No. 21 Iowa State volleyball sweeps Ole Miss in three sets
August 24, 2018
No. 21 Iowa State kicked off its 2018 season with a dominating straight-set sweep of Ole Miss in the first day of the Iowa State Challenge.
The first set went the way of the Cyclones after staying relatively tight throughout. Ole Miss initially took the lead early, but Iowa State eventually took over after the set was tied at seven.
From there, Iowa State’s lead stayed slim, never eclipsing three points until the Cyclones took a late 24-20 set lead. Iowa State took the set shortly after by a score of 25-21, and ended the set with a total of 13 kills. Freshman right-side hitter Eleanor Holthaus, in her first career start, stood out with a team-high four kills in the set.
From there, Iowa State put its foot on the gas and never looked back.
The second set did again see Ole Miss take an early 2-0 lead, but Iowa State this time took control and eventually won the set in dominating fashion. After taking a 6-5 lead, Iowa State allowed only six more points throughout the entire set and ran away with a 25-11 set win. Seniors Jess Schaben and Grace Lazard led the way with six and four kills in the set, respectively.
The third and, ultimately, final set followed a very similar script as the second to start. Ole Miss took an early 5-4 lead, but Iowa State followed with an 8-0 run with Lazard serving. The lead got as high as 11 as Iowa State reached match point, but Ole Miss didn’t go down without a fight.
The Rebels went on a 6-0 run to bring the match to a score of 24-19, but the Cyclones finally ended the match thanks to a kill from senior Hannah Bailey. Standing out in the set for Iowa State was newcomer and Florida A&M transfer Candelaria Herrera, who had five kills in the set and eight kills overall in her first match as a Cyclone. Redshirt junior libero Hali Hillegas also reached the 1,000 career digs milestone during the set.
Iowa State will be back in action on Saturday, as the team plays two matches to finish out the Iowa State challenge. The Cyclones will play Virginia at 10 a.m., and then Oregon State at 6:30 p.m.
