For much of the early season, the ISU volleyball team has preached defense, and that philosophy played a large role in its first Big 12 match of the season.

No. 19 Iowa State (7-4, 1-0 Big 12) kicked off Big 12 play with a victory against Baylor (13-3, 0-1) in four sets (25-15, 25-20, 23-25, 25-17) Saturday evening. In its first conference match of the season, the team got creative on defense.

“We’ve been switching up our defenses a lot, and people are playing in new positions and new angles,” said libero Kristen Hahn. “Christy [Johnson-Lynch, ISU coach,] has been trying to get the ball more to us in the back row or me wherever I’m at.”

That method paid off against Baylor as Hahn collected 25 digs — an average of 6.25 digs per set. Last season, Hahn averaged 5.44 digs per set on her way to winning Big 12 Libero of the Year.

Hahn’s average had dipped down to 4.63 digs per set this season through 10 matches. In the team’s first conference match, Johnson-Lynch played the junior in several positions.

“We have been really moving her around a lot. We’ve basically put her wherever we think the attack is going to go,” Johnson-Lynch said. “She is just so good and so quick defensively; we’re trying to give her as much responsibility as we possibly can.”

The Cyclones hit .633 in the first set of the night for a decisive match-opening victory, also winning the second set. But for the fourth consecutive match — and the sixth time in 11 total matches this season — Iowa State lost the third set.

“We’ve been a little slow after game two with that intermission,” Johnson-Lynch said. “We have not had good starts in game three, so maybe that’s something we need to simulate in practice.”

With the help of five kills from outside hitter Victoria Hurtt in the fourth set, however, the Cyclones were able to capture a Big 12 opening 3-1 victory.

“It was nice to see Hurtt have a big night,” Johnson-Lynch said. “She seems to be gaining confidence over the last week, so that’s been great to see.”

Hurtt had 14 total kills on the night for a .444 hitting percentage, while right side Mackenzie Bigbee contributed a match-high 18 kills of her own. The percentage for Hurtt was the best of the early season.

“There was a ball I thought she could have gotten to, and she didn’t and gave them an easy ball,” Johnson-Lynch said of Hurtt. “We challenged her: ‘I want you to hit that ball; I want you to hit that ball,’ and then at the end, she did.”

Those tips helped Hurtt make adjustments and close out the team’s first conference victory.

“It encourages me, and it forces me to play better because they’re telling me: ‘You need to do this right, and this, this and this,’” Hurtt said. “And then I can bring that in and start playing better.”