CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - On Tuesday night, the Kohawks opened up their 2026 season with a home win against Grinnell College, sweeping the Pioneers three sets to none on the backs of Kohawk juniors
Tessa Casebolt and
Brooke Sullivan's combined 22 kills. Coe as a team finished the match with a .171 hitting percentage, but 11 aces propelled them to the win. Set one saw both teams trading points and finished 25-23 in favor of Coe. The Kohawks reached set point at 24-21 when Grinnell had begun to make a comeback, which nearly sent the set into deuce, but the door was shut with a final kill by
Sullivan. In the second set, Coe took control of a commanding lead in the middle of the set, taking a 10-point lead at 17-7. The Pioneers would not be able to erase their deficit, as Coe would take set two by a score of 25-16. In set three, Coe would once again take the lead over Grinnell by five points early on and took control of the rest of the set to capture their first win of the season.
GAME FACTS:
COE 3 - Grinnell 0
- The match kicked off with an early lead from Coe, with points coming from Casebolt, Sullivan, and freshman Abi Bowe. Grinnell would jump to a 12-7 lead, but attacking errors would bring the Kohawks back into the set as the next seven points would go to Coe. Naj Price and Sullivan would earn four combined kills to win the first set 25-23. Sullivan accounted for five of the 12 kills in the set. Sullivan would finish the match with a .375 hitting percentage, the highest of the two teams.
- Set two saw Coe jump off to a quick start, taking a commanding 9-4 lead before Grinnell would call a timeout. The timeout would not stop the Kohawks' momentum would only give up two more points to the Pioneers, leading 15-6 as Grinnell would call their second timeout of the set. Coe would look to run away with the second set, leading 21-10 as the Pioneers would mount a small comeback as they would win six of the next eight points, forcing a Kohawk timeout. The comeback would be cut short as Coe won the second set 25-16.
- The final set would open again with an early 8-4 lead from Coe as attacking errors from Grinnell would hurt them once again. Coe would take four of the next five points, prompting Grinnell to take their first timeout. The Pioneers would keep the set close as the two teams traded points, but the Kohawks were able to hold onto their lead for the rest of the set, winning 25-21.
Up next: The Kohawks go on the road for the next two weekends, first to Aurora, Ill. for the Jim Coleman Memorial Classic. Coe will face Aurora University on Friday, September 4th, and Elmhurst University and Ohio Northern on Saturday, September 5th. Then next weekend Coe heads to Eau Claire, Wis. for the Sandy Schumacher Memorial Tournament. The Kohawks will face St. Catherine on Friday, September 11, and then whey take on Edgewood College and host UW-Eau Claire on Saturday, September 12th.
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