Grinnell College box score
Illinois College box score

Galesburg, IL – The Prairie Fire opened the home portion of the fall season on Sunday with a split against two Midwest Conference South Division foes.

Knox began the day with a match against defending MWC champion Grinnell College, a 9-0 winner against the Prairie Fire.

The Prairie Fire’s #1 doubles team of juniors Dana Pierce (South Barrington, IL, Barrington) and Charlotte Garvin (Omaha, NE, Central) played the closest match of the day against the Pioneers.  Grinnell’s top doubles team of Shirlene Luk and Clothilde Thirouin came away with a 9-8 win against Pierce and Garvin

The Fire bounced back to win the second match 9-0 against Illinois College.  It was the second win for Knox (2-6, 2-2 MWC South) in the team’s last three matches after earning a 9-0 victory on Saturday at Illinois College.

The Lady Blues pushed the Fire to three sets in the #1 singles match between Pierce and Tamar Norville.  Pierce prevailed 6-2, 5-7, 10-8.

IC’s Zippy Abdulmalik also took Knox senior Aimee Neilan (Lake in the Hills, IL, Jacobs) to three sets at #3 singles.  Neilan won the first set 6-2 then dropped the second 5-7 before bouncing back to win 12-10 in the third set.

Besides Pierce and Neilan, the other singles winners for the Fire were senior Emily Tyl (Downers Grove, IL, Benet Academy) at #2 singles, senior Sarah Bolitho (St. Charles, IL, St. Charles East) at #4 singles, junior Emiley Brand (Princeton, IL, Princeton) at #5 singles and sophomore Claire Neri (Melrose Park, IL, West Leyden) at #6 singles.

Pierce and Tyl posted an 8-1 #1 doubles victory.  Neilan and Brand won by the same score in their #2 doubles match.  Bolitho and senior Charmaine Washington (Blue Island, IL, La Lumiere School) won 8-0 in #3 doubles.

Knox has nearly two weeks off until traveling to Wisconsin to play Ripon College and Beloit College on September 29.

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