AMES, IOWA – Georgia Tech volleyball (2-0, 0-0 ACC) extended its success in the season opening tournament with a sweep of 2026 NCAA Tournament Second Round competitor and tournament host, Iowa State (1-1, 0-0 Big12), on Saturday evening.
Laura Bieleski was nothing short of exceptional for the second straight time, this time recording a career high 15 kills on 31 swings for a .452 hitting percentage along with six digs and two blocks.
Quick Hits:
- Tech’s 3-0 wins on Friday and Saturday mark the first time since 2013 that the Yellow Jackets have opened the season with back-to-back sweeps (3-0 vs. Chattanooga; 3-0 vs. Florida A&M).
- Mana Kaneko, saw her second consecutive match with double-digit kills after recording 11 digs on Saturday against Iowa State and 14 on Friday against UNI.
- Bieleski’s 15 kills marked the first time the sophomore has recorded double-digit kills in back-to-back contests.
- Prior to Bieleski’s 15 kills against Iowa State, the last time a Yellow Jacket recorded 15 or more kills in a three-set match was Anna Fiedorowicz against Clemson (16 kills).
- Heloise Soares saw her second 30+ assist match of the season with 32 on Saturday night.
- The Jackets saw their second game of the season with eight blocks and four aces.
- With a sweep in their first ever meeting with the Cyclones, Tech is now 1-0 against Iowa State.
SET BY SET
Set 1 (GT 25 – ISU 23)
- Tech saw its toughest test of the match in the opening set as the Yellow Jackets and the Cyclones traded the lead back and forth seven times. Iowa State got a jump on Tech (9-6) before the Jackets went on to outscore the Cyclones 5-1 to take the lead for the first time. With one final timeout, Tech was able to piece together the final two points of the match via Bieleski’s fifth kill and a block from Bennour and Garibaldi. Soares saw her first kill of the season in the first which was accompanied by 10 assists.
Set 2 (GT 25 – ISU 20)
- The Yellow Jackets were able to get distance from the Cyclones in the second set with a six-point run. Tech was able to keep that momentum through to a 25-20 set two win, finishing with an ace from Kobaidze. Not only did set two see the Jackets continue to shut down the Cyclones attempts at the net, but saw Iowa State with an increased number of attack errors and reception errors. Bennour, Humphrey, and Bieleski all recorded three kills apiece in the third set with both Humphrey and Bieleski doing so with a .750 attack percentage. Soares was exceptional in the middle set, recording 12 assists with a .444 assist percentage. Along with her offensive contributions, Humphrey had two block assists.
Set 3 (GT 25 – ISU 17)
- Set three featured Tech in its most dominant form not only with another four blocks, but another 14 kills and .250 attack percentage, while holding Iowa State to only 10 kills and a .049 attack percentage through the final set. After establishing a two-point lead, Tech went on an impressive eight-point run through two Iowa State timeouts and one media timeout. In the third set, Bieleski saw seven kills off 13 swings, recording half of Tech’s 14 kills. Soares capped her day with 10 final kills on 22 attempts paired with a team high six digs. Kobaidze, Humphrey, and Bennour saw multiple kills to finish the match as well.
UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets will stick around Iowa for one final match in the Cyclone Invite on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. against Loyola-Chicago. The match is set to be streamed on ESPN+.
2026 McCamish Matches
Tech volleyball’s annual McCamish Match is set to return with twice the action as the Yellow Jackets will take on No. 4 Pitt and No. 11 SMU. Tickets are priced as follows for the ranked matches:
Pitt - $23
SMU - $20
Group rate - $18 for Pitt | $15 for SMU
McCamish Pack (includes tickets to both matches) - $32
Tickets for the McCamish Matches can be purchased here.
Single Match Tickets
Single match tickets are now on sale with tickets prices for the 15-match home schedule start at just $10.00 with youth pricing and group discounts (10+ in a single transaction) available (youth pricing not available online).
To purchase, click here.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.