The ISU volleyball squad put up a valiant fight Saturday in Lincoln, but No. 4 aggressor Nebraska was too skilled to handle, and the Cyclones dropped straight sets of 30-16, 30-21 and 30-19 before a crowd of 7,276.

The Huskers had a 14-1 record heading into the match. Iowa State’s record now drops to 8-10 overall, 1-9 in the Big 12 after its eighth straight conference loss.

“We just had to compete against a much bigger and more physical team than us,” said associate head coach Amy Farber Knowles. “They are a great team, but I’m proud of how we went in and didn’t fold against them.”

The Cyclones were held to a .030 hitting percentage, their lowest of the year, while Nebraska blazed through the games at a .289 clip. Iowa State’s 29 kills weren’t enough to match the Huskers’ thundering 54 smashes.

“They put up a huge block, and it was hard for us to attack or hit around,” said junior setter Amanda Craig. “In the second and third games, we did well and even had a couple of leads, but when we hit halfway through, we stopped pushing, and they just took over.”

Craig notched her fourth straight double-double with 26 assists and 14 digs, scrolling her season total to 10.

Erin Boeve was the go-to player for the Cyclones as she tallied 13 kills on the night, tying her season and career highs in the category.

“Erin did a phenomenal job for us in her first time against Nebraska. Facing them, she wasn’t intimidated at all, and I was proud of her for getting the job done,” Knowles said.

Knowles said despite Iowa State’s shortcomings against the Huskers, there were some things the team executed very well.

“Our outside hitters did a good job of hitting high off Nebraska’s hands on the block,” she said. “We also put in some back-row attacks, and we were very successful using that avenue.”

Knowles also highlighted the play of junior hitter Ashlie McWee, who put up some blocks of her own in the third game. She also said the team did well in terms of its aggressive serving in attempts to throw Nebraska out of its system.

The Huskers were led by freshman Tracy Stalls, who had a career-high 14 kills on 17 attempts.

Despite the tough loss, the Cyclones said they played their best and accomplished a lot during the match.

“We were prepared, and we knew they were good, and they proved themselves exactly like we knew they would,” Craig said. “We played well, but they just played better. They played like a ranked team.”