Cross country

Knox College senior Lance Miller, named Midwest Conference Performer of the Week.

Knox men 14th, women 16th at Bradley Intercollegiate
The Knox College cross country teams ran at the Bradley Intercollegiate Championships in Peoria, Ill., Sept. 19, with the Prairie Fire men finishing the 8K race 14th among the 23 entrants and the women placing 16th out of 23 teams in the 5K run.

The men saw improvement across the board with their top four runners posting a season-best time and the next three enjoying a personal best. Senior Lance Miller paced the Knox men with his time of 25:24.9, the second-fastest time of his career, which was good for 16th in the field of 240 runners. The next Prairie Fire runner to complete the course was sophomore Misha Ratner in 27:33.0 to claim 65th place.

Each of the top three Knox women shaved more than a minute off their 5K time from three weeks ago at Loras, with first-year Elise Conwellin placing 65th in 19:17.7. Junior Cecilia Goodin also cracked the top half of the field of 195 runners with a time of 20:08.2, taking 91st overall.

Knox hits the trails again Oct. 4 at the Dan Huston Invite, hosted by Wartburg College at the Max Cross Country Course in Waverly, Iowa.

Football

Knox edges Beloit 16-14
Sophomore Fernando Torres kicked a 21-yard field goal with 7:35 to play, and the Knox College defense made it hold up as the Prairie Fire (1-2, 1-1 Midwest Conference) earned a 16-14 victory at Strong Stadium in Beloit, Wis., Sept. 20.

Knox dominated the statistics, holding the host Buccaneers to 142 yards of offense while piling up 322 of its own (284 on the ground). But a pair of turnovers sabotaged the Prairie Fire at inopportune times, including a fumble in the third quarter that led to a Beloit touchdown for a 14-7 lead.

Junior Mario Byrd sparked the Fire by returning the ensuing kickoff 57 yards to the Buccaneer 38. Junior Taylor McAdams scored on a 1-yard dive on the final play of the third quarter. But Knox was left trailing by a point when Amani Floyd came off the edge and blocked the PAT for Beloit.

Floyd then one-upped Byrd by returning the kickoff 65 yards to the Prairie Fire 28, only to have the Knox defense deny a first down to reclaim possession at the Beloit 19. The Buccaneer defense, which was on the field for nearly 39 minutes of the contest, was worn down by the relentless rushing attack as the Prairie Fire marched inside the Beloit 10. Although Knox was unable to push into the end zone, Torres provided the go-ahead kick.

Sophomore cornerback Colin Finnigsmier secured the victory with an interception in the final minute of play.

After a bye week, Knox will host Midwest Conference foe University of Chicago (2-1, 2-0 MWC) at the Harley Knosher Bowl in Galesburg on Saturday, Oct. 4.

Men’s soccer

Arito Nakamichi scored the game-winning goal against Coe Sept. 17, the 10th goal of his career.

Knox tops Coe 2-1
A pair of first-half goals held up for the Knox College men’s soccer team as it fended off host Coe College at Clark Field in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Sept. 17 for a 2-1 victory.

The Prairie Fire (3-1-2) enjoyed a 17-9 shot advantage, 11-2 on goal, in handing the Kohawks (2-2-3) their second defeat of the season.

“This was another battle for our guys to take lessons from,” said Tyler Sheikh, the Knox head coach. “Playing midweek games on the road is never easy, so coming back with a win should give us a bounce heading into the weekend.”

Ethan Thomas and Arito Nakamichi scored the goals for Knox. Thomas’ goal was his third of the season, tying junior Kestervens Dera for the team lead.

Knox blanks Blackburn 1-0
Junior Kestervens Dera scored his team-leading fourth goal of the season in the 13th minute, and sophomore goalkeeper Diogo Pereira made it stand up as the Prairie Fire left Blackburn Stadium in Carlinville, Ill., Sept. 20 with a 1-0 victory.

The Prairie Fire are now 4-1-2 on the season and have won their last four matches, while the Beavers drop to 3-4.

“This certainly was not an easy day for us,” Sheikh said. “But again we showed resilience to protect a lead. We stayed together and deserved the win. Now just one more before conference play; we will be ready.”

Knox men’s soccer is back in action Sept. 27 at Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, Ill.

Knox, Simpson battle to 0-0 draw
Defense was the name of the game Sept. 23 at Jorge Prats Field in Galesburg as neither Simpson College (3-3-5) nor host Knox College (4-1-3) could muster much offense in a scoreless draw.

Both teams attempted four shots each, two of which were on goal for the visiting Storm and just one for the Prairie Fire. The best scoring opportunity came with less than 15 minutes to play when Simpson’s Iain MaCrae fired a shot from point-blank range, only to have Knox sophomore keeper Diogo Pereira stop the shot.

