Some very long rallies took place in the first set, with the Cyclones doing a good job of keeping the Bears from sustaining any momentum. This resulted in a battle all the way to a 17-17 tie before a couple of quick Baylor points forced an Iowa State timeout. The home side took care of business from there, winning the set 25-19.

Iowa State only hit at a .162 clip in the set compared to Baylor’s .364, and only managed to side out at a 48 percent rate.

The Cyclones built a 10-6 lead early in the second set, but they were unable to hold on. Baylor was able to stay in system and get set up around the net much earlier than Iowa State, resulting in some blocks that shifted the momentum. The Bears won the set 25-17, ending it on a 19-7 run.

Baylor dominated the percentages once again, most importantly hitting .422 while the Cyclones hit only .076 in the set.

The Bears got out to a 12-6 lead in the third set and never looked back. They kept the six point advantage until Iowa State called a timeout down 17-11. After the timeout, Baylor cruised to a 25-19 set victory and 3-0 match sweep.

Eleanor Holthaus and Annie Hatch led the Cyclones offensively with seven kills each, and Candelaria Herrera tallied six kills to go along with three blocks.

Yossiana Pressley, who is arguably the conference’s best hitter, was held to only five kills in the match, but Avery Skinner played lights out with a double-double of 16 kills and 12 digs on a .640 hitting percentage.

Baylor outhit Iowa State .360 to .130 overall, and won the blocking battle 8-3.

The third-place Cyclones fall to 8-7 in the Big 12, but they have been assisted by West Virginia (6-7) and Kansas State (6-7) losses, who are fourth and fifth in the conference.

Iowa State will need to split the weekend with Baylor to have a better chance at finishing third before watching the rest of the Big 12 finish their seasons next weekend.

The second match against Baylor at 6 p.m. on Saturday.