No. 24 Oklahoma Drops First Home Match Of Season

Junior outside hitter Kierra Holst set a program record with 32 kills, but in came in a 3-2 loss for the No. 24 Oklahoma volleyball team against Iowa State at McCasland Field House on Wednesday night. The Sooners, who hosted their sixth annual “Pledge for a Cure” match, fell to 17-8 overall and 8-4 in the Big 12.

Oklahoma was the last remaining undefeated team in the conference before the Cyclones (14-9, 6-6) felled the Sooners; 25-23, 28-30, 25-23, 21-25, 9-15. Oklahoma had won 12 straight home matches, having last lost to No. 1 Texas on November 2, 2013.

Holst's 32 kills came on 66 total attempts as she hit .333 with eight digs. She became the first Sooner with 30 kills or more since Santiago Restrepo, now in his 11th season, took over the program in 2004. Christina Mayners was the last to do it in a 30-kill effort against Missouri on November 15, 2003. The previous record for kills in a five-set match during the 25-point rally-scoring era was held by Tara Dunn, who notched 29 kills as a rookie at Wichita State on September 14, 2011.

Adding to the record night was junior setter Julia Doyle with a career-high 60 assists. Her total marked a new program record in the 25-point rally-scoring era. The last player to record 60 or more was Julie Chester with 62 against Florida A&M on November 29, 2007. Doyle added 11 digs for her team-leading ninth double-double of the season.

For the match, Iowa State hit .298 to Oklahoma's .261 and recorded 15 blocks to the Sooners' nine. Each team had four players reach double figures in kills. Morgan Kuhrt tallied a team-high 16 for the Cyclones with a .359 attack rate and 10 digs in a double-double effort. Alexis Conaway finished second on the team with 15 kills and a match-leading .560 hitting percentage and eight blocks.

Redshirt-sophomore outside hitter Madison Ward and sophomore middle blocker Micaela Spann each registered 12 kills for Oklahoma. Ward matched junior libero Taylor Migliazzo for the team-lead in digs at 18. For Ward, it was her eighth double-double of the season.

Freshman middle blocker Marion Hazelwood added 10 kills, hit .412 and posted five blocks.

Iowa State's Caitlin Nolan led all players with 34 digs. The Cyclones split time between two setters with Monique Harris dishing out a team-high 31 assists, while Suzanne Horner added 26.

The Sooners return to action for their first top-25 match-up of the season when they host No. 5 Texas at McCasland Field House at 7 p.m. on Saturday.