Iowa State faced possibly its toughest competition of the spring season Saturday in an afternoon matchup with Illinois, who was the runner-up in last year’s NCAA tournament.

The Cyclones swept the Illini 3-0 before losing the last game 25-23 (both teams were guaranteed at least four games). ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch said the result was leaps and bounds better than what she saw when the team faced Creighton and North Dakota State last weekend.

“Everybody just played at a whole other level than where they were last weekend,” Johnson-Lynch said. “We really looked like a completely different team, I thought.”

Johnson-Lynch said she was happy with how every player did and also said Victoria Hurtt and Rachel Hockaday handled a tall task ahead of them, both literally and figuratively.

“One of Illinois’ right side blockers at 6 feet 5 inches, she’s a great blocker; I thought they did a great job hitting against her,” Johnson-Lynch said. “Just really good decisions all day and they had to take a lot of swings and they had to do it against a good block, so [I’m] very pleased with how they hit all day.”

Sophomore Hurtt led the team with 16 kills and senior Hockaday added 13. Libero Kristen Hahn led the team in digs with 25.

Earlier in the week, middle blocker Jamie Straube said blocking was one area she has been focusing on this spring. After having a pair of solo blocks against Creighton last weekend, she picked up right where she left off and led the team with five total blocks Saturday.

The game also serves as a precursor to when the teams will meet again in the fall once the regular season starts. Once that game rolls around, it will count for something more than just increased competition. Johnson-Lynch said Saturday’s game is something they will definitely look back on a few months down the road.

“It just gives you the confidence that we went up against really almost their starting lineup and played great, so I think that’s something we’ll talk about next fall,” she said.

Junior Tenisha Matlock sat out with a knee injury, but Johnson-Lynch said she would be fine for the following weekend. 

The Cyclones continue their spring season April 12 against former Big 12 opponent Missouri. This time, the teams will meet in Centerville, Iowa, for a 5 p.m. first serve.