I really thought we’d get a few more of those wins,” Johnson-Lynch said. “[The nonconference season] was a little bit surprising to me and I think the effect it had on me was surprising because I think it stressed me out and I passed that on to the team I think a little bit early in the season.”

The other major victory came against No. 3 Texas to end the season at home, which also helped the Cyclones secure a top-16 seed and host the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament.

As always, the seniors played a pivotal role in the success of the team this season. After being swept by No. 14 Kansas State on Oct. 3, seniors Straube, Rachel Hockaday and Alison Landwehr took matters into their own hands.

At the time even Johnson-Lynch couldn’t figure out why the team wasn’t playing well. After intermission, the seniors got together to hash things out.

Since then, the issue wasn’t a factor anymore and that’s what Johnson-Lynch said she’ll miss most.

“They were a class that again I think took us to another level,” Johnson-Lynch said. “We’re going to miss their numbers and their stats and I’m going to miss their leadership and just their character.”

Straube finished third on the team with 2.36 kills per set and third in blocking as well with 60 total. Hockaday contributed 315 digs to finish second behind Kristen Hahn’s 578. Landwehr led the Big 12 in assists with 11.93 per set.

The blocking game was an area Johnson-Lynch focused on throughout the season and she was determined to make her team successful in the area.

Match after match, Iowa State struggled to block at a consistent rate. But as the season progressed, the Cyclones slowly improved.

“Once we started just kind of letting it happen a little bit, I think we started to find it,” Straube said. “I think we just kept working at it but we didn’t force it as much as we did at the beginning of the season and just getting used to the different players.”

With the departures of Straube, Hockaday, Landwehr and Taylor Knuth, the Cyclones are left with several holes to fill all over the court. However, this year’s freshmen were ranked the No. 6 recruiting class coming into the season and offer a variety of options for Johnson-Lynch next season.

Freshmen Andie Malloy and Jenelle Hudson are both setters who can step in for Landwehr, with Malloy being more of a hitter-setter and Hudson a true setter.

Mackenzie Bigbee finished second on the team in kills behind Victoria Hurtt and will be able to help carry the offensive load next season. Then there’s defensive specialist Caitlin Nolan, who was one of five players to play in every match this season.

With the youth the team has, combined with Hahn’s record-breaking season by being named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week an unprecedented eight times and posting a 5.40 digs per set average, Straube spoke highly of the team’s potential.

“A lot of just great talent and a lot of raw talent,” Straube said. “I think this spring will be huge for the freshmen, just having that individual time to just work on things and not have the pressure of a game coming up where you can just work through stuff slowly.”

While the roller coaster ride is unloading its passengers, it doesn’t mean it won’t be ready for another go around soon.

Only time will tell if next year’s Cyclones can make their stay at the NCAA tournament longer than this year’s, but with Johnson-Lynch at the helm, it’s sure to be another exciting season.