HOW IT HAPPENED

SET 1 (Iowa, 26-24): Iowa State started the match with the first point, but the Hawkeyes were quick to respond with a kill by Buettner, assisted by Ortega. Iowa continued the momentum and brought the score to 5-2. After a series of kills by Iowa State, the Hawkeye duo, Ortega and Buettner, added another point to the board. The Hawkeyes took a timeout, and came back determined with a kill and an ace. Iowa tied the set at 12, and forced the Cyclones into a timeout. The two teams battled back and forth, tying five more times, until Iowa pulled ahead with a solid kill by freshman Gabby Deery from the back row. The score stayed tight, tying at 23, after a diving dig by junior Amanda Darling, setting McSweeney up for a kill. Iowa State had the chance to end it at 23-24, but McSweeney kept the game in play. A long rally into a Hawkeye kill led Iowa State into another timeout. Iowa State attempted to stay in the game, but were shut down at the net by Buettner, McSweeney, and Deery to close out the set.

SET 2 (Iowa, 25-17): The Hawkeyes continued the momentum and took the first two points. Iowa State stopped the Iowa lead early, but the Hawkeyes did not let them get far. A kill by Anna Davis tied the set at four. Then, Darling assisted Buettner for Iowa to take the lead. At the net, McSweeney and Nataly Moravecshut down Iowa State with a block. A series of errors between the two teams led to another tie at 10. After a Buettner kill and a solo block by McSweeney, Iowa pulled ahead by two, 13-11. The set remained close, and the two teams fought to pull away, but the Hawkeyes took advantage of an Iowa State error, and forced the Cyclones to take a timeout. Four consecutive points by Iowa expanded their lead to 21-15. An impressive dig by Darling kept the ball alive for Iowa to stretch the spread to seven. Iowa State gave up a point to an error, and the Hawkeyes clinched the set.

SET 3 (Iowa State, 26-24): Iowa opened the set with a block by McSweeney and junior Michelle Urquharton the right side. After a Cyclone timeout, Ortega and Buettner teamed up for a kill that left Iowa State unable to rally. The spread stayed close throughout the beginning of the set, until the teams tied at 10. Mateo found an open spot on the floor for a dump to keep the Hawkeyes alive. Dennis saved the ball in the back row, setting McSweeney up for an outside kill. Yet again, Ortega and Buettner paired up for an unstoppable approach, tying the set. An Iowa State block attempt that headed out of bounds gave Iowa the lead, 17-16. A couple of Cyclone kills led Iowa to take a timeout. Iowa quickly recovered the spread, taking back the lead, 21-20, after an ace by Kaia Mateo. Iowa fought to close but fell short.

SET 4 (Iowa State, 25-18): The set was tight right off the bat with kills by both teams. A long rally into a Buettner kill gave Iowa the lead, 5-3. McSweeney and Moravec went to work in the front. They each posted a kill and came together for a block. Iowa put up a fight, but Iowa State maintained a small lead. The Hawkeyes shortened the spread to two after back-to-back kills by Davis and Buettner. Davis, Moravec and McSweeney recorded kills to add points to the board for Iowa, but Iowa State broke through again, taking the set.

SET 5 (Iowa State, 15-9): Both teams exchanged kills to start the final set, tying at two. Iowa State pulled ahead, but Moravec added a kill for Iowa to earn the ball back. McSweeney laid two to the ground to lessen the spread to six. Moravec, once again, earned the ball back for Iowa with a kill assisted by Dennis. An Iowa State error put the Hawkeyes down by four. Iowa attempted to recover, but fell short and the Cyclones took the set and match.

HEAR FROM CAITLAN BUETTNER

“It’s a big honor to play in this game. We want the Hawkeyes to make a big presence, and we want to represent our school just as well as they represent (Iowa State). To play in this match, you have to keep your head on straight, and you have to lead by example. I feel like if everyone does that, then things will start going our way. We are a very skilled team; we have new skillsets and new players. I think we have to take that and run with it, and learn from all the good things that we’ve been doing in these matches, rather than focusing on the negative.”