POCATELLO, Idaho – Amy Boswell and No. 10 BYU women’s volleyball cruised past Missouri in three-sets (26-24, 26-24, 25-17) Saturday afternoon at Reed Gym.
“I loved the fight we showed in this match,” BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. “Missouri has a well-balanced attack that we had to figure out. I'm proud of the way we competed.”
Boswell led the Cougars with 12 kills on a .381 clip while adding a team-high four blocks. Mary Lake contributed a match-high 11 digs and Lyndie Haddock collected 30 assists. Danelle Parady-Stetler chipped in 10 digs and three aces and McKenna Miller had 12 kills in the win.
Missouri (5-3) took an early 6-2 lead in the first set against BYU (8-0) with help from a pair of blocks. A Miller kill helped BYU stay in the set, down 7-5, before a Makenna Santiago ace tied the set at 11 apiece. The Tigers scored the next four points, three off of Cougar miscues, to regain their advantage at 15-11. Missouri maintained its lead from there, taking a 20-15 lead from a block, forcing BYU to take a timeout. After the break, the Cougars went on a 7-2 run, with help from kills by four different players, to tie the set back at 22-all. BYU continued its rally with a 3-0 spurt to force extra points and a set one win, 26-24.
Two kills and a block from Boswell helped the Cougars tie the second set at 3-3 early on. After the Tigers took a 6-3 lead, BYU was fueled by a 6-1 run to take a 9-7 advantage. A Parady-Stetler ace extended BYU’s lead to four at 14-10 and a bad set from Missouri put the Cougars ahead 17-12. The Tigers then rallied with three quick points, but a Veronica Jones-Perry kill extended BYU’s lead to six, 22-16. A Whitney Young Howard solo block gave the Cougars set point at 24-18, but Missouri rallied with a 6-0 run to tie the set at 24-all. Kills from Parady-Stetler and Howard then ended the close set 26-24 for BYU.
The Cougars took a 5-3 advantage to start the third set following a Miller kill. The Tigers quickly rallied with a 4-0 run to take the lead at 7-5. BYU countered with a 5-0 rally, which included three kills from Miller, to go back up at 10-7. Missouri used its first timeout of the set after a 4-1 Cougar run gave BYU a four-point edge at 14-10. The Tigers came back within two at 15-13, but another 6-1 Cougar rally, capped off by back-to-back Parady-Stetler aces, extended BYU’s advantage to eight, 21-13. The Cougars cruised from there, ended the set and match 25-17 on a Miller kill.
The Cougars return to action at Reed Gym against host Idaho State later tonight at 7 p.m. MDT. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.