GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The No. 15 Iowa State volleyball team kicked off its 2013 season with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-12, 25-18) victory over South Dakota State Friday morning at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The Cyclones begin the season 1-0, and the Jackrabbits are now 0-1.
Turning Point of the Match
With the score 16-15 in favor of Iowa State in the first set, Tenisha Matlock sparked a 7-0 with a big quick-set kill down the middle that put the first set out of South Dakota State’s reach.
Cyclone Game Ball Goes to …
Ciara Capezio. In her Iowa State debut, the freshman from Williams Bay, Wis. Led the way with 12 kills at a .458 hitting percentage and chipped in seven digs while playing all six positions for the Cyclones.
During the build-up to the season, Iowa State head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch talked about the need to find a player to step up her passing to go with All-American libero Kristen Hahn and Caitlin Nolan. She also talked about finding another player to step up at outside hitter. Today, Capezio was both of those players.
Cyclone Notes
*Iowa State won its regular season debut for the seventh time in Johnson-Lynch’s nine seasons as Iowa State head coach.
*Kristen Hahn’s 22 digs in the match marked her fifth-straight match dating back to last season with at least 20 digs and the 41st straight match dating back to 2011 where Hahn had at least 10 digs.
*The Cyclones had nine service aces as a team, led by Jenelle Hudson’s three. Iowa State did not have nice aces as a team last season.
*Jenelle Hudson had six kills in 20 matches in 2012, she had three kills against the Jackrabbits.
*The match against South Dakota State marked the Iowa State debuts of redshirt freshmen Morgan Kuhrt and Natalie Vondrak and true freshman Ciara Capezio.
