The ISU volleyball team will host a tournament for the third time in coach Christy Johnson’s four years at Iowa State when three teams come to Hilton Coliseum this weekend.

The ISU Tournament will feature the host Cyclones, as well as Iowa, Drake and Xavier. After starting off the season with seven straight away games, Iowa State has a chance to make a three-match, two-day run on their home court.

It is expected to be a tough weekend for Iowa State, facing two in-state rivals and a 2007 NCAA qualifier, which was made even tougher after a loss against Northern Iowa on Wednesday.

Senior middle blocker Jen Malcom said the Cyclones’ (5-3) main focus will be forgetting about the loss and concentrating on a new start in the tournament.

“That was not Iowa State volleyball, and we just have to come out this weekend and show what Iowa State volleyball really is,” Malcom said. “Sometimes you just have off nights and we have to bounce back from them.”

Malcom, who led the nation in hitting percentage at .518 going into Wednesday night’s match, struggled mightily, hitting .154 to drop her percentage to .460 going into their match with Cy-Hawk rival Iowa on Friday. Although Malcom had an off night, Victoria Henson led the team with a career-high 27 kills.

After playing Iowa in the spring, the Cyclones know what to expect in the rivalry match against the Hawkeyes on Friday night. Iowa is 3-3 coming into the tournament, including a comeback win over Virginia and a victory over Tennessee.

Xavier, which is coming off a trip to the NCAA Tournament, will come into the tournament with a record of 3-2, while Drake brings a gaudy 7-1 record. Both Drake and Iowa have new coaches this season.

Problems serving and passing hurt the team against the Panthers, and Johnson said the Cyclones are focused on improving those aspects.

“It may seem like a boring part of the game, but it has to be done,” Johnson said. “It’s hard to win when you lose the passing match, and Northern Iowa kept the ball alive.”

Senior defensive specialist Amy Vos has yet to see the floor this season because of a shoulder injury, but Johnson said Vos should be ready to go this weekend. With Vos coming back, the Cyclones get one of their top three returning passers back.

Although Iowa State outdug Northern Iowa 60 to 48 Wednesday, Iowa State’s digs pulled setter Kaylee Manns off the net several times. As a result, their attacking game suffered and the Cyclones weren’t able to convert as well as they have previously in the season.

“Despite our passing, Victoria was still able to convert a bad pass into a kill,” Johnson said.

Having played two of their three opponents, the Cyclones know a little bit of what to expect.

“I just have to focus on moving the ball around this weekend,” Manns said. “Since we played Iowa over the summer, we know what to expect and will focus on blocking and passing.”