STERLING - After the first two sets between Kansas Wesleyan and Sterling, the teams had both won a set. In the third and fourth sets, the Coyotes had rally from late set deficit to open Kansas Conference play with a win over the Warriors on Tuesday at the Gleason Center.
The Coyotes won the opening set 25-17, but dropped the second 25-21. KWU then won the third set 25-21 and the fourth 25-22 to take the match and improve to 6-4 overall and 1-0 in the KCAC. Sterling fell to 9-3 overall and 0-1 in the KCAC.
Wesleyan raced out to a 7-2 lead in the opening set but Sterling came back and tied things up at 10-10. Back-to-back kills by Madelyn Wolf gave the lead back to the Coyotes and after Sterling again tied it at 14, the Coyotes ran off six straight to take a 20-14 lead on a Wolf ace.
Sterling got three straight, but the Coyotes closed it out with five straight to take the set.
KWU led 9-8 in the second set and after Sterling had taken the lead at 10-9, the Coyotes scored four straight to lead 13-10. Sterling answered right back with its own 4-point surge to take a 14-13 lead. Sterling opened up a 21-17 lead, but the Coyotes got no closer than two points the rest of the way as Sterling took the second set.
Sterling carried its momentum into the third set, taking a 5-2 lead, but the Coyotes drew even at 5-5 and the set was tied at 9-9 when Sterling scored four straight to take a 13-9 lead. The Warriors led 18-15 when the Coyotes came back and tied it at 18. Sterling led 20-18 and 21-19 when the Coyotes came alive. Fueled by a kill by Sara Bebout, then four straight show stoppers by Rylee Serpan, the Coyotes closed out a 25-21 set win on a kill by Wolf.
The Coyotes had to play from behind again in the fourth. Sterling led 9-7 before embarking on a 5-point run to take a 14-7 lead. The lead extended to 17-8 for the Warriors, but the Coyotes weren't finished yet.
A kill by Kate Bebout, a bad set by Sterling setter Keala Wilson and two more Sterling hitting errors sparked an 11-2 run for the Coyotes that tied the set at 19-all on a kill by Sara Bebout. Sterling took the lead at 20-19, but four straight by the Coyotes made it 23-20 in favor of KWU. A Sara Bebout kill gave Wesleyan match point at 24-21, and another Sara Bebout kill finished the match.
The Coyotes were again led by Serpan with 15 kills while hitting .324 for the match. Wolf and Joey Pennington added nine kills each and Sara Bebout had seven to go along with 22 assists in the match. Kori Arnold had 20 digs as four Coyotes reached double figures. KWU served 10 aces in the match led by four from Wolf.