PROVO, Utah – BYU women's volleyball will travel to China next month to compete against several international teams, head coach Heather Olmstead announced Monday.
"We are thrilled about our foreign trip to China this spring," Olmstead said. "This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for many of our players to experience a country so rich in history, culture and tradition. The volleyball is played at an extremely high level there - one that will challenge us in all facets of the game. We look forward to meeting new people, seeing new places and representing BYU."
Training for the trip will begin on Monday, April 25. The Cougars will then head out the following week for the two-week foreign tour before returning on Wednesday, May 18.
The team will first head to Hong Kong from May 6-9 to face both Hong Kong University and the Guangdong women's team. The Cougars will then head to Shanghai from May 9-11 before venturing up to Nanjing from May 11-14. While in Nanjing, BYU will compete against the Nanjing Agricultural University squad, the Jiangsu women's volleyball club as well as the Jiangsu junior team. The Cougars will conclude their trip in Beijing from May 14-18, playing Caijing University and the Beijing women's team.
The team travels internationally once every four years to take part in foreign competition. Find out more about previous trips by visiting the BYU women's volleyball foreign tours page.
Women's volleyball competes in Hong Kong
HONG KONG – The BYU women's volleyball team began its travels to China last week, landing in Hong Kong for the first leg of the team's journey.
The Cougars landed in Hong Kong on May 6 and headed straight to the Lei Chi Kok Park Sports Centre for a practice. The team later visited the Hong Kong temple and did some sightseeing that night downtown.
The following day, BYU took a glass-bottom gondola ride up into the mountains to see a 100-foot tall Buddha statue before exploring an adjacent Buddhist temple. Later, the team went to Victoria's Peak to see an overlook of the city. That evening, the Cougars played a match against the Hong Kong Kui Qing Volleyball Club at the Ping San Tin Shui Wai Sports Centre. The club is currently ranked as the No. 2 professional team in Hong Kong. The two squads played a total of five sets, with BYU winning four of the five (25-21, 21-25, 25-19, 25-17, 15-10). Many local fans and church members attended the match to show their support of the team.
On May 8, the Cougars attended church in downtown Hong Kong, and later in the day they held a Mother's Day fireside with a group of sisters from the Philippines working in Hong Kong to support their family. The next day, the team boarded a plane and headed out to Shanghai where they will spend three days of their foreign tour.
Cougars win two, improve to 4-0 in China
NANJING, China – BYU improved to 4-0 on its tour of China with a pair of wins against Jiangsu Volleyball and Nanjing Agricultural University on Thursday.
In the first match the Cougars pulled out a hard fought, five-set win against Jiangsu Volleyball Team, one of the top professional teams in China. After dropping the first two sets (14-25, 18-25) the Cougars battled back to win three-straight (25-15, 25-22, 15-13) to win the match.
Statistical Leaders
Kills
Amy Boswell: 13 (.391)
Whitney Young Howard: 12 (.458)
Veronica Jones: 12 (.151)
Sophie Cram: 5 (.300)
Assists
Lyndie Haddock: 26
Digs
Mary Lake: 24
Aces
Veronica Jones: 4
Blocks
Whitney Young Howard: 5
Amy Boswell: 3
Thursday afternoon, the Cougars improved their Chinese tour record to 4-0 with a win against Nanjing Agricultural University (25-13, 25-19, 25-19).
Statistical Leaders
Kills
Veronica Jones: 16 (.500)
Alexa Gray: 9 (.667)
Amy Boswell: 11 (.500)
Assists
Kiani Tuileta: 39
Digs
Mary Lake: 17
Veronica Jones: 8
Aces
Lacy Haddock: 3
The Cougars have one more day in Nanjing, which will be filled with sightseeing and touring before heading to Beijing on Saturday.
Cougars on to Beijing
BYU concluded its Nanjing leg Saturday morning and has arrived in Beijing. While in Nanjing, the Cougars played three matches and took in some sightseeing. The team experienced the Nanjing Massacre Museum, walked on the Nanjing City Wall and got in some karaoke with some Nanjing locals. The Cougars had a great time in Nanjing and are looking forward to a great stop in Beijing.
Cougars defeat Kaijing University in four sets
After spending the afternoon on the Great Wall of China, the Cougars defeated Kaijing University in four sets Monday. After losing the first set 26-24, the Cougars were able to win three straight (25-19, 25-15, 25-15) to take the match. The win moves BYU to 5-0 on its China tour with one match remaining Tuesday.
Statistical Leaders
Kills
Veronica Jones: 17 (.200)
Alexa Gray: 15 (.367)
Whitney Young Howard: 10 (.500)
Blocks
Whitney Young Howard: 4
Digs
Mary Lake: 15
Alohi Robins-Hardy: 11
Assists
Lyndie Haddock: 28 assists
Alohi Robins-Hardy: 27 assists
BYU drops final match in China
BEIJING – BYU lost a tough three set match to the Beijing BAIC Motor Company Volleyball Club (28-26, 25-20, 25-22) in their final match in China. The Cougars finish the trip with a 5-1 record.
The sixth ranked professional team in China put together a well rounded attack against the Cougars. BYU was ahead 18-14 before BAIC rallied for a comeback to win the first set. Set two was back and forth throughout until BAIC team pulled away late. In the third set, BYU scored 11 out of the last 17 points but came up a little short.
Statistical Leaders
Kills
Alexa Gray: 18 (.275)
Whitney Young Howard: 7 (.462)
Cosy Burnett: 5 (.286)
Assists
Alohi Robins-Hardy: 22
Lyndie Haddock: 11
Digs
Mary Lake: 15
Blocks
Alexa Gray: 4