INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana University Kokomo volleyball program earned two wins on Saturday afternoon to close out the Marian Knight Invitational. The Cougars defeated Kentucky Christian University and Lincoln College both by a score of 3-0. IUK moves to 3-1 on the season after dropping the opening match of the year to #13 Marian on Friday. 
 
MATCH ONE RECAP 
 
The Cougars wasted no time against the Knights in the opening set, jumping out to an early 8-1 lead. The IUK offense was efficient in the first set, hitting at a .364 clip with nine kills and just one error. 
 
With a 21-9 lead, it looked as if the Cougars were going to hold the Knights to single digits, but a kill made it 21-10 and IUK would close out the set with four straight points to take a 1-0 advantage in the match.
 
The second set proved to be much of the same – IUK in control for the duration. Aside from the score being tied 1-1, the Cougars led for the duration. The Cougars hit a match-high .368 during the second set with 17 kills and just three errors, helping them to a 25-14 win. 
 
In what would be the third and final set, the Cougar defense held the Knights to a -.333 attack percentage, just two kills and 11 errors. Meanwhile, IUK hit at a .310 clip en route to a 25-10 victory. 
 
Offensively, the Cougars showed a balanced attacked with 12 players registering at least one kill. Erinn Adam and Erica Packwood paced the Cougars with six kills each. Tori Wilkinson and Kelsey Hammond each collected five. 
 
Kendal Williams finished the match with 21 assists while Kaley Lyons added 11. Alyvia Smith led all players with 14 digs in the winning effort. 
 
MATCH TWO RECAP
 
IUK made quick work of Lincoln College in their final match of the tournament. The Cougars hit .352 for the match with 41 kills and just 10 errors.
 
After a Lincoln kill to open the set and give the Lynx a 1-0 lead, the Cougars scored six in a row including two kills from Sidney Gerig and a service ace from Morgan Weir. The Lynx kept the Cougars at arm's reach until the middle of the set. With an 11-8 advantage, the Cougars went on a short 5-2 run to extend their lead to 16-9. From there, the Cougars would run away with the opening set, winning 25-14.
 
In the middle set, the Lynx kept things tight, even holding a one-point lead at 8-7. Leading 11-10, the Cougars blew the set open with a 13-3 run making it 24-13, putting the set out of reach. Weir sealed the win with a kill from Alexa Robert, giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead over the Lynx. 
 
Lincoln once again played the Cougars tough in the third set. With the score even at 13, the Cougars went on a 7-1 run to take a commanding 20-14 advantage. IUK beat the Lynx to 25 to close out the match. Maggie Connell finished the set with six kills for IU Kokomo. 

Adam and Gerig led the offense with seven kills while Connell and Lorelei Porter added six each. Lyons dished out a match-high 18 assists while Williams added 15. 

Smith led the defense with 11 digs. 
 
UP NEXT
 
The Cougars will travel to Mishawaka, Indiana next weekend to compete in the Bethel Invitational. IUK will play two matches on Friday and two on Saturday. 
 
For the latest news, updates, and information on the IU Kokomo Cougars, fans can visit IUKCougars.com. Fans can also stay up to date on the latest Cougar news by following @IUKAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.