When outside hitter Victoria Hurtt recorded the final kill for the ISU volleyball team against Kansas, she was excited and ready for the match to conclude.

No. 22 Iowa State was able to hold off No. 17 Kansas in four sets (25-22, 25-21, 27-29, 25-23) on Wednesday night at Hilton Coliseum.

The Jayhawks (19-4, 7-2 Big 12) defeated the Cyclones (12-7, 6-3 Big 12) 3-2 in Lawrence, Kan., on Sept. 26.

In addition to her match-winning kill, Hurtt led the ISU offense in kills with 17 as well as getting two block assists.

Hurtt’s hitting percentage was relatively low (.186) but ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch believes it was because the Jayhawk defense was able to key in more on getting blocks when the ball was being fed to Hurtt.

“Throughout most of the match she was clutch,” Johnson-Lynch said of Hurtt in the win. “She’s the one who got us out of some trouble and got us out of some tough situations and had some key kills at the end of the game.

“I think we all feel that if we need to have a kill, we’re probably going to Victoria Hurtt. She’s very good at handling pressure at critical points.”

Hurtt feels that getting the win against Kansas was the “right” way to start off the second half of the Big 12 season and that it was a big win to start off the portion of the schedule strong in order to finish that way as well.

“The thing is just keep fighting and being aggressive and not worrying about who’s across the court but playing our game every single time,” Hurtt said about the upcoming teams the Cyclones will face in the Big 12.

For outside hitter Rachel Hockaday, the latter match against Kansas was a “huge win” with Kansas being somewhat of a surprise team in the Big 12 near the top of the league standings.

While Hockaday feels that the team played somewhat sloppy in the win, “a win is a win” and there is a new mentality the Cyclones will carry with them during the remainder of the season.

“I feel like at the beginning, there’s a lot of new faces,” Hockaday said of the change in attitude. “I think now, everyone has sort of found their identity and everyone kind of knows their role. I think now, we’re playing a lot more like a team.”

While the match felt somewhat similar to when the teams met in Lawrence, Johnson-Lynch said her squad has improved quite a bit giving the Cyclones confidence going forward.

“It felt similar, but we are a much better team than we were a month ago so it is a new start,” Johnson-Lynch said. “Our goal is to be better second round than first round; we’re off to a good start with that.”