No. 5 BYU falls to No. 2 UC Irvine in five set loss

IRVINE, Calif. — No. 5 BYU men’s volleyball suffered its first loss of the season 3-2 (17-25, 25-21, 23-25, 26-24, 12-15) against No. 2 UC Irvine in a five-set battle at the Bren Events Center in the NCAA's first top-five matchup of the 2025 season.

"I think that is the type of match you would expect to see and be a part of when two good teams meat up," said BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead. "Our guys showed some real grit throughout the night and fought through some lulls when things weren't going our way. For that, I am proud."

Keoni Thiim led the Cougars in kills with 18, including a match-high four aces. Teilon-Jonathan Tufuga earned a career-high in kills with 15 while playing at both the opposite and outside hitter positions during the match.

The Cougars were outhit by the Anteaters, with UC Irvine managing a .324 hitting percentage compared to BYU's .234 team clip. The Anteaters also defeated BYU with their defense, collecting 11 blocks over BYU's five.

Set One

The Anteaters burst into the match with a 6-1 advantage, leading to an early BYU timeout. UC Irvine continued to power through its lead, forcing another BYU timeout at 19-11 with the Cougars hitting in the negative.

Irvine would go on to win 25-17, the largest margin of victory in a set by a BYU opponent this season.

Set Two

Luke Benson began the second set with a kill. Tufuga later served an ace, with the ball not even touching a single Anteater, taking the score to 4-2. BYU slowly gained a five-point lead at 15-10, headed into the media timeout.

The Anteaters brought in two new players off the bench in an attempt to throw off the Cougars, but kills by Teon Taylor and Benson gave BYU a 19-15 lead. Soon later, another ace by Tufuga extended BYU’s lead to 21-16. A kill by Tufuga would conclude set two at 25-21 in favor of the Cougars.

Set Three

A solo block by Taylor gave BYU confidence in the opening point of set three, beginning with a 1-0 lead. A 3-0 run by the Cougars later gave BYU an 8-7 lead, featuring back-to-back Thiim kills.

UC Irvine worked its way back to a three-point lead at 17-14, until BYU came back to trail by one at 18-17. The Cougars would call a timeout at 20-17 when down three after a UC Irvine ace.

BYU found a sense of urgency, going on a 3-0 run to take the score to 22-21, forcing a UC Irvine timeout with the Anteaters leading by just one. UC Irvine earned the next two points, causing BYU to call a timeout when trailing 24-21. BYU survived until a 24-23 set-point score, but a UC Irvine kill closed set three at 25-23.

Set Four

BYU opened the fourth set with a commanding 4-0 lead courtesy of back-to-back Thiim aces, forcing a UC Irvine timeout. Thiim continued to be a crucial asset for the Cougars, giving BYU a 9-6 lead off his 10th kill of the night.

UC Irvine came back to earn a three-point lead at 13-10 until a 3-0 run by BYU off a Thiim kill and ace evened the score at 13. The Anteaters pulled off a run of their own, taking the score to 19-15, with BYU trailing by four.

The Cougars mustered a 3-0 run to close the gap to one point when down 20-19. A kill by Ian Little and Thiim would even the score at 22. The set saw another tie at 23, and BYU would secure a 26-24 win off the back of Tufuga and his three consecutive kills, extending the game into a fateful fifth set.

Set Five

BYU carried its fourth set momentum into the fifth with a 3-0 start, forcing a UC Irvine timeout. Two kills from Tufuga gave BYU a 6-3 edge, until the Anteaters went on a 3-0 run to even the set at six.

The two teams would battle back-and-forth, with ties at 10, 11 and 12. UC Irvine rallied to earn a 14-12 lead through a long rally and block, forcing a BYU timeout at the match point. Following the timeout, UC Irvine recorded a kill to take the 15-12 win and 3-2 victory.

Up Next

The Cougars will face the Anteaters in another match on Friday, January 24 at 6 p.m. PT, with live coverage on ESPN+