A new season has dawned on the ISU volleyball team and it couldn’t have come soon enough. 

Nearly nine months have passed since the Cyclones’ loss to Illinois in the second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. All the while, No. 21 Iowa State has waited — anticipating its chance at redemption in the 2015 season.

Iowa State will start down that road against the Dayton Flyers on Friday, marking the beginning of both the 2015 season and the annual Cyclone Invitational at Hilton Coliseum. Joining the Cyclones at the invitational are Marquette and North Dakota — teams that each notched 20-plus wins last season.

Regardless of their opponents, the Cyclones are ready to take the court again.

“Preseason is always fun, but we’ve already got two weeks of practice under our belts,” said senior Mackenzie Bigbee. “We’re really feeling ready to play.”

Despite the excitement, the Cyclones have realized that additional steps need to be taken to be properly prepared for Dayton, and for the tournament as a whole.

Victoria Hurtt has graduated, new talent has arrived and new strategies and techniques may have to be adopted. 

For example, Iowa State switched from the 5-1 formation to the 6-2 based on personnel and other factors midway through last season. ISU head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch has had to reassess certain players and lineups in order to select the formation, or formations, for the 2015 season.

It seems as though a concrete decision has yet to be made as both formations were utilized in the Cardinal and Gold Scrimmage on Aug. 22.

“Honestly, I think we’ll have to be prepared for both [formations],” Johnson-Lynch said. “Part of it will be how Alexis [Conaway] comes back — if she can be healthy or not. I just want to make sure that we are ready and comfortable for either situation.”

Each particular scheme requires different situational attention and preparation in order to equip the team for live competition. Specifically for the Cyclones, a focus has been on practicing for when things don’t occur exactly as planned.

When a pass is poorly delivered or someone outside of the designated setter has to set the ball, it is considered to be out-of-system. Thus, in order to be properly equipped for these situations, Johnson-Lynch has made it a focus in practice.

“When someone else sets the ball, can we get kills or at least do something good with the ball?” Johnson-Lynch said. “We weren’t very good at that last year, so that’s been a big focus.”

After utilizing this week of practice, the Cyclones will take that preparation to the court at 6:30 p.m. Friday.