Knox next plays its Midwest Conference opener at undefeated Lake Forest College (8-0) at 3:30 p.m. Sept. 27.

Men’s golf

Knox eighth at Fighting Scot Invite
The Knox College men’s golf team shaved seven strokes off its first-round score at the Fighting Scot Invite hosted by Monmouth College at Gibson Woods Golf Course in Monmouth, Ill., Sept. 13-14, ending the round with a 26-over 310 to finish eighth at 59-over par.

Waldorf College took the team title after entering the day in fourth place, five strokes off the pace, by shooting a 6-over 290 to edge out Augustana’s B team by two strokes.

Senior Pranav Nandakumar led Knox, matching his first-round score of 74 (+3), recovering from an opening-hole double bogey to sink five birdies along the way. His 6-over 148 in the tournament earned him ninth place.

Senior Gabriel Newman shot a 4-over 75 after finishing the first round with an 82. Others contributing to the team score were junior Nathaniel Zug at 8-over par (79) with three birdies and first-year Jaxson Forman carding an 11-over 82 with one birdie.

Rain shortens Midwest Regional Classic
With the Midwest Region Classic in Kansasville, Wis., in full swing, rain washed out the second round, leaving first-round totals as the final scoring.

This was unfortunate for Knox, which was climbing the leaderboard after completing the first round in 24th place in the 45-team field.

Seniors Gabriel Newman and Pranav Nandakumar were playing their round at even par after leading the Prairie Fire yesterday at 2- and 3-over par, respectively. Newman had three birdies in the 10 holes he completed, while Nandakumar, who finished 11 holes, countered a pair of bogeys with a hole-in-one on the 182-yard, par-3 15th.

Knox will next play at the Stateline Shootout hosted by Mount St. Joseph at Miami Whitewater Forest Golf Club in Harrison, Ohio, Sept. 27-28.

Women’s soccer

Knox shuts out Eureka 4-0
Sophomore Isabella Urrutia Flores scored one goal and set up another in leading Knox to a 4-0 road victory at McKinzie Field in Eureka, Ill., Sept. 17.

The Prairie Fire (3-2-1) outshot the host Red Devils (1-5), 36-0, with 23 of those attempts on goal sending Knox to its fourth straight shutout.

“Today we put together a fantastic team effort,” Prairie Fire head coach Annie Gerdes said. “I am really proud of this team and their willingness to work for their teammates. It was simply a great win for our team.”

A stifling defense helped sophomore goalkeeper Darby Wallig extend her streak to four games and nearly 400 minutes without allowing a goal, and her four shutouts lead the Midwest Conference.

Carthage edges Knox 1-0
With three wins and a tie in its last four games, the Prairie Fire (3-3-1) were edged by host Carthage College 1-0 at Art Keller Field in Kenosha, Wis., Sept. 20.

“This was a really great battle for us against a great team,” Gerdes said. “I am very proud of how we played today and how we continue to grow each game.”

The Firebirds kept the pressure on the Knox defense, firing off 16 shots, nine of which were at Wallig. Only one slipped past her — a goal in the 18th minute from Emma Amberg that stood as the winner.

Next up for Knox is a home tilt with Illinois Wesleyan (4-3) at Jorge Prats Field in Galesburg at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24.

Women’s volleyball

Sam Black dug out 46 Rockford attacks as Knox defeated the Regents 3-2 Sept. 23.

Knox goes 0-4 at Stinger Classic
The Knox volleyball team lost all four matches at the Stinger Classic hosted by the University of Wisconsin–Superior at Mertz Mortorelli Gymnasium in Superior, Wis., Sept. 19-20.

The Prairie Fire dropped a pair of 3-0 matches Sept. 20 to Concordia Moorhead (25-15, 27-25, 25-10) and St. Scholastica (25-16, 25-15, 25-12). The losses dropped Knox to 0-16 while Moorhead improved to 3-6 and the Saints to 7-4.

On Sept. 19, Knox fell to Augsburg 25-12, 25-19, 25-22 before losing to Wisconsin-Stout 25-8, 25-23, 25-23.

Knox outlasts Rockford 3-2
In a marathon five-set match, Knox defeated Rockford in Rockford, Ill., Sept. 23, 22-25, 25-19, 27-25, 23-25, 15-13, for its first win of the 2025 season, ending a 16-game skid.

Sophomore Maria Jabor Jahn had 12 kills to lead the Knox attack, but defense carried the day.

As a team, the Prairie Fire recorded 154 digs — its most in almost exactly a decade — and the Regents had 157 of their own, leading to extended rallies. Five Knox players posted a career high in digs, led by senior Sam Black with 46, while sophomores Bri Holland and Zoe Pav added 22 and 21, respectively.

Knox will carry this momentum into its home opener Sept. 25 against Principia College at Memorial Gymnasium in Galesburg.

Information provided by Knox College Athletics.