KOKOMO, Ind. - The IU Kokomo volleyball team swept the University of Rio Grande Friday night to improve to 11-1 in River States Conference play. The Cougars are now 22-5 overall and remain in first-place in the RSC West division.

The Cougars came out of the gates strong, winning the first five points of the match. By the midway point of the opening set, IU Kokomo took a 13-7 lead to force a Rio Grande timeout. The Red Storm were forced to take their final timeout of the set while trailing 20-16, but they responded to make the set tight.

Rio Grande trailed 24-20 late in the opening frame, but won three-straight points to trim the IUK lead to one. IU Kokomo head coach Heather Hayes took a timeout to settle her squad and the Cougars won the following point via a Rio Grande attack error to win the first set 25-23.

The Red Storm played well to open the second set, taking an early five-point lead at 10-5. IU Kokomo responded emphatically, as the Cougs went on a 10-0 run to take a five-point lead of their own. Rio Grande managed to get within a point at 16-15, but IUK went on to win the set 25-19 to take a 2-0 lead.

IU Kokomo led 6-5 early in the third set, but from then on the Cougs outscored 19-5 to win the third set 25-10 and the match 3-0 over the Red Storm.

Lorelei Porter and Sidney Gerig led IUK with nine kills apiece, and freshman Lexi Broyles added eight. Porter had an impressive eight service aces in the match.

Kaley Lyons and Allison Richman each tallied 16 assists to lead the Cougs. Audrey Strawsma had a match-high five total blocks for IU Kokomo.

The Cougars will be back-in-action tomorrow as they host West Virginia Tech. First serve is set for 12:00 P.M.

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.