TicketsCINCINNATI — The Cincinnati volleyball team plays Iowa State on Mon., Nov. 16, at 7:30 p.m. ET at the Hilton Coliseum. The match will stream on ESPN+.
// SERIES HISTORY
Iowa State leads the all-time series 7-1. The teams first met in 1979, and Monday’s contest marks their second meeting of 2026. The Cyclones defeated Cincinnati 3-1 (25-17, 25-18, 17-25, 25-20) on Oct. 11 at Fifth Third Arena.
// PERFORMING AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL
Sydney Nolan and Kate Lijic have been among the nation’s best this season. Nolan has recorded one 30-kill match and eight 20-plus-kill performances:
- 30 kills in the five-set win over Arizona, the most by a Big 12 player this season
- 25 kills in the reverse-sweep win at Illinois, the sixth-most in a Big 12 five-set match
- 24 kills against Colorado
- 23 kills against Michigan, the most in a Big 12 three-set match
- 21 kills each against Kansas State, West Virginia, UCF and Xavier
She ranks 13th nationally and second in the Big 12 in kills per set (4.49).
Lijic ranks fifth in the Big 12 and 80th nationally in assists per set (9.54). She set a career high with 54 assists against Illinois.
// NEWCOMER IMPACT
Cincinnati has received significant contributions from its newcomers, with juniors Lijic and Andrea Simovski and freshmen Viktoria Ninova and Nina Scrucca making immediate impacts. Lijic has recorded 40-plus assists in seven matches and 30-plus in 13.
Ninova leads Cincinnati with 317 digs (3.87 per set), ranks fourth in the Big 12 in digs per set and has recorded 10-plus digs in 17 matches. She had a career-high and conference-high 34 digs against Arizona and 32 against Kansas State, the two highest single-match totals in the league. She also recorded 18 digs (6.0 per set) against both Michigan and Ball State.
Simovski has three double-doubles: 24 kills and 22 digs against Arizona, 13 kills and 13 digs against Illinois, and 11 kills and 10 digs against Houston. Ninova leads Cincinnati with 27 service aces, while Lijic is close behind with 24. Scrucca ranks second on the team in kills with 203 (2.51 per set) while hitting .282.
// DEFENSIVE MASTERCLASS VS. ARIZONA
Cincinnati recorded 110 digs against Arizona, the most by a Big 12 team this season, second-most nationally and a program record in the rally-scoring era. Four Bearcats reached double figures in digs: Ninova had 34, Simovski had 22, Ava Ledebuhr had 15 and Lijic had 10.
// 20/20 VISION FOR SIMOVSKI
Junior outside hitter Simovski put her two-way versatility on full display against Arizona, recording a season-high 24 kills and a career-best 22 digs. She became the first Power Four player in the nation this season to record 20-plus kills and 20-plus digs in a single match.
// CINCINNATI DIGS DEEP
Cincinnati ranks fourth in the Big 12 in digs per set (13.87), led by Ninova’s team-high 3.87. The Bearcats’ 59 digs against Michigan on Sept. 5 are the sixth-most by a Big 12 team in a three-set match this season.
// PINPOINT ACCURACY
Cincinnati averages 1.71 aces per set, the second-best mark in the Big 12 and 55th nationally. The Bearcats recorded 12 aces against Illinois, the third-most by a conference team this season. Scrucca had five of those, the third-most by a conference player in any match this season. Simovski and Ninova each recorded four aces against Syracuse, while Nolan had four against Houston.
// EFFICIENT ATTACKING
Cincinnati ranks seventh in the Big 12 and 40th nationally in team hitting percentage (.255). The Bearcats own two of the conference’s six most efficient attacking performances this season, along with the ninth-best:
- No. 5: .447 (42-8-76) vs. Syracuse on Aug. 29
- No. 6: .435 (53-6-108) vs. Ball State on Sept. 15
- No. 9: .425 (43-6-87) vs. Kansas State on Oct. 22
Against Syracuse, Simovski had 11 kills on .500 hitting, Scrucca had nine on .368 hitting, Nolan and Audrey Rome had six each, and Lilian Entenmann had five on an .833 clip. Against Ball State, Nolan led three Bearcats in double figures with 14 kills, Scrucca added 13 on .591 hitting and Izzy Busignani had 10. Against Kansas State, Nolan led all players with 16 kills on .417 hitting and Ligia Williams had eight on .455 hitting. Cincinnati finished with 43 kills on a .425 clip and hit at least .400 in all three sets.
Scrucca also recorded a career-high 17 kills against Xavier while hitting .652, the eighth-best single-match hitting percentage by a Big 12 player this season.
// LAST TIME OUT
Cincinnati fell 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-22) to UCF on Friday at Fifth Third Arena, evening the season series at one match apiece. Nolan led the Bearcats with 11 kills and four blocks, Scrucca added 10 kills while hitting .391, and Entenmann had five blocks. Ninova anchored the back row with 17 digs, and Simovski added 10.
UCF finished with 53 digs to Cincinnati’s 43, but the Bearcats outblocked the Knights 8-5. Avah Armour led UCF with 16 kills, and Kiki Horne added 14 while hitting .714.
// SCOUTING THE CYCLONES
Iowa State (13-11, 7-6 Big 12) enters the match after a 3-1 home loss to No. 8 BYU. Christy Johnson-Lynch is in her 22nd season as head coach and sits third in Big 12 history with 226 conference wins.
Libero Rachel Van Gorp leads all Power Four players in digs per set (4.73) and needs 29 more digs to reach the program’s career top 10. She is the first Cyclone named a semifinalist for AVCA Player of the Year, one of 14 nationally and one of two liberos. Van Gorp earned the Big 12 In-Season Challenge Libero of the Month honor and has won four conference Defensive Player of the Week awards this season, the only libero in the league with more than one. Her sixth career honor is a total matched by only four other Cyclones.
Nayeli Gonzalez (3.29 per set) and Nayeli Ti’a (2.63) pace Iowa State in kills. Ti’a needs five more to reach 1,000 for her career, having totaled 480 at Iowa State since 2025 and 515 at San Jose State in 2023 and 2024. Mesaiya Bettis has reached double-digit kills in five of her last six matches, leading the team each time. Since the Oct. 11 meeting with Cincinnati, she has averaged more than 14 kills and 17 points per match.
// GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY
Single-match tickets are $15 for courtside seating, based on availability, and $10 for general admission. Group general admission tickets are available for $5. Family 4-Packs are also available for all weekend matches (Friday through Sunday), which include four tickets and a $20 concession voucher.
To secure your spots for the upcoming season, click HERE to purchase your tickets online, or contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 513-556-2287 today.