Comparing the ISU volleyball team’s middle blockers is a difficult task.

Showing how vital junior transfer Jen Malcom and sophomore Diane Kieger have been to the Cyclones’ recent success, however, is much easier.

Malcom is smaller, at 6-foot-1-inch, but makes up for it with her quickness and athleticism. Kieger is a more imposing presence for opponents, at 6-foot-4-inches.

Malcom played her freshman and sophomore seasons at Syracuse, appearing in all but two games before sitting out last season because of NCAA transfer rules, while Kieger appeared in 11 matches for Iowa State in 2006.

Together, the pair has helped put up a wall at the net that has shut down the opposition’s hitting attacks during Iowa State’s current seven-game winning streak. Malcom, going into Saturday’s match with Texas A&M, was rated first in the Big 12 and fifth in the nation in blocks per game with 1.67. Kieger was rated fourth in the conference with 1.4.

Coach Christy Johnson said having two middle blockers with very different talents makes it much easier to utilize their talents and match them up with different opponents and teammates.

“Kieger hits the slide really well, and, at 6-foot-4, she makes hitters on the other side think about their shot,” Johnson said. “Malcom has very quick feet, so if you are the other blocker, you have to watch her, because she can appear at different spots along the net before you know it.

“If we know what other teams’ weaknesses are, we can use our middles to exploit those weaknesses.”

Kieger said that, depending on what the other team does, she and Malcom give the team two different ways to adjust to it.

“We can match up against the other teams well,” Kieger said. “Depending on what the other team sets up in, we can base how we play off of them.”

Malcom is third on the team with 100 kills and a .322 hitting percentage. She notched a career-high 12 kills against Texas A&M – her fourth double-digit game in kills in just 12 games. Kieger leads the team with 11 service aces, is fifth on the team in kills, with 76, and has a hitting percentage of .213.

Sophomore setter Kaylee Manns said knowing the tendencies of the two players makes the team successful.

“Diane is a bigger middle, so blocking with her is completely different,” Manns said.

“Jen gets up really quick and is good at hitting in front of me.”

Kieger and Malcom even switched roles on the court in Saturday night’s sweep of the 25th-ranked Aggies and were just as successful.

“We worked on it a lot in practice,” Malcom said. “Christy [Johnson] was saying we’re comfortable with me at either M1 or M2 [positions], and the same with Kieger, so it’s whatever situation they need us in.”

Kieger and Malcom are just as different off the court as they are on it.

Johnson said Kieger is more reserved and quiet, while Malcom is more outgoing and talkative.

“We have 14 different personalities, and that is normal,” Johnson said. “The team loves both of them and they meld well with everyone on the team.

“They’re a huge part of this team and their differences kind of make you appreciate both of them.”

Malcom said the two players have developed a good relationship from playing together.

“We both came in the same year because I transferred,” Malcom said. “Diane, when she came in, was kind of shy. We kind of loosened her up, though, and, during the spring season, we got to be really good friends.”