After a lethargic start against a below-average team, the ISU volleyball team did what it needed to walk away with a victory against Texas Tech.

The Cyclones (13-8, 7-4 Big 12) fought their way through a first game in which they didn’t bring their “A” game, but came back strong in games two and three to sweep the Lady Raiders (7-14, 1-11 Big 12) 3-0 (34-32, 30-14, 30-24) in front of a crowd of 870.

Coach Christy Johnson, who picked up her 50th win at Iowa State, said the rocky game-one start may have been due to the team finding out that Texas Tech’s starting setter, Emily Ziegler, was injured.

“We might have taken a little breath and not been as ready to play as we should have been,” Johnson said. “Game one was a wake-up call – whether it’s their starting setter or their backup setter, you still have to come ready to play.”

The Cyclones showed a balanced hitting attack throughout the match, led by 15 kills from senior right-side hitter Lauren Cummings. Senior middle blocker Erin Boeve and freshman outside hitter Victoria Henson also had double figures with 12 and 11 kills, respectively. Sophomore setter Kaylee Manns dished out 46 assists.

Manns said being able to work the ball around when teams are trying to shut down Boeve is very important.

“It is really helpful to start getting our outsides going,” Manns said. “We can’t just rely on one hitter – we all have to do our job.”

After most of an opening game where Iowa State just could not pull away, Henson gave the Cyclones a late 33-32 lead. Boeve then forced an error with an aggressive serve to finish a longer-than-normal game one.

The Cyclones showcased their balance at the beginning of game two, building a 6-0 lead on six kills from four different players. Iowa State rode that momentum to an easy 30-15 victory, where they hit .419 to the Lady Raiders’ -.034.

Iowa State opened game three looking strong as well, winning the first four points and continually stretching their lead with aggressive serving to win, 30-24. The Cyclones picked up two aces each from junior Amy Vos and freshman Ashley Mass, who also had 19 digs, to help secure the victory.

Boeve said getting the opposing setter off the net with the serve is vital in every match, and that this was a big help against the Lady Raiders.

“Getting that setter off the net just decreases their options,” Boeve said. “That really helps us, as blockers, to know where to go.”

In game three, Johnson was able to go to her bench a little bit more than usual when the Cyclones built a considerable lead.

“It’s nice, when you do get a little bit of spread in the score, to give some other players a try and see what they can do out there,” Johnson said. “We’re always looking for depth, and I think everyone that went in tonight did a really good job.”

The Cyclones return to the court Saturday against the 15th-ranked Kansas State Wildcats in Manhattan, Kan., at 6:30 p.m.