No. 16 BYU to face off against No. 21 San Diego

No. 16 BYU to face off against No. 21 San DiegoNo. 16 BYU to face off against No. 21 San Diego

PROVO, Utah – No. 16 BYU women’s volleyball will play at No. 21 San Diego on Wednesday, March 17 before hosting the Toreros in the second half of the two-match series on Saturday, March 20 in the Smith Fieldhouse.

Wednesday’s match is set to start at 1 p.m. PDT at the Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego and will be broadcast on the WCC Network. Saturday’s match in Provo will start at 1 p.m. MDT and will be broadcast on BYUtv and the BYUtv App.

No. 16 BYU Cougars (10-1, 9-1 WCC)

  • BYU dropped one spot in the AVCA national poll to No. 16 after not playing any matches last week
  • The Cougars haven’t played since March 6 after Pacific canceled the season series last week
  • BYU is No. 6 in the nation with 13.71 assists per set, led by sophomore Whitney Bower, who ranks No. 29 in the NCAA with an average of 10.82 assists
  • The Cougars also rank No. 13 in both hitting percentage (.299) and in kills per set (14.39)
  • Senior middle blocker Kennedy Eschenberg leads the WCC with a .394 hitting percentage (No. 38 in the NCAA) and is second in blocks per set (1.19)
  • Senior outside hitter Taylen Ballard-Nixon leads the team in kills per set (3.89) and points per set (4.46)

Series Information

  • The BYU-San Deigo series is currently even at 10-10, the Cougars are 4-7 in San Diego and 6-3 in Provo
  • The two teams have met nine times previously when both have been ranked with the Toreros holding a 5-4 advantage.
  • Under head coach Heather Olmstead, BYU is 6-4 against San Diego
  • San Diego defeated BYU in two five-set matches last season

No. 21 San Diego (11-1, 11-1 WCC)

  • San Diego dropped three spots in the most recent AVCA national poll to No. 21
  • The Toreros are tied for No. 1 with Pepperdine in the WCC standings with a .917 winning percentage
  • After winning its first 11 matches, San Diego dropped its first match of the season last week against Loyola Marymount
  • As a team, San Diego ranks 21st in the nation with a .273 hitting percentage
  • The Toreros lead the league in opponent hitting percentage (.157) and blocks per set (2.39)
  • Freshman middle blocker Elly Shraeder leads the WCC with 1.30 blocks per set
  • Senior outside hitter Roxie Wiblin leads the team with 4.56 points per set

Broadcast Info – March 17

Broadcast Info – March 20