Three of the four players from Hawaii, Kana’i Akana and Wil Stanley of the men’s team and Kiani Moea’i of the women’s team, all graduated from the same school in Honolulu, Punahou School. Though just a small part of the BYU volley program, the three players have already made an impact.
Tryouts for the U.S Women's National Volleyball team will feature four current BYU players. Senior Mary Lake, junior Kennedy Eschenberg, sophomore Heather Gneiting and sophomore Madelyn Robinson will all participate in the open tryout.
For twins Lacy Haddock and Lyndie Haddock-Eppich, their twin bond carried over onto the volleyball court during their time at BYU and led to success for the women's volleyball team.
No. 4 BYU women's volleyball is headed to the Final Four after victories over Florida (23-25, 25-13, 25-17, 25-19) on Friday, Dec. 7, and No. 5 Texas (25-23, 25-23, 25-21) on Saturday, Dec. 8.
Sophomore outside hitter Sara Hamson, who suffered a season-ending knee injury before the volleyball season even began, is working hard on her road to recovery. Hamson, a dual-sport athlete, said she hopes to be ready to play in the women's basketball game against Utah on Dec. 8.
The No. 4 seeded BYU women's volleyball team is headed to their seventh straight Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament after straight-set wins over Stony Brook (25-20, 25-13, 25-12) on Friday, Nov. 30 and rival Utah (25-16, 25-21, 25-18) on Saturday, Dec. 1.
The No. 1 BYU women's volleyball team remained undefeated on the season with road wins over Saint Mary's (25-23, 25-23, 24-26, 25-16) on Thursday, Nov. 15, and Pacific (25-17, 25-19, 25-17) on Saturday, Nov. 17. With its win over Saint Mary's the Cougars improved to 27-0 and clinched their fifth straight West Coast Conference championship.
BYU women's volleyball outside hitter Roni Jones-Perry made an addition to the brand new Athletes' Journal that launched earlier this fall. The project features journal-style entries from BYU athletes, telling their experiences from their point of view.
The women’s basketball team will have to alter their strategy this coming season as Shaylee Gonzales, one of the team's star players, recovers from an injury that occurred mid-July.
BYU football Head Coach Kalani Sitake started the More2Life foundation to give his players service opportunities outside of BYU athletics, and the charity has since sent BYU football players to Harlem, Compton and elsewhere to serve and mentor inner-city youth.
