IOWA CITY — The annual in-state rivalry began with a kill from ISU sophomore middle blocker Jamie Straube, and it ended just an hour and 15 minutes later as the Cyclones made quick work of the Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena (25-15, 25-12, 25-14).

It was the sixth straight win for the Cyclones over the Hawkeyes as the all-time Cy-Hawk series in volleyball is now 22-21 in favor of Iowa State. With the win, Iowa State (7-1) not only picks up its seventh consecutive victory on the season but also earns the first victory for Iowa State in the seventh annual Hy-Vee Cy-Hawk series.

“We were definitely ready to play,” said coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. “Our team was very fired up and we wanted to kick off the Cy-Hawk series in a good way, so they were pretty pumped to play tonight.”

After the match started at 10-10 in the first set, ISU senior outside hitter Victoria Henson took over with seven kills on a .538 clip and no errors. The Cyclones rode that momentum to a 25-15 victory in the first set and a 4-0 lead into the second set. That would be the closest the Hawkeyes would get in the second set as Straube and Henson swung for four kills apiece in the Cyclones 25-12 win in the second. Both teams came out a bit slow in the third with five errors in the first 11 points, but with the score at 9-8 the Cyclones rattled off seven straight points to gain enough momentum for a 25-14 victory in the third and final set.

The 11th-ranked Cyclones continued their offensive success by hitting .326 as a team, the identical hitting percentage that the team had compiled over their previous five matches. Leading Iowa State in kills for the seventh time this season was Henson, who finished with 12 kills and no errors on a .545 clip. Through non-conference play, Henson leads the Big 12 with 4.19 kills per set.

“She’s kind of got the magic touch right now. It seems like everything she touches it turns into a kill,” Johnson-Lynch said of Henson. “It doesn’t matter if the set is good or bad, eight feet off or up-tight; she is just doing such a great job of getting her feet to the ball, making great attack decisions and terminating. I think she’s one of the best in the country at that right now.”

Also standing out on offense for the Cyclones were Straube and right-side hitter Kelsey Petersen, who both hit .500 clips and ended with nine and six kills. Sophomore setter Alison Landwehr compiled 29 assists in the three-set match, and junior Carly Jenson led all Cyclones with 10 digs.

As a team, Iowa State is hitting .303 on the year and holding opponents to a mere .129; both percentages are second-best in the Big 12. The Hawkeyes were led by Mallory Husz with eight kills but couldn’t muster up much else offensively as they hit for a season-low -.049.

The Cyclones also overpowered the Hawkeyes at the net with 11 total team blocks to only one for the Hawkeye hitters. With only one solo block amongst those 11 blocks, Johnson-Lynch has seen improvement with her team blocking as a unit.

“We’ve improved our blocking numbers by a ton, which was a number that was concerning me at the beginning of the season, and now I feel a lot better about it,” Johnson-Lynch said.

Straube leads the Cyclones with 34 blocks on the season. Straube, an All-Big 12 Freshman Team honoree last season, is also sixth in the conference in blocks as the team begins the conference schedule.

“[Friday’s match was] our first big road game since Omaha, so it was really good just to come in here play well, end the preseason well and get a good start going into the Big 12,” Straube said.

Adjusting to a new home venue, a season-ending injury to Rachel Hockaday and a new setter in Landwehr, Johnson-Lynch believes her team has overcome its early-season adversity and is prepared for Big 12 play.

“Throughout the preseason we just wanted to make sure we were comfortable and ready to go for the Big 12, and I think that’s where we are at,” Johnson-Lynch said.

Following the weekend off, the Cyclones will begin to prepare for the Big 12 Conference schedule. The Big 12 season will begin Wednesday when the No. 7 Nebraska Cornhuskers will come into Ames High for a showdown of two top 15 programs. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the match will be televised on ESPNU.