The ISU spring volleyball season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, but the team will have one final chance for improvement this season when they take on Illinois at 1 p.m. on April 25 in Mount Vernon, Iowa.

Improvement is the name of the game in the spring season and at times, ISU coach Christy Johnson-Lynch has seen that in abundance.

The spring season kicked off against Iowa in which the Cyclones took three of four sets, but the team was less than thrilled with how they played. A short four days later, the team met up with Iowa again at the University of Northern Iowa spring tournament.

Johnson-Lynch and a number of players were pleased with the amount of improvement in such a short time span. At UNI, the Cyclones won all 10 sets they played, signaling the dramatic improvement.

Next up was the Iowa State Spring Tournament, which saw the team’s rapid improvement stall a little bit. The Cyclones still took seven of 10 sets, but Johnson-Lynch categorized her team’s play as “average” at the end of the day.

Major points of emphasis for the spring season have been the offensive attack and the team’s blocking, in which Johnson-Lynch has noted improvement throughout the last month.

Still, Johnson-Lynch wants more. After a decent day at the Iowa State Spring Tournament, Johnson-Lynch said she wants to see her team “take another step” in the final spring game against Illinois.

Furthermore, this will be the last chance for the athletes to make a case for starting spots until fall.

The depth of the roster has been a benefit during the spring season, creating more intense practices, but Johnson-Lynch said she is looking for athletes to stand out and make strong cases for starting spots.

The time to make that case begins in the spring and although it does not solidify fall spots, a strong spring can help carry into a strong fall.

Johnson-Lynch said she hopes to see some athletes step up and make those cases now, giving her a better idea of what she can expect coming into the fall.