Set 1
After a slow start that saw BYU use an early timeout and fall behind by six, the Cougars settled in but still trailed 15-11 at the technical timeout.
A Mortensen kill sparked a 3-0 run to pull BYU within one, and a second 3-0 spurt tied the set at 21, forcing a Houston timeout.
Facing set point, a timely BYU challenge overturned a potential Houston set winner. The Cougars then closed the set on a 3-0 run, capped by a Little Chambers overpass kill, to take the opener 26-24.
Set 2
Carrying its momentum into the second set, BYU used a 5-0 run during an 8-1 stretch to build a 10-3 lead and force Houston's first timeout. Kaylie Kofe, Hardy and Prior all contributed during the run.
Aces by Hardy and Little Chambers bookended the technical timeout, with BYU leading 16-8. After the teams traded points, a 4-0 Cougar run featuring two Burgess blocks gave BYU set point. Prior finished the set one point later with a kill from the right side.
BYU hit .458 without an attack error in the frame while holding UH to a .031 hitting percentage. The Cougars also benefited from 15 Houston attack errors through the first two sets.
Set 3
After Houston opened with a 3-0 run, BYU responded with four straight points, including a Little Chambers back-row kill and a Hardy ace. Later, trailing by one, the Cougars used a 5-0 run capped by a Hardy-Mortensen double block to take a 15-11 lead into the technical timeout.
Three Hardy kills and the freshman’s third ace of the night set up a Little Chambers overpass kill, but four consecutive Houston points forced a BYU timeout at 21-19.
The Cougars closed the match with four straight points, as Burgess and Callahan teamed up for a double block before a Mortensen kill and a Little Chambers ace sealed the 25-20 set win.
Up Next
BYU returns home to host West Virginia on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 6:30 p.m. MT on ESPN+.
