After falling victim to two straight sweeps, Iowa volleyball got back into the win column after defeating Michigan State in a four-set bout Saturday.

Due to a season-ending injury to standout hitter Cali Hoye, Hawkeye volleyball has struggled to regain its composure and chemistry. In the win against Michigan State, several different players stepped up and made a decent amount of noise.

The Spartans made quick work of the Hawkeyes in the first set. A 4-point run towards the end of the first pushed them over the top as they would claim the set at a score of 25-20. After being swept by Iowa in the first matchup between the two teams this season, Michigan State seemed poised to continue the frustrating run for Iowa volleyball.

However, in a marathon-length second set, the Hawkeyes regained their fire not seen for several weeks.

Kills from Meghan Buzzerio – who has stepped up since the team’s loss of Hoye – and Taylor Louis helped the Hawkeyes claim a nail-biting 30-28 win in the second.

The following sets came easily for the Hawkeyes.

The third set came into the Iowa column at a score of 25-15 on a set-winning kill from Hannah Clayton. After being down 23-20 in the fourth set, Iowa won the final 5 points of the match with efforts from Brie Orr and Buzzerio, claiming the match with a fifth-set score of 25-23.

Plenty of Hawkeyes made key differences in the match. Louis tallied 16 kills on the night and Buzzerio wasn’t far behind with 12 of her own. Amiya Jones came up big defensively for Iowa, standing tall for 7 kills in the matchup.

Iowa will face Indiana next in an away meeting on Friday night.