Tuesday, Nov. 11 | Indianola, IA | Cowles Fieldhouse
#6 Wartburg vs. #3 Simpson | 7 PM
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The Wartburg College volleyball team (15-11 overall) begins the A-R-C Tournament this week against Simpson College. The Knights play the first round match with the Storm on Tuesday, Nov. 11, beginning at 7 p.m.
 
KNIGHTS
Record: 15-11 overall, 4-4 A-R-C
Last Match: L, 3-0 at Cornell College
Rankings: N/A
Head Coach: DeAnn Akins (1st Season) | 15-11 overall
 
STORM
Record: 18-7, 5-3 A-R-C
Last Match: W, 3-0 at Luther College
Rankings: N/A
Head Coach: Dani Kohut Lynch (1st Season) | 18-7 overall
All-time vs. Simpson: 39-33

A-R-C Tournament Bracket
First Round - Tuesday, November 11th
No. 5 Nebraska Wesleyan at No. 4 Central - 7:00 p.m.
No. 6 Wartburg at No. 3 Simpson - 7:00 p.m.

Semifinals - Thursday, November 13th
No. 4/5 at No. 1 University of Dubuque - 7:00 p.m.
No. 3/6 at No. 2 Coe - 7:00 p.m.

Championship - Saturday, November 15th
Semifinal #1 Winner vs. Semifinal #2 Winner

The winner will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
 
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS
Wartburg concluded the final week with a 15-11 record after dropping matches to Coe College, 3-0, on Nov. 5 and Cornell College, 3-0, on Nov. 8. Sophomore middle hitter Anna Sash leads the Knights with 254 kills, followed  by Kaylee Koudelka with 219. Defensively, Peyton Robinson has recorded a team-best 448 digs, while setter Sophie Sedgwick has tallied 522 assists.
Sash leads the American Rivers Conference with 115 total blocks, the highest mark in the league to date and a total that ranks seventh in the nation. Robinson paces the team in service aces (43), followed closely by Whitney Klyn (33), Aspen Falk (31), Sedgwick (31), and Sash (30).
 
WHERE WARTBURG RANKS IN THE A-R-C
First in blocks per set (1.91)
Second in total blocks (185.0)
Second in aces per set (2.12)

Sash is first in total blocks (115) and second in hitting percentage (.326). Robinson is third in services aces (43) and third in total digs (448).

SASH PICKS UP SECOND A-R-C DEFENSIVE POTW HONOR
Third in the nation with 97 blocks, Anna Sash picked up her second American Rivers Conference Player of the Week Award on Oct.13, following her first nod Sept. 29. 

ROBINSON SURPASSES 1,000-DIG MARK
Junior Peyton Robinson etched her name into program history by recording her 1,000th career dig in a 13-dig effort against Luther on Sept. 23. Sash recorded two blocks against Buena Vista and another seven against Grinnell.

SEDGWICK DISHES OUT 1,500th ASSISTS VS DUBUQUE
Senior Sophie Sedgwick surpassed the 1,500-career assist milestone with 13 against Dubuque on Oct. 3.

AKINS EARNS INAGURAL VICTORY
Head Coach DeAnn Akins earned her first career victory at Wartburg with a 3-1 win over Transylvania University. After dropping the opening set, the Knights rallied with three straight set wins (25-16, 25-22, 26-24), overcoming a 24-20 deficit in the final frame to secure the match.
The Knights followed with a sweep of Olivet (25-16, 25-13, 25-16) before falling to an unbeaten Berry College (Ga.) squad in straight sets.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. SIMPSON
Wartburg and Simpson's rivalry dates back to 1982 and spanning 72 matches. The Knights have fashioned a 39-33 record in the previous matchups, including 15 of the last 16 matches. The Knights and Storm last met in October, in which Wartburg recorded a 3-0 sweep. The last time that Coe defeated Wartburg was 2024, with a 3-0 sweep.
 
09/08/10 – W, 3-2
10/12/11 – W, 3-0
09/26/12 – W, 3-0
10/02/13 – W, 3-0
09/17/14 – W, 3-1
09/16/15 – W, 3-0
10/22/16 – W, 3-0
10/26/17 – W, 3-1
10/16/18 – W, 3-0
10/08/19 – W, 3-0
03/20/21 – W, 3-0
10/08/22 – W, 3-2
10/28/23 – W, 3-1
11/02/24 – L, 3-0
10/17/25 – W, 3-0
 
Simpson enters the matchup at 18-7 overall. Their last two matchups the Storm picked up a pair of American Rivers Conference victories against Loras (3-1) and Luther (3-0).
 
KNIGHTS WELCOME 12 NEWCOMERS
Twelve of the 29 players on the 2025 roster are newcomers.

Gracie Hoskins (Urbana, Iowa/Center Point Urbana), Haedyn Rebelsky (Van Meter, Iowa/Van Meter), Ashlynn Hodges (Shenandoah, Iowa/Shenandoah), Brooklyn Biddle (Lowden, Iowa/Calamus-Wheatland), Addison Huffman (Manchester, Iowa/West Delaware), Zoey Breeding (Winterset, Iowa/Winterset), Neah Bunkers (Polk City, Iowa/North Polk), Ema Roberts (Ladora, Iowa/HLV), Abigale Merritt (Galena, Ill./Galena), Brooke Burgemeister (Belle Plaine, Minn./Belle Plaine), Dakota Poen (Norwalk, Iowa/Norwalk), and Callie Welsch (Winterset, Iowa/Winterset).
 
AKINS MAKES COACHING DEBUT
This season marks the debut season for Head Coach DeAnn Akins, with longtime head coach Jennifer Walker transitioning into her 28th year as an assistant coach.
Akins joins the Wartburg coaching staff from Coe College where she has led that program since 2006. Over her tenure at Coe, Akins won five A-R-C regular season championships and three A-R-C tournament titles. Akins earned four trips to the NCAA Tournament, with 388 career victories over her 19 seasons at the helm. Sixty All-ARC performers, 12 All-Americans, and three offensive conference MVPs were produced under Akins. On top of her athletes' success on the court, Akins has taken home A-R-C Coach of the Year honors five times.
Prior to Coe, Akins spent the 2005 season as the director of volleyball operations at the University of Iowa, which followed some time as head coach of Kirkwood Community College.
Akins is a native of Waverly, Iowa, as she worked as an assistant coach at Wartburg during the 2002 season.
In her inaugural season leading the Wartburg Volleyball program, Akins stated that "This is home, it just feels right. I've had a lot of great memories here at Wartburg as a child.", said at the 2025 Fall Sports Media Day on Tuesday, Aug. 26.
 
 
TABBED THIRD IN A-R-C PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
Wartburg was picked third in the A-R-C preseason poll, earning one first-place vote.
 
A-R-C Preseason Coaches' Poll (Aug. 21)
Place    Team (First-place votes)    Points

1.                      Coe (6)                     62

2.            Univ. of Dubuque (2)          53

T-3.        Nebraska Wesleyan            45

T-3.               Wartburg (1)                 45

5.                    Central                        41

6.                     Loras                          28

7.                   Simpson                       26

8.                Buena Vista                    15

9.                    Luther                          9
 .