PROVO, Utah — No. 8 BYU women's volleyball begins a span of three straight road matches this week, beginning with No. 25 Colorado and Iowa State.
The Cougars (18-1, 10-0 Big 12) will face the Buffaloes on Thursday night and the Cyclones on Saturday afternoon.
| Week 9 Opponent Information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | Date | Time | Stream | Live Stats |
| No. 25 Colorado | Thursday, Nov. 5 | 7 p.m. MST | ESPN+ | StatBroadcast |
| Iowa State | Saturday, Nov. 7 | 2 p.m. CST | ESPN+ | StatBroadcast |
BYU moved up a spot from No. 9 to No. 8 in this week's AVCA poll, tying its highest ranking over the last four seasons. The Cougars were also ranked eighth twice during the 2023 season.
Extending its win streak to 15 matches last week, BYU swept the season series with Utah, picking up a 3-1 win over the Utes on Friday night.
The Cougars hit just .219 in the match but received double-digit kills from four BYU hitters for the second time this season and also recorded nine more (11-2) aces than Utah, including four from Brooke Hardy.
Hardy (10 kills, .529) and Anna Blamires (10 kills, .471) combined for 20 kills on a .500 clip while Claire Little Chambers posted her fifth double-double of the year, with Elli Mortensen adding 11 kills and two aces.
Hardy tied her career high with six blocks in the match and Blamires set a new career high with three of her own. Making her first career start at libero in place of Lulu Po'uha, Kaylee Tingey finished with a career-high eight digs and three assists.
Following a week where the Cougars were crowned In-Season Challenge champions, Hardy was named Big 12 Rookie of the Week, her first weekly conference honor and BYU's seventh this season.
The freshman middle ranks second in the league in Big 12 play with 20 aces and is also tied for second with 0.56 aces per set in conference matches.
With a month remaining in the regular season, the Cougars rank fourth nationally in hitting percentage (.302), 11th in blocks per set (2.85) and 20th in assists per set (12.96).
BYU leads the Big 12 in hitting percentage and is second in blocks per set behind one of its opponents this week, Colorado (3.0).
Individually, Kelli Jo Burgess continues to pace the country in blocks per set (1.86), while Hardy's .427 season hitting percentage leads the league and ranks No. 11 in the nation.
Heading to Boulder for the fifth time in series history, the Cougars also make just their second visit to Ames.
No. 25 Colorado (16-5, 7-4 Big 12)
- The Buffaloes have won three straight matches since their last meeting with BYU two weeks ago.
- Head coach Jesse Mahoney is 360-219 (.622) in his 19-year career, including a 180-140 (.563) mark during his 11 seasons in Boulder.
- BYU leads the all-time series, 10-2, and is 4-0 against the Buffaloes at CU Events Center. The Cougars beat Colorado in four sets in Provo on Oct. 22.
Iowa State (13-9, 7-4 Big 12)
- The Cyclones will visit UCF in Orlando on Thursday before welcoming BYU in Ames.
- Christy Johnson-Lynch is in her 22nd year as ISU's head coach. She is 416-236 (.638) since 2005.
- The Cougars lead the all-time series, 4-0, and won the only previous meeting in Ames, 3-1. BYU swept the Cyclones in Provo last season.
Up Next
The Cougars will head to Waco next week in a Top 25 matchup at No. 24 Baylor on Thursday before hosting Texas Tech on Saturday.