The victory was the first for the Hawkeyes in the annual series since 2021.

Iowa outside hitter Carmel Vares attempts to spike the ball between two defenders in the match between Iowa and Iowa State on Sept. 8, 2026, at the Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. Vares was second in kills at 9 and points at 9.5. Iowa’s 3-0 win over Iowa State was the first win in Ames since 1994, and the first under Iowa head coach Jim Barnes. (Travis Crabb/The Daily Iowan)

Jack Birmingham, Assistant Sports Editor | Daily Iowan

The last time Iowa volleyball beat Iowa State at its home venue, Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa, the year was 1994. Amazon was just in its infancy, and Bill Clinton was still in office.

That all changed on Tuesday night, when the Hawkeyes, led by fifth-year head coach Jim Barnes, notched a dominant win over the Cyclones on their opponent’s home court. The victory, a 3-0 sweep, moved Iowa to 4-2 on the season, just ahead of a 10-game home stretch.

“Every little point mattered to keep our momentum, because that team’s not going to give up,” Barnes said after the game. “We kept telling our team that even though we had the leverage and we had the lead, [they] can’t let up for us, can’t give them hope.”

Under Barnes, Iowa has seen gradual improvement, going from an 8-24 overall record in his second season in Iowa City to a 15-17 mark last season, including six Big Ten wins. The series against rival Iowa State, however, remained elusive, with Iowa falling in a five-set thriller in 2025.

“It really is a statement win for us, more so as a team, because our team knows we’re capable of playing like that, and we’ve been training like that. Can we do it under pressure?” Barnes said. “That’s the biggest gift from this match, is that we pulled together under pressure.”

Both teams got off to a rocky start, with the Hawkeyes trailing by three points early and the Cyclones losing fifth-year Lilly Waccholz to an injury in the first set. 

Iowa capitalized on multiple small runs, however, and took a 24-20 advantage at set point, before third-year Hallie Steponaitis terminated a kill to give the Hawkeyes the first set. 

Momentum, it seemed, now favored the Hawkeyes.

“We came into the court, and this season, this is the first time we played in front of such a big crowd,” second-year Carmel Vares said. “I think everyone was a little bit nervous, but from the first point, we had such good chemistry. Everyone wanted to play so much, [there were] zero negative feelings.”

Hilton Coliseum was a sea of red and yellow, with over 4,000 Cyclone fans showing up to support their squad. For Vares and her teammates, however, their taunts only fueled the Hawkeye fire.

“I think we were just angry that people yelled some stuff to us,” Vares said. “I think we just got more energy from that.”

Vares, Iowa’s leading returner in kills from last season, was second among all players with nine kills, surpassed only by teammate and fellow second-year Ksenija Tomic, who nailed 10 kills. 

On the defensive end of the game, Iowa combined for an even 50 digs, just shy of Iowa State’s 52 digs. 

Of that figure, 10 digs came from Iowa second-year Marichka Hoshylyk, while another 10 digs came courtesy of first-year Henlee Moszkowicz, who stepped into a key role as the starting libero for the Hawkeyes.

A native of Magnolia, Texas, Moszkowicz is no stranger to large crowds, which she credited as a factor.

“My club team was super competitive, so I played in front of pretty big crowds throughout club,” Moszkowicz said. “It’s a bigger stage for sure, but it wasn’t super shocking, and I think I honestly perform better under pressure. The more people, the better. I like it. I like the rowdiness.”

For his part, Barnes has faced off against the Cyclones plenty of times, owing to his Big 12 experience as the head coach at Baylor. Tuesday, however, marked his first victory over Iowa State with the Iowa program. 

“In particular, it seems like every time we play them, it’s five sets,” Barnes said. “When we were up, 2-0, I was going, ‘This one is not going to go to five sets.’”

The head coach credited Iowa’s composure in the third set, the contest’s closest and decided by a 25-23 margin, as a key contributor.

“To me, that was the best set for us because they had some momentum, they had the crowd behind them, but we didn’t let up and didn’t give them a set,” Barnes said. “That shows a lot of growth.”

With a 10-game home stretch ahead, set to be played at Coralville’s Xtream Arena, Iowa looks to carry this growth forward, exercising the same toughness that barred Iowa State from any big runs.

“We had a couple of points here and there, but you didn’t see a four- or five-point run,” Barnes said. “We rebounded quickly. We were tough tonight.”