During the past several seasons, the ISU volleyball team has seen the competition against the West Virginia Mountaineers grow tougher and tougher.

In the first match between the two teams, in Big 12 play back in 2012, the Mountaineers’ highest output was 16 points in set three against the Cyclones.

In the second meeting that year, West Virginia tallied 17 points in set two against Iowa State.

“We have seen West Virginia get consistently better and better over the past few seasons,” said ISU redshirt junior Morgan Kuhrt.

Last season, the Mountaineers finally topped the 20-point mark against the Cyclones and also finally claimed a set against Iowa State. But this year might be a little harder for West Virginia to replicate that success. 

During the offseason, the Mountaineers witnessed a mass exodus of players and coaches leave the program. Their head coach departed for the top coaching position at Big 12 rival Texas Christian, and the Mountaineers lost their top two kill leaders.

“They were decimated this offseason with several key players leaving,” said ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. “But they still have several great athletes on their roster.”

West Virginia’s roster has three players who rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 in a variety of statistics, but volleyball is a team sport, and the Mountaineers haven’t lived up to that this season. 

Collectively as a team, the Mountaineers are in the bottom half in hitting percentage, kills, assists, service aces and blocks allowed in the Big 12. 

West Virginia will have to play to those statistics when it takes on the Big 12 leader in hitting percentage — Iowa State’s Samara West. But statistics don’t always show how good a team really is.

“They have played well against teams you would not expect them to play well against,” Kuhrt said.

To counter Iowa State’s potent attack, West Virginia’s defense will have to live up to its 11.69 digs per set on average, which is the best in the Big 12. 

“[West Virginia] has really good left and right outside hitters,” Johnson-Lynch said.

Their top two outside hitters, Morgan Montgomery and Bridgett Talia, each have more than 100 kills this season thus far and both have a hitting percentage better than .125.

Even though West Virginia doesn’t look frightening from the win column, Iowa State does not see this match as a cupcake win.

“Although they did have an exodus of people leaving, they are still a scrappy team,” said ISU senior Caitlin Nolan. “And no game in the Big 12 is a given.”

The Cyclones will take on the Mountaineers at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at Hilton Coliseum.