Iowa State volleyball comes alive in victory over TCU

Right+side+hitter+Eleanor+Holthaus+pursues+a+set+from+setter+Piper+Mauck+on+Oct.+16%2C+2019%2C+in+the+Iowa+State+vs.+TCU+game.+Iowa+State+won+3-0.

Right side hitter Eleanor Holthaus pursues a set from setter Piper Mauck on Oct. 16, 2019, in the Iowa State vs. TCU game. Iowa State won 3-0.

Megan Teske

In Iowa State volleyball’s first night of a doubleheader against TCU and last matches of the season, the Cyclones beat the Horned Frogs 3-1.

The Cyclones looked strong Friday night, handily beating the Horned Frogs in the three sets they won.

The first set of the night began close between the Cyclones and Horned Frogs, with both teams exchanging points, but Iowa State took a commanding lead after point 11. A combination of blocks and good hitting from Iowa State gave the Cyclones a comfortable lead they didn’t give up the rest of the set, winning the first one 25-14.

Set two looked different than the first set, with the Horned Frogs able to find their energy. TCU went up early on Iowa State at 7-4 and looked like it would continue to build on that lead as it went up by six late in the second, but Iowa State continued to fight back.

The Cyclones got to within two, even making TCU work harder for the final point after a Piper Mauck kill after set point to give the ball back to the Cyclones and then getting a point after that. The Horned Frogs closed it with a Katie Clark kill and won set two 25-22.

Iowa State started set three out strong, going up 6-1 on TCU early in the set. The Cyclones didn’t falter throughout the set, maintaining a strong lead from there beyond with another strong offensive showing with a strong hitting percentage of .371 and four aces. Iowa State won set three 25-15.

The fourth set once again started relatively even, with Iowa State holding a close lead over TCU. The Cyclones were able to pull away around the middle of the match, but TCU brought it back to within two.

Junior outside hitter Brooke Andersen put a stop to TCU getting any closer with a pair of kills and the Cyclones were back up again by four. Iowa State was able to take the rest of the fourth set away with another strong offensive performance and more good blocking and win set four 25-17.

In what seemed to be a rare case this season, the Cyclones had a strong offensive showing, with a total .346 hitting percentage on the night, their highest of the season, 59 kills and six aces.

Iowa State also did well on the defensive side, recording 12 total blocks and 74 digs.

TCU had a hitting percentage of .079, 38 total kills and one ace in comparison, as well as eight blocks and 50 digs.

Holthaus led in hitting percentage (minimum 10 total attacks) with a .444 percentage, with Herrera following with a .409, Hatch with a .375 and Andersen recording a .324 hitting percentage.

Andersen led the team in aces with three, while Herrera led the team in blocks with eight, followed by Mauck who blocked five.

Katie Clark led TCU in kills with 10 and blocks with five and MyKayla Myers led in hitting percentage (minimum 10 total attacks) with a .375 percentage.

Three Iowa State players also recorded double-doubles against TCU. Holthaus recorded 14 kills and 14 digs, Andersen put down 13 kills and 11 digs and senior setter Piper Mauck set up 49 assists and 13 digs.