Nov. 11, 2009
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Texas A&M stayed within striking distance against No. 8 Iowa State, but the Cyclones managed to pull away in the end and defeat the Aggies, 25-22, 25-22, 31-29, in front of 1,194 tonight at Reed Arena.
With the win, ISU improves to 21-4 overall and maintains its stronghold on second place in the Big 12 at 13-3. A&M suffers its third straight loss and drops to 14-9 overall and 7-8 in the Big 12.
Sarah Ammerman led the Aggies with 18 kills while hitting .269, but she was the only A&M player to reach double figures in kills. Mary Batis led a group of four Aggies to reach double figures in digs with 18. Jennifer Banse had 17 digs, and Kelsey Black and Tori Mellinger added 10 digs apiece as the Aggies outdug the Cyclones, 72-67.
ISU, which entered the match leading the Big 12 in digs per set, as well as opponent hitting percentage, outhit the Aggies, .253 to .157, posting 11 blocks to A&M's six. Cyclone freshman middle blocker Jamie Straube led all players with eight blocks, and libero Ashley Mass, the league leader in digs per set, led all players with 20 digs.
Victoria Henson led the Cyclones offensively with 15 kills, and Rachel Hockaday added 12.
"Iowa State is one of best defensive teams in nation," A&M coach Laurie Corbelli said. "Their libero has led the conference in digs for a couple of seasons. They find the right place to be in almost all the time. It's hard to put a ball down on their court. We out dug them but that doesn't mean they didn't get quality digs. They would get more swings off digs, and we would get more average swings."
A&M used a six-point run early in the first set to take its first lead at 10-5 and went on to build its largest lead at 13-8 following back-to-back kills by Banse and Batis. The Cyclones, however, were within three points at 20-17 when they rallied, putting down six kills to A&M's one kill to take a 23-21 lead. Banse got a kill to put the Aggies within 23-22, but ISU got a block to be serving for the set. Hockaday then put down a kill to clinch the set for the Cyclones.
"We gave them their first six or eight points in the first set with our hitting errors," Corbelli said. "We are really tired of beating ourselves yet can't seem to get over the hump."
The Cyclones, who outhit A&M .400 to .224 in the opening set, never trailed in the second set, although A&M tied the score six times. Despite being outhit, .154 to .087 in the second set, the Aggies overcame a five-point deficit and eventually tied the scored at 20-all. A Hockaday kill off the block and an A&M attack error put ISU back up 22-20, but an ISU service error and a kill by Ammerman knotted the score at 22-22. Hockaday answered with a kill and then stepped up and served an ace to put the Cyclones at 24-22. Debbie Stadick then ended the set with a kill, giving the Cyclones a 2-0 lead going into the break.
There were 13 ties and four lead changes in the thrilling third set. ISU scored three unanswered points to build a 19-15 lead, but a kill by Batis and a block by Ammerman and Kristen Schevikhoven teamed with Black to block Henson on the next play, giving the Aggies their first lead of the set. Riding the momentum, Ammerman followed with a kill to put A&M ahead, 23-21, but then A&M served into the net. ISU had an attack error on the ensuing play as Henson's attack down the line landed wide to put the Aggies at set point, 24-22. ISU then countered with back-to-back kills and also got a block to take a 25-24 lead. The lead didn't last long as A&M came back with back-to-back kills by Ammerman and Banse, but Henson got a kill to tie the score, 26-26. A&M also was at set point at 27-26 and 28-27, but each time ISU came back to tie the score. With the set knotted at 28-28, Stadick got a kill courtesy of an A&M overpass to regain the lead for the Cyclones, 29-28. An ISU service error tied the score at 29-29, but ISU got consecutive kills by Hockaday and Henson to close out the match and earn the Cyclones only their second win in 14 trips to College Station.
The match against the Cyclones was the second of three consecutive top 25 contests for the Aggies, who face No. 9 Nebraska on Friday in Lincoln. First serve against the Cornhuskers is 7 p.m. at Nebraska Coliseum. A&M, which has never won in Lincoln, upset then-No. 6 Nebraska, 3-1, when the teams met in College Station earlier this season.