2020 Season

[SMP05]

The Cyclones are 2-4 for the first three weeks in action. The adjusted format is tough, having to play the same team back-to-back, but I'll take the season over not having one.
Kansas State - split matches (Kansas State is basically a new squad, a lot of freshmen.)
Texas Tech ~ split matches (The Cyclones fought hard the second match, but let one slip away).
Texas ~ lost both matches. Iowa State played tough and made Texas work for the win.

Jenna Brandt has taken over the setter position, but starting in the second set of the second match vs Texas, they ran a "modified" 6-2 with Piper setting and Mantz on the outside which helped with blocking and another hitter.
Next up on the 23rd, the Cyclones take on Baylor who still have the National Player of the Year. BUT Baylor lost their first match of the season to a new team (a lot of freshmen) in Kansas. Kansas, in turn, has lost to Texas and WEST VIRGINIA.
*West Virginia is a whole new team this year as well this year... which makes the Big 12 an all-around tougher conference.

 

[cykadelic2]

The Cyclones are 2-4 for the first three weeks in action. The adjusted format is tough, having to play the same team back-to-back, but I'll take the season over not having one.
Kansas State - split matches (Kansas State is basically a new squad, a lot of freshmen.)
Texas Tech ~ split matches (The Cyclones fought hard the second match, but let one slip away).
Texas ~ lost both matches. Iowa State played tough and made Texas work for the win.

NCAA has announced that the National VB Tournament will be held in April with 32 auto qualifiers and 16 at large teams. The field has been reduced by 16 at large teams from the standard 64.

What this means to ISU IMO is that they cannot finish any worse than 10-5 which likely means a Baylor split and a sweep of their remaining matches.

 

[Royalclone]

The Cyclones are 2-4 for the first three weeks in action. The adjusted format is tough, having to play the same team back-to-back, but I'll take the season over not having one.
Kansas State - split matches (Kansas State is basically a new squad, a lot of freshmen.)
Texas Tech ~ split matches (The Cyclones fought hard the second match, but let one slip away).
Texas ~ lost both matches. Iowa State played tough and made Texas work for the win.

Jenna Brandt has taken over the setter position, but starting in the second set of the second match vs Texas, they ran a "modified" 6-2 with Piper setting and Mantz on the outside which helped with blocking and another hitter.
Next up on the 23rd, the Cyclones take on Baylor who still have the National Player of the Year. BUT Baylor lost their first match of the season to a new team (a lot of freshmen) in Kansas. Kansas, in turn, has lost to Texas and WEST VIRGINIA.
*West Virginia is a whole new team this year as well this year... which makes the Big 12 an all-around tougher conference.

Baylor’s All American setter from West Des Moines has been out with an injury. Not knowing what the injury is, gotta think she’d try to be ready to play this weekend in Ames if at all possible.

 

[cykadelic2]

Kansas State - split matches (Kansas State is basically a new squad, a lot of freshmen.)

KSU loses to Texas tonight in 5 sets at Manhattan. Frosh Aliyah Carter from Dubuque leads KSU and all players with 28 kills @ .293 against the long UT blockers.

 

[SMP05]

KSU loses to Texas tonight in 5 sets at Manhattan. Frosh Aliyah Carter from Dubuque leads KSU and all players with 28 kills @ .293 against the long UT blockers.

It was pretty exciting and was hoping Kansas State could pull it off ~ maybe tonight!
Oklahoma over Kansas in 5 Sets
Baylor over Texas Tech in 5 sets
West Virginia over TCU in 4 Sets

Ready for some more Big 12 volleyball tonight ~ sure hate BYE weeks when Iowa State doesn't play.

 

[SMP05]

Big 12 Standings as of 10/17
1. Texas 8-0
2. Baylor 7-1
3. West Virginia 5-3
4. Kansas State 3-3
5. Texas Tech 3-5
6. Iowa State 2-4
Oklahoma 2-4
8. TCU 1-5
9. Kansas 1-7

Coming up this week in Big 12 Action:
Kansas at TCU
Oklahoma at Kansas State
Texas Tech at Texas
Baylor at IOWA STATE
Bye Week for West Virginia

 

[Royalclone]

Interesting that WV is 5-3. They split with KSU, and swept the two bottom feeders in TCU and KU.

KU had us wondering if they were back after splitting with BU the first weekend. Haven't won since.

After Baylor next week, the Cyclones could be in position to run the remaining table. They'll need to stop the second day brain-farts though.

AA setter from WDM Valley, Hannah Sedwick (nee Lockin) , has been injured to start the season. Wonder if she'll make it back next weekend for her home state swan song.

 

[cykadelic2]

After Baylor next week, the Cyclones could be in position to run the remaining table. They'll need to stop the second day brain-farts though.

Posted this before, with the reduced number of at large bids for the NCAAs in April, ISU can't finished any worse than 10-5 IMO. They need to at least split with BU next weekend (for a quality win) and then sweep the remaining matches.

