Set 1
BYU opened up a 6-2 early lead as four Cougars recorded kills in the opening points: Whitney McEwan-Llarenas, Livingston, Mia Lee and Eden Bower. The momentum continued to be in BYU’s favor as McEwan-Llarenas recorded another kill, followed moments later by a service ace from McComber, pushing the lead to 10-6.
Two kills from Livingston and one from Kate Prior forced the Bearcats to take a timeout down by five points (13-8). Both teams traded points, until the Cougars recorded four points in a row with a kill, block, service ace and block, forcing another Cincinnati timeout with BYU leading 19-10.
Cincinnati made a 5-2 run of its own before BYU finished the set with three kills. Livingston led the Cougars with six kills in the set and helped pace BYU to a .385 clip.
Set 2
The Cougars opened up the second set 3-0, forcing Cincinnati to make three consecutive errors. McEwan-Llarenas recorded a kill, directly followed by an ace and Livingston recorded her seventh kill to force the Bearcats to take their first timeout of the set down 6-1.
BYU continued to control the pace of play as Eden Bower tallied a kill on an overpass and Hannah Billeter recorded an ace to increase the lead to seven (14-7). Cincinnati took its second timeout of the set as Whitney Bower and Livingston each recorded a kill, and McComber tallied her second service ace of the night (18-9).
The lead was extended to 11 as Prior and McEwan-Llarenas notched kills to end the second set 25-14. The Cougars held the Bearcats to a hitting percentage of just .103 in the set.
Set 3
BYU started the third set much like the previous two, claiming an early three-point lead (7-4). The Bearcats kept fighting to move within one point (9-8) before Livingston recorded back-to-back kills and McComber tallied her third service ace of the night, forcing a Cincinnati timeout.
Out of the timeout, Livingston continued to lead the Cougars, recording her 16th kill and a solo block. The Bearcats took their second timeout of the set after two unforced errors and kills by Whitney Bower and Livingston.
BYU extended the lead to its largest of the night at 13 as freshman Brielle Kemavor recorded a kill to end the set (25-12). The Cougars hit at a .391 percentage in the final set while holding Cincinnati to a .000 clip.
Up Next
The Cougars will host Cincinnati again tomorrow night for the second half of their weekend series. The match will be played at 7 p.m. MT and streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
