ISU head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch might be on to something.

The ISU volleyball team (13-9, 5-6 Big 12) won its second consecutive match by way of a sweep against West Virginia (13-12, 3-8 Big 12) on Nov. 8.

The Cyclones won their fourth, fifth and sixth sets in a row, beating the Mountaineers 26-24, 25-20, 25-20.

It is a streak that stretches back through a 3-0 win over then-No. 22 Kansas State on Nov. 5, and the catalyst is a system change that initially looked like nothing more than prayer.

On Nov. 2 Iowa State found itself trailing 2-1 to No. 5 Texas at home.

Searching for an advantage, Johnson-Lynch made a stylistic adjustment, shifting the Cyclones from the familiar 5-1 scheme they had used on nearly every serve throughout the season to a 6-2 system.

The initial experiment was a failure, as Texas claimed the fourth set and the match with relative ease, dropping Iowa State to a 3-6 record in conference play.

Since that time, however, the Cyclones have not lost a set.

The 6-2 has proved to accentuate the skills of freshman middle blocker Alexis Conaway and reinvigorate the play of senior outside hitter Victoria Hurtt.

The Cyclones hit for a solid .255 percentage against the Mountaineers, led by Conaway’s posting of .500 on a day she tallied 8 kills.

Hurtt amassed a .429 hitting percentage on her way to a team-leading 11 kills.

Iowa State lost the battle of the block 9-5, but closed the gap with the extra efficiency afforded by the 6-2 scheme, tallying four fewer errors than West Virginia.

The uptick in performance could not have come at a better time for the Cyclones, who again have an opportunity to climb to even in conference play as the regular season winds to a close.

All that stands in the way is No. 24 Oklahoma, which had a record of 16-7 overall and 7-3 in the Big 12 before its match on Nov. 8 with Baylor.

The match against the Sooners is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 12 in Norman, Okla.