Davis leads No. 19 Cougars in sweep of No. 16 Trojans

LOS ANGELES — Freshman Suli Davis posted her first-career double-double as No. 19 BYU women’s volleyball swept No. 16 USC (25-19, 25-23, 25-23) in the LMU Invitational at Gersten Pavilion on Thursday night.

BOX SCORE

The Cougars (7-0, 0-0 Big 12) hit .300 on the night to the Trojans’ .248. Despite being out-blocked, 8.5-8, BYU had three service aces to USC’s zero and just five service errors to the Trojans’ five.

Davis led the way with 15 kills on a .345 clip, also adding 10 digs for the first double-double of her young career. Claire Little Chambers added 12 kills, Brielle Kemavor recorded six, hitting .429, and Mia Lee had five on a 1.000 clip.

Alex Bower dished out 33 assists and Emma Barbero finished with a match-high 13 digs. Kemavor carded four total blocks. Davis and Lee both had three.

The victory marked the Cougars' first Top 25 win of the season. BYU had three wins over ranked opponents last season.

Set 1
After dropping the opening point, BYU scored three straight, including two Davis kills, to take a 3-1 lead. Kills by Davis,  Little Chambers and  Lee, along with a Davis ace, fueled a 5-0 stretch that spanned USC’s first timeout and put the Cougars in front 10-3.

Sophia Callahan, Bower and Kemavor got in on the action as the two teams traded points, with the Trojans calling their second timeout at 18-12, BYU. Kills by Little Chambers and Bower paced the Cougars down the stretch before Davis closed things out for a 25-19 first set win.

Set 2
BYU began the second frame on another 3-0 run before trailing for the first time since the opening point of set one. A Hannah Billeter ace capped off a second trio of points that helped the Cougars regain the lead, but a 7-2 USC span forced a BYU timeout, trailing 13-10.

A 6-2 run out of the break, highlighted by three Trojan errors, once again put the Cougars in front, at 16-15. A Davis kill and three more USC mistakes made it 20-17, BYU, and the Trojans took a timeout.

Little Chambers landed a kill amidst a 5-1 USC run, but the Cougars called their second timeout down 22-21. Three-consecutive Trojan errors gave BYU set point, however, and Davis put away an overpass kill, 25-23, closing the set on a 4-0 run.

Set 3
Davis, Lee, Bower and Little Chambers each carded kills in the third, but the Cougars trailed 15-12 at the media timeout. After two USC kills, BYU was down 17-13, taking a timeout as it faced its largest deficit of the match.

The Cougars tied things up with a 3-0 run, highlighted by an ace by Davis, that forced the Trojans to take a timeout. After ties and 20 and 21, a Little Chambers kill put BYU back in front, and USC called its second timeout.

Kills by Little Chambers and Kemavor gave BYU match point, but the Cougars took their second timeout after an attack error at 24-23. Kemavor sealed the match out of the break with a quick hitter up the middle, 25-23.

Up Next
BYU continues LMU Invitational play against host and former WCC foe, LMU on Friday, Sept. 12 at 6 p.m. PDT. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.