ISU volleyball team competing for points in Cy-Hawk series
August 24, 2006
The first chance for Iowa State to keep its hold on the Hy-Vee Cy-Hawk Series championship comes this weekend in Iowa City.
The ISU volleyball team is set to play in its first competition of the year, and against two intrastate rivals.
After a 4:30 p.m. Friday match against Chicago State and a noon pairing against Drake on Saturday, the last match of the tournament pits the Cyclones against the Hawkeyes at 7:30 p.m.
“This is definitely a special tournament for us, especially since we competed with UNI last year and that was a huge win,” said senior Jessica Klein. “These are the other two Iowa teams, and if we could take them, it would be really exciting.”
This is the first time volleyball will be included in the scoring for the Cy-Hawk Series championship. It is also the first time the teams have met across the net since 2003, when Iowa State defeated Iowa in four games.
FASTTRAK
Volleyball Schedule 2006:
>> Hawkeye Challenge
4:30 p.m. Friday – Chicago State – at Iowa City
Noon Saturday – Drake – at Iowa City
7 p.m. Saturday – Iowa – at Iowa City
>> 6:30 p.m. Aug. 30 – Northern Iowa – Ames
>> Holiday Inn Irvine Classic
9 p.m. Sept. 1 – UC Irvine – at Irvine, Calif.
1 p.m. Sept. 2 – Michigan – at Irvine, Calif.
6:30 p.m. Sept. 2 – San Diego – at Irvine, Calif.
>> 6:30 p.m. Sept. 6 – UMKC – Ames
>> Cyclone Classic
6:30 p.m. Sept. 8 – Valparaiso – Ames
4 p.m. Sept. 9 – South Dakota State – Ames
6:30 p.m. Sept. 16 – Baylor – Ames
>> 7 p.m. Sept. 20 – Nebraska – at Lincoln, Neb.
>> 6:30 p.m. Sept. 23 – Oklahoma – Ames
>> 7 p.m. Sept. 27 – Kansas State – at Manhattan, Kan.
>> 7 p.m. Sept. 30 – Kansas – at Lawrence, Kan.
>> 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3 – Texas – Ames
>> 6:30 p.m. Oct. 7 – Missouri – Ames
>> 8 p.m. Oct. 11 – Colorado – at Boulder, Colo.
>> 7 p.m. Oct. 14 – Texas Tech – at Lubbock
, Texas
>> 6:30 p.m. Oct. 18 – Texas A&M – Ames
>> 7 p.m. Oct. 21 – Baylor – at Waco, Texas
>> 6:30 p.m. Oct. 25 – Kansas State – Ames
>> 6:30 p.m. Nov. 1 – Missouri – at Columbia, Mo.
>> 6:30 p.m. Nov. 4 – Kansas – Ames
>> 6:30 p.m. Nov. 8 – Nebraska – Ames
>> 2 p.m. Nov. 12 – Texas A&M – at College Station, Texas
>> 5 p.m. Nov. 15 – Texas Tech – Ames
>> 6:30 p.m. Nov. 18 – Texas – at Austin, Texas
>> 7 p.m. Nov. 22 – Oklahoma – at Norman, Okla.
>> 2 p.m. Nov. 25 – Colorado – Ames
>> NCAA First/Second Rounds
Nov. 30 – Dec. 3
>> NCAA Regionals
Dec. 7 – Dec. 10
>> NCAA Championship
Dec. 14 – Dec. 16
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The tides have changed since that last meeting, as both teams have turned around their programs and are looking to increase the competition.
“We haven’t seen Iowa for awhile, and we don’t know much about them, but they are an improved team,” said coach Christy Johnson. “It will be hard to know what kind of personality they have because it’s the first match for everybody.”
Iowa finished its 2005 campaign with a 14-19 overall record and a 4-16 mark in the Big Ten.
Senior Katie Jessen said the Cyclones will play well against their rivals with a combination of low offensive errors and playing their own game.
“We have a good structure and good defensive efforts, and that should help us be successful,” she said.
Johnson said she has confidence in her offensive lineup.
“We return all our hitters, so I’m not too worried about what they can accomplish,” she said. “I just want to make sure we are passing well and playing the defensive playing card.
“We need to take care of our side of the net and then make adjustments to what they throw at us.”
Many of the veteran ISU players will see two familiar faces across the court in Saturday’s match. Drake head coach Amy Farber Knowles served as associate head coach from 2003-04 under then-head coach Linda Crum.
Former ISU standout Brittany Dalager joined the Drake volleyball staff this summer as assistant coach.
Iowa State countered Drake in several matches in the spring, and Johnson said that the Bulldogs have been prospering under their new direction.
“Drake is a building program, and they hustle, play very hard and play very good defense,” she said. “We have to keep up the speed of our game; we don’t want to get out-worked or out-hustled.
Klein said the weekend’s matches won’t be easy, but will be an exciting and competitive way to begin the season.
