No. 16 BYU to face off against No. 21 San Diego

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PROVO, Utah – No. 16 BYU women’s volleyball will play at No. 21 San Diego on Wednesday, March 17 before hosting the Toreros in the second half of the two-match series on Saturday, March 20 in the Smith Fieldhouse.

Wednesday’s match is set to start at 1 p.m. PDT at the Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego and will be broadcast on the WCC Network. Saturday’s match in Provo will start at 1 p.m. MDT and will be broadcast on BYUtv and the BYUtv App.

No. 16 BYU Cougars (10-1, 9-1 WCC)

  • BYU dropped one spot in the AVCA national poll to No. 16 after not playing any matches last week
  • The Cougars haven’t played since March 6 after Pacific canceled the season series last week
  • BYU is No. 6 in the nation with 13.71 assists per set, led by sophomore Whitney Bower, who ranks No. 29 in the NCAA with an average of 10.82 assists
  • The Cougars also rank No. 13 in both hitting percentage (.299) and in kills per set (14.39)
  • Senior middle blocker Kennedy Eschenberg leads the WCC with a .394 hitting percentage (No. 38 in the NCAA) and is second in blocks per set (1.19)
  • Senior outside hitter Taylen Ballard-Nixon leads the team in kills per set (3.89) and points per set (4.46)

Series Information

  • The BYU-San Deigo series is currently even at 10-10, the Cougars are 4-7 in San Diego and 6-3 in Provo
  • The two teams have met nine times previously when both have been ranked with the Toreros holding a 5-4 advantage.
  • Under head coach Heather Olmstead, BYU is 6-4 against San Diego
  • San Diego defeated BYU in two five-set matches last season

No. 21 San Diego (11-1, 11-1 WCC)

  • San Diego dropped three spots in the most recent AVCA national poll to No. 21
  • The Toreros are tied for No. 1 with Pepperdine in the WCC standings with a .917 winning percentage
  • After winning its first 11 matches, San Diego dropped its first match of the season last week against Loyola Marymount
  • As a team, San Diego ranks 21st in the nation with a .273 hitting percentage
  • The Toreros lead the league in opponent hitting percentage (.157) and blocks per set (2.39)
  • Freshman middle blocker Elly Shraeder leads the WCC with 1.30 blocks per set
  • Senior outside hitter Roxie Wiblin leads the team with 4.56 points per set

Broadcast Info – March 17

Broadcast Info – March 20