After dropping a close match against No. 18 TCU, the Cyclones look to break a four-match slide against Houston at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Iowa State dropped to 9-12 and 3-7 in conference play and has not won since it swept Texas Tech on Oct. 18. The Cyclones have not finished below sixth place in the conference since 2004 and are currently sitting at 11th in the Big 12.
Junior outside hitter Faith DeRonde has been effective offensively as of late, notching 10 or more kills in the Cyclones’ past five matches. Iowa State also had redshirt junior middle blocker Amiree Hendricks-Walker and redshirt sophomore outside hitter Kiersten Schmitt reach five kills in the five-set match against TCU.
The four-game stretch that the Cyclones just endured is likely to be the hardest of the season, as it included three nationally ranked teams all on the road. Heading into the home match against Houston, Iowa State has a chance to build some momentum going into the final month of the season.
Houston comes into the match at 10-10 and 5-5 in conference play, putting itself right in the middle of the conference. Since the last matchup between these two teams, the Cougars have gone 2-3, including a 3-1 loss to then-No. 23 Baylor.
Iowa State dealt with some adversity the last time they played against Houston. Sophomore outside hitter Nayeli Gonzalez went down with her season-ending knee injury in the first set, plaguing the Cyclones’ morale for the rest of the match. Junior outside hitter Maya Duckworth and sophomore middle blocker Pam McCune were also out in that match.
DeRonde led the Cyclones in the last matchup against the Cougars with 17 kills, and senior libero Brooke Stonestreet added 17 digs of her own.
As for Houston, the Cougars are led by graduate senior outside hitter Angela Grieve, who has 272 kills and 3.53 per set. Defensively, libero Kate Georgiades is second in the Big 12 with 4.97 digs per set.
With less than a month left in the season, the Cyclones must play with urgency and make a run for the Big 12 to have a shot of making it to the big dance.
Iowa State takes on Houston at home at 6:30 p.m Wednesday. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
