The Olathe East Hawks dropped the first set by 10 points Monday, Sept. 14, then won three straight to beat Shawnee Mission Northwest 3-1 in Sunflower League volleyball.

The comeback snapped a three-match losing streak for head coach L. Willer's squad.

Set scores were 15-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-23. The Cougars controlled the opener, but Olathe East clawed back in the second set, edging SM Northwest 25-22 to level the match at one set apiece. The Hawks carried that momentum into the third, pulling away for a 25-19 win. The fourth set was the tightest of the night, with Olathe East holding off the Cougars 25-23 to clinch the match.

The Sunflower League posted the final score. KSHSAA results on GoBound listed the match start time at 6:30 p.m. at Olathe East, where the school held Teacher Appreciation Night.

The win meant more than a single result for a Hawks program that had been reeling. Olathe East lost three straight matches before Monday, all by 0-3 sweeps: to Olathe North on Sept. 3, to Olathe South on Sept. 8 and to Olathe West on Sept. 11, according to MaxPreps schedule data. The Hawks did not win a single set across those three defeats.

That made Monday's first-set loss look familiar. What followed was not.

Olathe East opened the season with a 3-1 win over Shawnee Mission North on Aug. 31 and a 2-1 win over Topeka Seaman on Sept. 1 before the skid began. The victory over SM Northwest moved the Hawks to 3-4 overall. The Cougars dropped to 3-3.

@OEastAthletics: "WHAT A MATCH! Hawks defeat SM Northwest 3-1! 15-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-23. Proud of this team! #GoHawks"

Olathe East returns to the court Tuesday, Sept. 15, hosting Gardner-Edgerton at 6:30 p.m.