Prior to the start of the season, ISU volleyball coach Christy Johnson-Lynch got together with her staff to lay out plans for the bye weeks.

Initially, the plan was to take the September and November bye weeks and handle them like swimming or running coaches handle a “taper” week, with a decreased workload due to the lack of competition.

However, after the team started out on a rougher note than expected, Johnson-Lynch admits it wasn’t much different than any other week.

“The first time we had our taper week, back in September, I did not handle it well,” Johnson-Lynch said laughing. “I don’t think I really gave them a taper week, so this time I’m trying to handle it a little bit better, let go a little bit.”

The difference between this week and September’s taper week is Johnson-Lynch told the players if they worked hard last week, they would get their much-needed break this time.

Senior middle blocker Jamie Straube said the added motivation helped the team sweep Texas Tech and South Dakota State to bring its winning streak to five.

“Last week we just had to take care of business,” Straube said. “Knowing that going into it made us work really hard last week, just knowing ‘push through until the weekend and then we’ll have some time to relax.’”

With no matches during the week, the team wasted no time in winding down on Monday, with a team yoga session at a studio in town. Practice on Tuesday was much lighter than normal as well, and the Cyclones (15-7, 8-3 Big 12) got back into gear on Wednesday for their road bout with Oklahoma (19-8, 8-4) on Saturday.

Iowa State knows the big question now will be how they play on Saturday and the rest of the season without any competition this week. Following the October bye week earlier this season, Iowa State lost in five sets to Texas on the road.

“After that game, Kristen [Hahn] was like ‘OK everyone, remember this feeling and you won’t want to feel it again,’ so that really will work as motivation I think,” said outside hitter Mackenzie Bigbee. “Coming into this week before the game, we can just remind ourselves, ‘You know what it felt like after Texas, so let’s not let that happen again.’”

At this point in the season, the Cyclones are getting their second meeting with the conference foes they faced earlier on. Two of the team’s three conference losses are to teams it will face during the next two weeks.

“Our first half of the season, we had some really tough games playing great teams on the road,” Straube said. “Now I feel like we’re playing really well and we have a second chance at those teams at home, which is huge for us.”

More than anything, Johnson-Lynch said she just doesn’t want to see the team go back to where it was at the beginning of the season.

With Oklahoma on Saturday in Norman, Okla., her team will begin its final stretch before the NCAA tournament begins.

No. 3 Texas and No. 17 Kansas State will not provide easy tasks for the Cyclones, but if they can continue the progress they’ve made, Johnson-Lynch believes they will have the best chance to win.

“No matter what happens over the next few weeks, we’ve got to maintain that even, calm demeanor,” Johnson-Lynch said. “I think that’s when we play our best and not revert back to that tentative play, that stress play that we had when we were a little bit up and down.”

Saturday’s afternoon matchup with Oklahoma is scheduled for noon.