GRINNELL, Iowa – After struggling through the first set-plus, the Grinnell College volleyball team stormed back to life Tuesday night against Wartburg College. 
 
From that point on, the Pioneers went toe-to-toe with a team receiving votes for the national rankings before succumbing in four sets at Darby Gymnasium. 
 
Wartburg breezed to a 25-13 win in the first set and edged the Pioneers 25-20 in the second before Grinnell dominated 25-10 in the third set. The fourth set was a nail-biter the entire way, with the 5-0 Knights eventually coming away with a 29-27 victory. 
 
Grinnell, 4-3 on the season, was paced by Kaylin Kuhn's '22 seven-ace serve performance. That is tied for ninth-best in program history and second-best for a four-set match. Kuhn also led the team in kills with 18 while tallying 21 digs, boosting her career dig total to 1,024. That ranks 11th in school history. 
 
Emily Brewer '24 distributed 36 assists and Payton Lowrey '22 led the team in digs with 24. Also coming up with double-digit digs were Jenna Keller '24 with 18 and Rachel Woock '23 with 13. Malaina Miles '24 tallied four block assists and two solos. 
 
After losing the first set, Grinnell hung tight in the second and tied it at 16-all on Keller's kill. However, Wartburg answered with a three-point run and never looked back.  
 
The third set was a different story. Leading 7-5, the Pioneers went on a 15-2 run that included three kills by Kuhn, a pair from Miles and ace serves from Keller and Lowrey.  
 
Grinnell carried that momentum to the fourth set, shooting out to a 4-0 lead on Keller's serve. She had an ace in that span and Kuhn a kill. The Pioneers added to their lead, building a six-point cushion at 15-9 on Emmy Nyquist's '24 serve. But the Knights came back and eventually went up 20-18. 
 
Wartburg later was at match point with a 24-21 lead, but the Pioneers refused to go away. A kill by Brewer and two errors by Wartburg tied things at 24-all. Keller's kill put Grinnell at set point, but Wartburg answered with two points for a 26-25 lead. Olivia Jensen '22 kept Grinnell in it with a kill and, after the teams traded points, the Knights scored twice to sneak away with the win.
 
The Pioneers are right back at it Wednesday night when Carleton College visits Darby for a 7 p.m. test.