After taking its first day off in nearly a month and a half, a rejuvenated ISU volleyball team will lace up again this weekend in a conference match against Baylor.

While Iowa State owns a four-match winning streak against the Bears, the Cyclones are expecting to see a completely different team than in years past.

“They return everyone from last year,” said coach Christy Johnson. “You can see it over the last couple of years that they have had a lot of talent but were young. Now they’re more of a veteran team and we expect them to be very athletic and competitive.”

Baylor has been the surprise of the Big 12 so far this season, as they are off to one the best starts in school history after being ranked eighth in the preseason Big 12 poll.

Their blazing start includes a 9-0 record at home in Waco, where they have swept six opponents 3-0 and dropped only four sets all season. Iowa State (10-7, 2-4 Big 12) has not dropped a set to Baylor (12-4, 4-2) in its last two appearances at the Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas.

The Bears are led by preseason all-Big 12 selection Anna Breyfogle, a junior middle blocker that leads the team in hitting percentage with 0.350 and blocks per set at 1.70, numbers that put her sixth and first in the conference for those categories, respectively. Breyfogle was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week last week for the fourth time in her career after tallying 10 kills and 10 blocks against Oklahoma.

Junior setter Taylor Barnes brings a unique dimension to the Baylor offense, as she is predominantly left-handed, giving her the ability to turn and attack a pass rather than set it away to one of her hitters. Barnes, along with Iowa State setter Kaylee Manns, was one of two setters named to the all-Big 12 preseason team. She is currently fourth in the conference in assists per set (10.11) and ranks first in aces per set (0.43), while Breyfogle is tied with Texas’ Ashley Engle for second (0.42).

“You definitely have to spend some time preparing for someone like that,” said Johnson. “For about every team we play, that’s not something we have to worry about, but with her it’s like they have a sixth attacker, so if a pass is reasonably high or close to the net we have to be ready to block her.”

The Cyclones are coming off what could be considered their most impressive performance of the year, snapping a four-match losing streak with a 3-0 (25-16, 26-24, 25-14) win against Oklahoma at home. Iowa State had its best hitting performance of its young conference season by hitting at a 0.396 clip, and holding the Sooner offense to a dismal 0.086.

“I was pleased because it took some pressure off of us,” said Johnson. “We were starting to get anxious and were wondering if we were playing as well as we could be, and it was nice to get a win, but now we have to make sure we start consistently playing like we did Saturday.”

Thanks to a scheduling break this week, the Cyclones did not play on Wednesday night. They are hoping to take advantage of their rested minds and bodies against Baylor, who had to deal with No. 3 Texas on the road Wednesday. The Bears dropped the match 3-0 while the Cyclones were resting comfortably in Ames.

“It’s nice to be able to relax,” said freshman Rachel Hockaday. “Having no match and a day off of practice gives us time to catch up on things, then we can get back in the gym on Thursday and Friday when we’re fresh and be ready to focus on Baylor.”

First serve between the Cyclones and Bears is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon.