Hawkeyes Sweep Cyclones in Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Match

AMES, Iowa – University of Iowa volleyball swept Iowa State 25-20, 25-21, 25-23 in the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series match on Tuesday night inside Hilton Coliseum. The Hawkeyes improve to 4-2.

It was Iowa’s first win in Ames since 1997.

The Hawkeyes used balanced scoring from its pins and middles. Ksenija Tomic led the attack with 10 kills while hitting .409. Carmel Vares drilled nine kills on 28 swings. Iowa’s middles were effective with Liv Mogridge terminating seven attacks and Hannah Whittingstall contributing six. Setter Jenna Meitzler finished with 35 assists and added three well-timed kills to keep Iowa State off balance.

Iowa’s defense was much improved in its return to the floor. The Hawkeyes tallied seven blocks and held Iowa State to a .230 hitting percentage. Libero Henlee Moszkowicz made her first start at the position and tied the team lead with 10 digs. Marichka Hoshylyk also had 10. 

The Hawkeyes had fewer kills than Iowa State, 46-41, but committed fewer errors, 18-10. Iowa hit .287 in the win. The Hawkeyes served four aces and had six service errors, while Iowa State only had two aces and struggled with 11 errors.

HEAR FROM COACH BARNES
“We’re still learning about one another. There are a lot of new pieces. I just asked them tonight to be united. Let’s have a united effort and have each other’s back. Whenever the pressure came, we were united in a great atmosphere tonight. We stuck together. Every point mattered. We kept our momentum, because we know that that team across the net isn’t going to give up. We kept telling our team that even though we had leverage and the lead, we could not let up.”

MATCH SUMMARY
SET ONE (IOWA 25-20)
Iowa State jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the opening set before Carmel Vares answered with a tool off the block to spark the Hawkeyes. After falling behind 4-2, Iowa's block stepped up with Liv Mogridge, Hallie Steponaitis and Ksenija Tomic joining on a triple block. Tomic later tied the set at 6-6 with a kill from the left side, and a 3-0 run capped by an Iowa State error knotted the score again at 9-9. Mogridge picked up a kill on a reversed challenge call to give Iowa its first lead at 11-10. An Iowa run ensued with an ace from Whittingstall to push it to 13-10. Hannah Whittingstall hammered a late kill to force an ISU timeout at 18-15, and Vares forced another timeout with her second kill to make it 22-18. Steponaitis clinched the set with a kill. The offenses struggled to find their footing in the opener as Iowa hit .171 in the opening frame, while the Cyclones hit .073. 

SET TWO (IOWA 25-21)
The Hawkeyes turned to the middle in set two. Mogridge took over the second set right out of the gate, combining with Vares on a block and hammering three quick kills to build an early 6-1 lead. Whittingstall extended Iowa's advantage to its largest margin at 9-3, backed by a triple block featuring Tomic, Jenna Meitzler and Whittingstall that doubled up the Cyclones at 10-5. Despite a brief 3-0 run from Iowa State, Mogridge halted any momentum with a left-side kill to make it 13-9. Down the stretch, the Hawkeyes got creative with a libero kill from Moszkowicz and a setter dump by Meitzler to maintain control. Though a late push brought the Cyclones within three at 19-16 and prompted an Iowa timeout, Tomic painted the back line to halt the run. An Iowa State error ended the set at 25-21. Iowa led wire-to-wire.

SET THREE (IOWA 25-23)
The final frame was a battle featuring nine ties, but just one lead change After falling behind 9-6, Iowa responded when Mogridge delivered a solo block to tie it at 10-10. That block was in the midst of a key 6-1 run that forced a Cyclone timeout at 13-11. Iowa State fought back to tie it 17-17 and Iowa called timeout. Again, Tomic answered with a kill, her eighth kill of the match, to regain the lead. Vares heated up down the stretch with crucial late kills, and Whittingstall ultimately sealed the sweep with a final kill to capture the 25-23 victory.

NOTABLES

• This was Iowa’s first win in Ames since 1994. It was Iowa’s first win over the Cyclones since 2021.
• Head coach Jim Barnes earned his first win over Iowa State in five tries.
• Ksenija Tomic led the team in kills for the second time this season.
• First-year Henlee Moszkowicz made her first start at libero.
• Iowa won the match despite having fewer kills, assists and digs.

Up Next: Iowa (4-2) welcomes Southern Illinois, Incarnate Word and Missouri State for the Hawkeye Invitational Thursday through Saturday at Xtream Arena. Iowa hosts Southern Illinois on Thursday at 6 p.m. (CT).