KOKOMO, Ind. - The IU Kokomo volleyball team played their first away River States Conference match at Oakland City Friday night, dominating the Mighty Oaks on their way to a three-set win.

Although the Cougars were able to cruise for most of the match, play early in the first set was tightly-contested. IU Kokomo trailed 10-8 but managed to take a 16-12 lead and force an Oakland City timeout.

From then on, outside hitter Maggie Connell would add four more kills to close out a 25-18 first set win for the Cougars.

IU Kokomo carried their momentum over from the first set, winning the first seven points for an early 7-0 lead. Leading 13-6, the Cougars utilized a 5-0 run to extend their lead to double-digits at 12. IUK would win the second set 25-14.

The Mighty Oaks won the opening two points of the third set, but the Cougars answered with five-straight points to take a 5-2 lead. Leading Oakland City 8-7, a Tori Wilkinson kill along with two Lexi Broyles kills gave IUK an 11-7 lead and forced an OCU timeout.

Heather Hayes's squad forced a final Mighty Oak timeout of the set while in-front 18-9, as the Cougars went on to win the third set 25-16 to complete the sweep.

Junior Maggie Connell and sophomore Lexi Broyles combined to lead IU Kokomo Friday evening, as Connell recorded a match-high 15 kills while Broyles added ten kills, four blocks, and a service ace. Cali Cummings tallied seven kills and four blocks.

Four Cougars totaled double-digit digs, led by Alyvia Smith with 21. Sophomore Julia Sanders had a season-high 15 digs. Kaley Lyons had 23 assists and Allison Richman contributed 16.

The Cougars will head to Kentucky to take on the Bearcats of Brescia tomorrow afternoon. First-serve is set for 1:00 PM ET.

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.