Last week, as Iowa State moved to the top of the Big 12 standings, its defense played spectacular.

Compared to the Cyclones’ 2.22 blocks per set over the season, they have set a mark of 2.63 blocks per set in their four-set victory against No. 22 Oklahoma last Saturday.

Sophomore Tenisha Matlock in particular had a solid performance for the Cyclones (14-3, 5-1 Big 12). She upped her blocks per set average to 0.79 after having four block assists and two solo blocks against the Sooners. 

“Being thrown in the middle, I think she was a little frazzled, but every day she’s looking more and more comfortable out there,” said junior middle back Jaime Straube of Matlock. “Middle is hard to learn just coming in with no experience, but she’s stuck with it and it’s paying off for her.”

The Cyclones held their opponents to the lowest hitting percentage in the Big 12 at .160. Last week against Kansas State, they improved that number by holding the Wildcats to a .123 hitting clip and then holding Oklahoma to a .157 hitting clip. 

“We did a good job knowing what they were going to do,” said coach Christy Johnson-Lynch in a news conference on Monday. “So we held them to a pretty good percentage compared to what they’ve been hitting on the year.”

Even with the Cyclones’ defense being on point this past week, Johnson-Lynch knows they have room for improvement and that they haven’t reached their ceiling yet.

“I think we can still get a lot better. I think Straube is really doing well offensively. I think she has more blocks in her. She needs to continue to be a better blocker and have more blocks per match,” Johnson-Lynch said. “Tenisha can get so much better. We only started training her at this position at the beginning of the season.”

Hahn earns honors

Sophomore libero Kristen Hahn earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week honors for the second time this season.

Hahn averaged 6.86 digs per set last week as Iowa State swept Kansas State and defeated Oklahoma in four sets. That mark is up from Hahn’s season average of 5.64. 

During Hahn’s stretch last week and with Iowa State’s two wins, the Cyclones were able to take the lead in the Big 12 Conference standings. Hahn has had at least 20 digs in her last three matches and her mark of 35 digs is still the high for Big 12 players.

Cyclones utilize bye week

This week, the Cyclones will not have a match until they face Baylor on Saturday at Hilton Coliseum at 6:30 p.m. 

The team will also have a break after the Baylor match Saturday with its next match in College Station, Texas, against Texas A&M. The bye comes at an opportune time for the team as signs of fatigue are starting to show. 

“I think we’re in a good place. I think we’re tired,” Johnson-Lynch said. “We will enjoy this bye week, we’re going to take today off of practice and try to just rest and recover this week and next week with the bye week as well.”

Johnson-Lynch mentioned she has to push the team in moderation; there comes a time when resting is just as productive as practicing.

“After last year, I learned that as much as you want to go, go, go and keep pushing, there comes a time where more isn’t going to be better,” Johnson-Lynch said.