Iowa State Cyclones 2010 Volleyball Year in Review
2010 Volleyball Year in Review
AMES, Iowa – Cyclone volleyball continued its tradition of success under head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch in 2010, finishing the season ranked 25th by the America Volleyball Coaches Association with a record of 20-9 overall and 13-7 in the Big 12. Iowa State closed the season with its fifth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. In six seasons under Johnson-Lynch, the Cyclones are 109-52.
The Cyclones compiled a 5-7 record against eight NCAA Tournament teams in 2010 to help them to a 33rd ranking in the final RPI rankings. In August, Iowa State lost to No. 13 Florida before beating No. 14 Kentucky the following day.
The Cyclones began September with a 3-1 win over North Dakota State before sweeping No. 18 Northern Iowa. During the conference schedule, the Cyclones split the season series with Missouri and Oklahoma and lost two each to Nebraska and Texas.
In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Cyclones traveled to Minneapolis, Minn. to play unseeded Creighton who was making its first-ever post season appearance. The teams traded sets through four games before the Bluejays made a final push to win the match in five sets, ending Iowa State’s season.
Iowa State finished third in the Big 12 in 2010 behind Nebraska and Texas. The Cyclones ranked second in the conference in assists per set (13.77), kills per set (14.61) and digs per set (17.29) this season. For the third-straight season, the Cyclones’ assists average ranked in the top 10, coming in sixth in the nation. The Cyclones also ranked in the top 10 in kills per set for the second consecutive year, finishing seventh.
Outside hitter Victoria Henson led the league with 4.50 kills per set and 4.90 points per set. Henson’s averages ranked ninth and 11th in the country, respectively. Sophomore setter Alison Landwehr paced the Big 12 and ranked seventh among Division I volleyball players with 11.89 assists per set.
Both Henson and fellow senior Ashley Mass went out on top as they each ended their Cyclone careers in 2010. Henson leaves Iowa State as the school’s record holder in kills, with 1,726, and kills per set (3.90). Mass became the Big 12 leader in career digs in 2010, finishing with 2,294 digs. She is the only Big 12 student-athlete to ever amass 2,200 digs in a career. Mass’ average of 4.92 digs per set is an Iowa State record and, having participated in 129 matches at Iowa State, Mass, along with Steph McCannon (1992-95) is the most active player in Cyclone history.
Awards rolled in throughout the season for the Cyclones, including the third-straight Big 12 Libero of the Year honor for Mass. On her way to being named the conference’s top libero, Mass picked up three defensive weekly awards from the league office on the year to finish her four-year career with 15 weekly conference awards, more than any other volleyball player in league history.
Mass, Henson and Jamie Straube were named AVCA All-Americans for their superior play throughout the season. Henson, a previous all-American in 2008 and 2009, became only the second Cyclone in the volleyball program’s history to be named to the AVCA All-America First Team. Mass earned her third all-America nod, selected to the third team, and Straube, who led the Cyclones with a .326 hitting percentage and 1.05 blocks per set, garnered her first career honor as an honorable mention. The trio was also selected to the All-Big 12 First Team.
A standout in the classroom as well as on the court, Straube was named to the ESPN Academic All-District VII First Team and was joined on the Academic All-Big 12 First Team by teammates Cassie Pratt. Defensive specialist Caitlin Mahoney was named to the conference academic second team.
