BELOIT, Wisconsin— The Prairie Fire volleyball team defeated Beloit College 3-0 on the road on Saturday afternoon.
 
Knox took the first three points of the first set. The first point came courtesy of a kill by Autumn Schneider. Beloit would get their first point to cut the lead to 1-3 but the Prairie Fire responded with a kill from sophomore Katie Anderson. A kill by Catessa Duran would extend the lead to 5-2. 
 
The two teams would go back and forth with Knox keeping the lead. Beloit cut the lead to two, making the score 14-12. The Bucs would not get that close for the remainder of the first set as the Prairie Fire responded with three consecutive points to extend the lead to 17-12 and never look back. The final score of the first set was 25-17 in favor of Knox 
 
With the start of the second set, Knox was looking to take control and inch closer to their first conference win of the season. Katie Anderson had two kills for Knox's first points of the game. Back-to-back points gave Beloit an early 3-2 advantage. Duran quickly answered with a kill to tie the game at 3-3. The two Midwest Conference foes battled for control early in the set. A pair of kills from Marissa Akers and a kill from Anderson gave Knox a 7-4 lead, but Beloit answered with a five-point run to take a 9-7 lead. 
 
Anderson put an end to the run with a kill. Sally Bessette and Akers joined in on the fun with kills of their own. The Prairie Fire gained the slight edge with a 10-9 lead, but the Buccaneers reeled off three consecutive points to regain the lead.  
 
The second set remained close to the end. A kill by Duran tied the game up at 24-24. Beloit momentarily took the lead back making the score 25-24, but the Prairie Fire scored the last three points of the game to earn a 27-25 victory. 
 
Schneider earned the first kill of the third set to give Knox the early lead. A kill by Thao Luong extended the lead to 3-1. Knox maintained a 10-7 lead before the Buccaneers rattled off five consecutive points to take a 12-10 advantage. 
 
The Prairie Fire responded quickly with a 3-0 run make up the deficit and take a 13-12 lead. After a point from Beloit, Bessette earned a kill to regain the lead for Knox. The teams settled in and forced ties at 20-20 and 21-21, but the Buccaneers took a 23-22 lead. That would be the last time that the Prairie Fire trailed. Three kills in a row would seal the Buccaneers' defeat.
 
Anderson led the team with 13 kills and 20 assists. Duran added 10 kills and Schneider racked up eight of her own. Akers notched 16 digs.
 
"I was very happy with how we finished the second and third sets," said head coach Pat Barry. "We showed some resilience in some very tight spots. I am very proud of the team."
 
Knox returns to action as they host MacMurray on October 1.