No. 18 BYU women’s volleyball wins against Saint Mary’s in a brutal 3-0 match

On Saturday afternoon in the Smith Fieldhouse, BYU swept Saint Mary’s in a nail biting match for both schools. 

Don’t let the sweep by BYU fool you. This match was a fight in every set (25-18, 30-28, 25-19) with 14 tied scores in the first two sets and nine in the third set. 

The Gaels started off strong by taking the first lead of the day in set one. Each point for Saint Mary’s equaled an exciting cheer from their sidelines in order to empower the players. The Cougars did not let this rattle them as they fought back hard to keep the game close. Two attack errors by the Gaels gave BYU the high ground as they continued with that strength to finish the set 25-18. 

Freshman and middle blocker, Kate Prior, took the court with a fire inside of her. Prior has recently had the opportunity to take a larger role on the team and has not let that go to waste. Finishing the match with nine kills, two blocks, and hitting .667, Prior is a player to look out for. 

When asked about the transition from high school volleyball to college, Prior responded with how much faster pace everything is, but that it has been a fun transition and she’s excited for more. 

This excitement and desire to succeed carried over into the second set for Prior as she went on a vital 3-0 scoring run for the Cougars with back-to-back kills and a solo block. 

The second set was not an easy one for either side, but highly entertaining as fans rose to their feet for six different set points. The first five resulted in tied scores with a back-and-forth battle between the Cougars and the Gaels. The constant repetition seemed to last an eternity until an attack error by Saint Mary’s created the perfect moment for Erin Livingston to execute a beautiful kill to end the set 30-28. 

“This play. This set. Putting all our energy into that point is what motivated us to get the job done,” Prior said when asked how the team continued on in a difficult set. 

This mindset carried over into the third set as the Cougars took every point seriously. Confidence shone brightly on their side of the court as the lead was never lost. With a 6-0 scoring run, BYU finished off the match with a kill by Whitney Llarenas. The final score for set three was 25-19.

With only three more games left in the season, BYU is ready to give it their all. The Cougars will play on Thursday, November 17th in Malibu. 

“We just want to get better and make the most of our opportunities to play,” Prior said.