WAVERLY, Iowa --- Wartburg College swept Coe College, 3-0, Saturday evening to win the 2013 Iowa Conference Volleyball Tournament and secure the Iowa Conference's automatic berth in the 2013 NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship.
2013 Iowa Conference Volleyball Tournament Webpage
The Kohawks outhit the Knights, .132 to .114, in the first set and extended the set to extra points, but came up short, 28-26.
The Knights controlled the second set, posting a .270 attack percentage en route to a 25-18 win, then closed out the match with a 25-20 win in set three.
Wartburg's Maddie Forsyth led all players with 13 kills. She also added five digs. Kelly Niemann added nine. Ramey Sieck had eight kills in addition to a 27-assist, 18-dig double-double.
Marissa Shinstine posted 23 digs and Karly Bown added 10 for the Knights.
Rachel Schaefer led Coe with eight kills, while Katelin Langel and Brianna Smith added six apiece. Mackenzie Harbaugh added 26 assists and Alissa Wittenburg 28 digs for the Kohawks.
Wartburg (26-11) won its fifth IIAC tournament title overall and a third in four seasons. The Knights were ranked eighth in this week's NCAA Central Region rankings. Coe (33-5), which was seventh in this week's regional rankings, must now hope for an at-large berth. Both schools were receiving votes in the most recent AVCA Division III Coaches' Poll (Nov. 5). The entire NCAA field will be announced Monday at NCAA.com.
