Box Score Oct. 23, 2014 Box Score
The 12th-ranked BYU volleyball team (17-3, 8-1 WCC) proved too much for LMU (17-4, 5-4 WCC) on the road on Thursday night at Smith Fieldhouse, as the Cougars swept the Lions by scores of 25-19, 25-9, 25-23 in front of 1,064 fans.
Alexa Gray and Jennifer Hamson led the way for BYU, collecting 13 kills apiece. The Cougars hit .357 over the course of the match, committing just eight attack errors, including just two over the first two sets. BYU, one of the best blocking teams in the nation, looked the part on Thursday night, posting 17 total team blocks, including nine block assists from Amy Boswell.
LMU hit just .128 over the three sets, led by 12 kills on 22 attacks from senior Litara Keil. Freshman Sarah Sponcil finished the match with 11 kills, including registering four in the first and final frames. The Lions managed just one team block in the loss, the lowest total of the season.
The Lions came out strong on the road against the ranked opponent, leading all the way to 15-14 in the opener, but BYU settled in from there, eventually earning a 25-19 victory in the first set. The Cougars committed just one attacking error, erring on the first swing of the night, en route to hitting .438 in the period. Tambre Nobles led the way for the Cougars, registering seven kills on 12 swings for a .583 clip. Keil got off to a hot start for LMU, managing six kills on eight swings.
It was all BYU in the second as the Cougars raced to a lopsided 25-9 victory over the Lions. LMU trailed just 10-6 after a kill from Jennifer Casillas, but BYU won 15 of the final 18 points overall, including a 6-0 run from 13-7 to 19-7 and a four-point run to close the set. The Cougar block finished off the impressive win, as Camry Willardson and Boswell teamed to stuff Sponcil for the 24th point before Gray and Boswell put up a block against Amber Mirabello for the set-winner. The home team registered eight of its 17 total team blocks in the second.
Just as they did in the first set, the Lions came out strong in the third, jumping out to a healthy six-point lead at 15-9. Unfortunately for the Lions, BYU went on a 9-3 run, highlighted by a pair of kills from Gray and Cosy Burnett, to even the tally at 18. Though the Lions managed to stay close the rest of the way, BYU eventually earned the 25-23 victory and the match on a kill from Gray - one of seven in the set for the Cougar attacker.
The loss marked the first time this year that LMU has been swept. LMU, which has also dropped consecutive matches for the first time in 2014, is now 0-9 all-time against BYU, with four of the nine matches going for sweeps. The other five resulted in five-set losses for LMU.
LMU will look to snap a two-match skid on Saturday when it travels to San Diego for a match at Noon.
