ISU Volleyball Heads to Provo to Battle No. 9 BYU

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POCATELLO, Idaho -- The Idaho State volleyball team looks to continue their winning ways as they travel to Provo, Utah to take on the No. 9 Cougars of BYU on Wednesday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m. at Smith Fieldhouse. The Bengals head to Provo on a five-game winning streak following their undefeated three-match performance in the Boise State Invitational Sept. 3-5.

ABOUT THE COUGARS
This will be the 28th meeting between Idaho State and BYU. BYU leads the series 26-1 and won the last meeting 3-0 in Pocatello on Sept. 16, 2014.

The Cougars return 10 letter winners and five starters (four plus libero) from last year's squad that finished with a 30-5 overall record, a No. 3 final national ranking and their first-ever national championship match appearance. Senior outside hitter Alexa Gray received second-team all-American honors while junior middle blocker Amy Boswell received honor mention all-American honors.

This season, the Cougars carry a 5-1 overall record, with notable wins against No. 7 North Carolina and No. 24 Purdue while dropping a 3-0 decision to No. 22 USC. BYU averages 13.05 kill/set with a .255 hitting percentage and a 12.11 assists per set average. The Cougars average 13.79 digs per set and have 52.5 total blocks on the season for a 2.76 blocks per set average.

Head Coach Heather Olmstead leads the Cougars and is in her first year as head coach. Previously, she served as the associate head coach for the 2014 season and as an assistant coach for the 2011-13 seasons.

LAST MATCH: ISU WINS FIFTH STRAIGHT WITH ROUTE OF TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI
The Bengals closed out a spectacular weekend in Boise with a 3-0 route of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi with scores of 25-22, 27-25 and 25-15.

Idaho State's senior duo of Tressa Lyman and Makenzie Filer continued their menacing weekend attack, posting 16 and 12 kills respectively. Junior outside hitter Baily Bars wasn't far behind with 11 kills and nine digs with a .421 hitting percentage.

Idaho State struggled to find their rhythm in the first set. The Bengals registered the first point off a kill from Filer, but the Islanders took over and built a sizable five-point lead, 13-8 after an attacking error from sophomore outside hitter Chloe Hirst. The Bengals chipped away at the Islanders' lead and tied it up 18-all following a kill from Lyman. Idaho State turned it up and finished the set, winning 25-22.

The second set was a battle from the beginning. The Bengals were able to take the early six-point lead, 10-4, but the Islanders went on a 6-0 run to tie up the score at 10-all. The match featured nine more ties and four lead changes, but the Bengals connected when it counted to break a 25-all tie and score the set's next two points to claim the win, 27-25.

ISU ended the match strong and led the entire third set. Throughout the set, the Bengals slowly increased their lead, keeping the Islanders attacking front at bay. Idaho State recorded eight of its 14 block in the third set alone and limited Texas A&M-CC to 10 kills on a .118 hitting percentage. The Bengals finished the set on a10-5 run to win 25-15 and sweep Texas A&M-CC.