No. 10 BYU women’s volleyball got off to a hot start in the Idaho State Invitational with a three-set (25-11, 25-23, 25-18) win over Boise State.
“I think we did a good job offensively today,” BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. “Our block got some great touches and slowed down a good Boise State offense.”
The Cougars (7-0) started off the first set with a pair of Amy Boswell kills which was followed by three kills from McKenna Miller to extended the lead to 6-3. BYU and Boise State began to trade points from there, but the Cougars remained ahead. Veronica Jones-Perry went to the serving line which took the Cougars on a 6-0 run making the score 18-10. The Cougars then went on another 6-1 run and an ace from Lyndie Haddock won the set for BYU 25-11.
The Broncos came out with the lead in the second set but the Cougars quickly answered back with a 5-0 run to take a 9-6 advantage. The two teams battled back-and-forth tying the set at 12-all. With the assistance of a Lacy Haddock kill the Cougars were able to regain a three point lead. A kill from Miller gave BYU set point and a double block from Whitney Young Howard and Jone-Perry won the tight set for the Cougars 25-23.
Once again Boise State took the lead in the third set. BYU fought to tie the set at 6-6 however the Broncos then took the next three points to go up 9-6. The Cougars then went on a 5-1 run to take their first lead of the set. The set stayed close but after a Boise State timeout and several hitting errors BYU was able to cruise to a 25-18 win closing out the game.
Miller led BYU with 17 kills while hitting a .324 clip. Lyndie Haddock added 31 assists while Mary Lake contributed a match-high 11 digs. Howard had five blocks to help seal the win.
The Cougars continue play in the Idaho State Invitational Saturday, September 10 beginning at noon MDT against Missouri. They will wrap up the tournament against the host team Idaho State later that night at 7 p.m. MDT.
