SANTA CLARA, Calif. – No. 11 BYU women's volleyball fell to Santa Clara in a three-set (25-14, 25-21, 25-15) road contest Thursday night at the Leavey Event Center.
"We were completely outmatched tonight," BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead said. "Hats off to Santa Clara. We've got to find a way to turn it around for Saturday's match."
Alexa Gray led the Cougars with seven kills. Jennifer Hamson collected four blocks while Alohi Robins-Hardy added 10 assists. Ciara Parker contributed eight digs in the match.
BYU (18-4, 9-2 West Coast Conference) got off to a slow start to begin the first set as Santa Clara (17-7, 7-4 WCC) jumped out to an early 7-1 lead after a few Cougar miscues. A Gray kill helped to bring BYU within three at 9-6, but a trio of points followed from the Broncos to put them back up by six at 12-6. The teams traded points until a pair by Santa Clara brought its lead back to six at 18-12 and forced Olmstead to call timeout. The Broncos ended on a 9-2 run to take the first set 25-14.
Santa Clara got off to another hot start in the second set, beginning on a 6-0 run with the help of two service aces. Later, Amy Boswell and Hamson got the first block of the match for the Cougars – still trailing 10-5. A Gray kill brought BYU within four at 11-7, but a 5-1 Bronco rally followed to extend Santa Clara's advantage to eight at 17-9. The Broncos took their first timeout following a 4-1 Cougar run that brought BYU back within four at 19-15. Three-straight Cougar points followed the break to bring the score to 19-18, Santa Clara, and forced another timeout. The Broncos responded this time, ending on a 6-2 run to take the second set 25-21.
BYU took a 3-2 lead in the third set following a Santa Clara attack error. The two sides then exchanged scores until a trio of consecutive points put the Broncos back up 9-5. A pair of blocks from Hamson and Whitney Young helped the Cougars stay in the set, trailing five at 15-10. BYU took its first timeout of the set at 18-12 after a kill from Santa Clara's Sabrina Clayton. The Broncos closed out the set on a 7-2 run to complete the sweep with a 25-15 third set score.
The loss is the first time BYU has been swept in a match since it played Saint Mary's on the road in November 2011.
The Cougars stay on the road Saturday when they take on San Francisco at its home court at 1 p.m. PDT. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women's volleyball schedule page.