PORTLAND, Ore. – No. 9 BYU women’s volleyball team won its fifth-straight match to improve to 11-2 on the year, defeating Portland in a 3-0 win (25-20, 25-21, 25-18) on Saturday.
"We served well today and it put us in some good spots to block some balls," BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. "We fought hard all match and I loved the team win."
Senior McKenna Miller led the Cougars with nine kills while collecting three aces for the second-consecutive match. Sophomore Madelyn Robinson racked up eight kills.
Freshman setter Whitney Bower added a career high seven blocks with 28 assists, six digs, three aces and two kills. Sophomore Heather Gneiting tacked on eight blocks and five kills.
Set 1
BYU hit .429 in the set with just one error against 13 kills. The Cougars took an 8-7 lead and turned into a 16-9 margin capped off by a kill from Miller. BYU led by as many as eight at 23-15 after an ace by Mary Lake. A Pilot service error ended the set at 25-20.
Set 2
The Cougars found themselves down 16-13 in set two until switching the set around behind Miller’s serve. Robinson had back-to-back kills then later used consecutive aces by Miller to take a 19-17 lead. BYU led 22-21 until a kill by Heather Gneiting, a block by Gneiting and Bower, and a final kill from Bower finished things at 25-21.
Set 3
Portland service errors and consecutive blocks by Gneiting and Bower put BYU ahead, 9-4. Portland got within two at 13-11, but two kills by Kate Grimmer sandwiched a Miller ace to pull the Cougars ahead, 16-11. Portland never got closer than four points again, with BYU winning the match on a final kill by Miller to win 25-18.
BYU has a quick turnaround with the Cougars’ next contest coming Tuesday, Oct. 1, against LMU in Provo at 7 p.m. MT.