Iowa State suffers first loss in conference play, fall 3-1 against Kansas

Iowa+State+volleyball+outside+hitter+Kenzie+Mantz+talks+with+her+teammates+during+the+Cyclones+match+against+TCU+on+Sept.+25.

Iowa State volleyball outside hitter Kenzie Mantz talks with her teammates during the Cyclones’ match against TCU on Sept. 25.

Aaron Hickman

The Iowa State volleyball program was back on the road Friday, playing in the first of two matches against the Kansas Jayhawks to continue conference play. Both teams came into the weekend with an overall record of 10-3 (2-0 in conference), with the Jayhawks riding an eight match win streak. Kansas is also undefeated at home on the season.

After starting out down 4-1 in the first set, the Cyclones went on a 9-0 run to build a 10-4 lead. With the score at 13-5 later in the set, Kansas was able to build a 5-0 run of its own to cut their deficit to three. After some back and forth created a 16-12 Iowa State lead, a 4-0 run by the Jayhawks knotted the set up. They would eventually retake the lead at 18-17 on a block.

The rest of the set was a fight from that point on. With the score tied at 19, Kansas went on a 3-0 run. Iowa State immediately responded with a 3-0 run of their own to tie the set once again. With the Jayhawks up 25-24 and serving for set point, a kill by Brooke Andersen extended the set even further.

Eventually, with the score tied at 26, back to back kills by Eleanor Holthaus and Kenzie Mantz claimed the first set for the Cyclones.

Iowa State built a 6-4 lead in the second set, but a 6-0 run by the Jayhawks put them in the driver’s seat. They never looked back, as the Cyclones never trimmed their deficit to less than four, and Kansas went on to win the set 25-16.

The third set started out very tightly contested, as the Jayhawks had a 10-9 lead early on. A 3-0 run pushed their lead to 13-9, and later on a 4-0 run extended their lead to 18-12. Iowa State never cut the deficit to less than five or put together any runs, and Kansas claimed the set 25-19.

The fourth and final set also started out as a battle, with the Jayhawks holding an 11-10 lead. They would go on a 3-0 run build their lead to four, and eventually build their lead as they held a 23-17 lead. Two kills by Mantz and a kill by Jaden Newsome but the deficit to three, but Kansas would respond with two straight points to take the set 25-20 and the match 3-1.

Three Cyclones finished with double-digit kills, as Candelaria Herrera led the team with 13 and Holthaus and Mantz each finishing with 11. Jaden Newsome assisted on 41 points, and Marija Popovic led the team defensively with 18 digs.

Iowa State hit at a .184 clip, while allowing Kansas to hit .236. The Cyclones also committed 26 errors, which was eight more than the Jayhawks.

The Cyclones fall to 10-4 overall, and 2-1 in Big 12 play. They will be back in action at 4 p.m. Saturday, hoping to split the season series with Kansas.