MISHAWAKA, Ind. – The Indiana University Kokomo volleyball team closed out the weekend by splitting a pair of matches Saturday afternoon. The Cougars opened the day by beating Grace College (Ind.) in four sets before falling to Cumberland University (Tenn.) in four sets. IU Kokomo is now 6-2 through two weekends of play.

Match One Recap

The Cougars won the opening three points of the match to set the tone early. Leading 7-5, IUK went on a 6-0 run to take a 13-5 lead. The Cougs took a ten-point lead at 21-11 to force a Grace timeout, but there was no answer. IU Kokomo won the opening set 25-13.

Grace College led early in the set but the Cougs responded with a 4-0 spurt to take their first lead of the set at 6-5. IUK took an 18-10 lead to force the second Lancer timeout of the set, but the Lancers stormed back to cut the IUK lead to two. The Cougars survived the scare to close out the set 25-20.

The Lancers led 15-12 over halfway through the third set, forcing a Cougar timeout. IUK could not recover, as Grace College managed to force a fourth-set, winning the third 25-22.

With the set tied at five, IU Kokomo went on a 4-0 run to put some distance between the two teams. The Cougars took a 14-7 lead after three consecutive kills to force Grace to take a timeout. The Lancers reeled off five straight points to cut the IU Kokomo lead to two and force a Cougar timeout. Head coach Heather Hayes rallied her team and the Cougs were able to close out the fourth set 25-22 for a four-set win over Grace College.

Lorelei Porter led IUK with 14 kills, Tori Wilkinson added 12, and Audrey Strawsma had 10 kills. Alyvia Smith had a match-high 29 digs.

Match Two Recap

IU Kokomo came out of the gates strong, hitting for a match-high .364 hitting percentage in the opening set of their match with Cumberland University. IU Kokomo controlled play for a majority of the set, but Cumberland came back to cut the lead to one at 21-20. Cumberland took a 24-23 lead late in the set, but the Cougars won the following three points to take the first set 26-24.

Cumberland University controlled play for most of the set, but the Cougs cut a 22-17 lead to one at 23-22. The Phoenix were able to close out the set to tie the match at one set apiece.

Cumberland opened the set by winning the first seven points, as they went on to win the third set 25-16.

The Phoenix took an early 3-0 lead in the fourth set, but IU Kokomo battled back to tie it at four. The Cougs were forced to take a timeout after Cumberland took an 11-6 lead. IU Kokomo got within two at 12-10, but Cumberland closed out the fourth set on a 13-6 run to win 3-1.

Alyvia Smith came through with another impressive performance, tallying 25 digs. Audrey Strawsma led the Cougs with 13 kills.

The Cougars will return to action next weekend at the Aquinas/Cornerstone Invite. The Cougars will play four matches, with two on both Friday and 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.