Volleyball is arguably the strongest program in the Indiana University Kokomo Athletics Department, and the team recently wrapped up one of their strongest seasons yet in 2023.
The Cougars’ season started somewhat rocky, with early losses to Bethel University, Benedictine College, and Bellevue University giving them a 5-3 record a week into the season. However, the team then went three months without losing another contest.
Head coach Heather Hayes’s squad was nothing short of dominant over a 12 week stretch from September to December. The Cougars finished the regular season 29-3 with a flawless 19-0 mark in conference play. It’s also notable that 23 of their wins were 3-0 set shutouts, and the team only gave up a total of 7 sets in their 29 victories.
The team rolled into the River States Conference championship tournament as the easy #1 seed. 3-0 wins over IU Southeast and Rio Grande put them in the final, where they earned their sixth straight RSC championship with a 3-1 victory over IU East.
IU Kokomo finished the season ranked 14th in the nation, and their conference title earned them an automatic bid to the NAIA national championship. In their ninth consecutive appearance at the national tourney, IUK defeated Morningside University and Oklahoma Wesleyan in their first two matchups, before their impressive season came to an end at the hands of #2 Indiana Wesleyan in the Sweet Sixteen.
Cougar volleyball’s final 2023 record was a staggering 34-3, the highest win percentage of Heather Hayes’s 11 year tenure as leader of the program. While the team will be losing five seniors from this year’s dominant roster, IUK volleyball always stays strong and competitive, and there’s no reason to think that the team will take a step back in 2024.