 

[Royalclone]

Posted this before, with the reduced number of at large bids for the NCAAs in April, ISU can't finished any worse than 10-5 IMO. They need to at least split with BU next weekend (for a quality win) and then sweep the remaining matches.

Totally agree. Gotta get at least one this weekend, then run the table. Will need something for the committee to remember them by come spring. They would happily invite double-digit Big 10 teams playing in the spring over a third Big 12 team.

 

[SMP05]

The Baylor matches were tough, especially without Avery Rhodes and not having the depth on the outside. Jenna is a great and athletic setter, but we miss Piper's ability to dump and attack on her own. Not sure where this team is headed, but still rooting for them!

 

[BigJCy]

 

[cykadelic2]

ISU loses to WV tonight in 5 sets. CJL juggled the lineup tonight with Mauck playing all 5 sets at setter while Brandt played in 2. Englebrecht had a good stat line at MB while filling in for injured Avery Rhodes. Schuler played for the first time this season, strictly on the back row. The record is now at 2-7 and the team will need to win out in order to finish above .500 if the OU matches are rescheduled and played.

Texas beat Baylor for the second consecutive night, both in 5 sets, to build a 3 game lead in the conference race and essentially clinched the title.

 

[AMraider]

I was glad to see them push it to 5 at least. It was not looking good there for awhile. Hopefully tomorrow afternoon we be better.

 

[Royalclone]

Saturday was worse. Lost in three sets. I watched a little Friday, but have now lost interest for the first time since CJL arrived. Just playing out the season now. At least the remaining matches are against the rest of the bottom four. They have a chance to finish .500 but coaches and players have got to want it.

 

[cykadelic2]

Saturday was worse. Lost in three sets. I watched a little Friday, but have now lost interest for the first time since CJL arrived. Just playing out the season now. At least the remaining matches are against the rest of the bottom four. They have a chance to finish .500 but coaches and players have got to want it.

This will be the first non-winning season of CJL's tenure at ISU. Obviously, no non con opponents impacted that but this will be the 2nd consecutive .500 or worse conference record with the only other one in CJL's first season (2005) at 9-11. Even more alarming was going 0-12 in sets played vs Texas and Baylor.

Something has got to change with a shakeup of assistants, practice habits, practice routine and/or facilities or else the trend will continue. The underclass talent pool and the incoming committed recruits don't exactly signal marked improvement is on the horizon.

 

[Cyfan1965]

The underclass talent pool and the incoming committed recruits don't exactly signal marked improvement is on the horizon.
[/QUOTE]

Unfortunately you are 100% correct- When you look at some of their numbers they are entirely unimpressive borderline shocking.

 

[Royalclone]

Maybe watching all the best players in the state leave is having an effect on CJL. Like it did on Rhodes to the point where he didn't even bother trying with them. Something needs to be done to reignite the program. Of course its not exactly a moneymaker. Still most of the other non or small revenue sports have new facilities to recruit with. Maybe a volleyball/wrestling facility could providevthat boost. Any chance of that is probably years post-COVID though.

 

[Cyfan1965]

There are good reasons why she has not recruited some of the in state players and then others are head scratchers. Its tricky to be in a position where you really can't say why you did or didn't recruit without getting into too much detail. You just have to use the old....." the player was not a good fit for us" and move on. Some we were never going to get because we were never ever in the conversation.

 

[cykadelic2]

There are good reasons why she has not recruited some of the in state players and then others are head scratchers. Its tricky to be in a position where you really can't say why you did or didn't recruit without getting into too much detail. You just have to use the old....." the player was not a good fit for us" and move on. Some we were never going to get because we were never ever in the conversation.

The in-state recruiting situation is kind of convoluted. On CJL's best teams back in 2009 and 2011, the only in-state recruit who was in the primary rotation was Kristen Hahn. But now, there is some very good in-state talent on other Upper Midwest teams that are now better than ISU (and all would be starters at ISU) such as:

Mizzou: Kylie Deberg, Kenna Sauer
Nebraska: Madi Kubik
K-State: Aliyah Carter
Wisconsin: Devyn Robinson

The top 3 2021 instate players are all heading to other programs: Phyona Schrader (Notre Dame), Eve Magill (Creighton), Lauren Schrock (Iowa).

The nation's top 2022 recruit, Hayden Kubik from West DSM Valley, is committed to Nebraska. Another top 100 national recruit for 2022, Chloe Largent from Adair-Casey/Guthrie Ctr, is undecided at this point.

CJL is obviously not going to sign all of the top instate talent but too much of it is landing at other programs and contributing to the existing W-L issues at ISU.

 

[Tornado man]

We were too late on Schrader; she committed to ND when she was 15 years old. She really like the ND coach at the time, Jim McLaughlin. I believe she picked Notre Dame over Marquette and Northern Colorado. I do believe Christy was the first to notice her.
Magill I would think is a huge loss; is Schrock a major conference talent? I don't know.
To your point: ISU is not a dominant recruiting power even in the state of Iowa anymore. It's sad.