BYU beats Utah to advance to the Candy 16 of the NCAA volleyball event

The loss ends a storied occupation for Utah megastar Dani Drews

Provo • BYU fought again from a gap set loss and outlasted the Utes 17-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-23 to advance to the Candy 16 of the NCAA volleyball event. The Cougars, seeded eleventh within the tourney, will tackle sixth-seeded Purdue within the subsequent spherical which might be performed in Pittsburgh.

“I’m simply pleased with our group for the best way we gritted out that win. It used to be tricky, we had adversity dropping that first set,” BYU trainer Heather Olmstead mentioned. “We will have buckled, however we didn’t. We rose up and performed 3 nice units after that.”

BYU (30-1), whose handiest loss used to be at Pitt, used to be led by means of Erin Livingston’s 13 kills whilst Taylen Ballard-Nixon added 12.

Led by means of 18 kills from Dani Drews and 17 extra from fellow outdoor hitter Madelyn Robinson, Utah (22-9) took the primary set thank you in large part to an 11-2 run that gave the Utes a 15-9 lead.

However the host Cougars started to clamp down at the Utah robust aspect guns in the course of the second one set.

“We knew if shall we simply get some touches and sluggish them down. You recognize, Drews used to be enjoying neatly and hadn’t had any mistakes for somewhat some time,” Olmstead mentioned. “We in any case were given in her face and slowed her down.”

“I bear in mind their middles beginning to observe at the outdoor towards me and Madi. That used to be an adjustment I undoubtedly spotted,” mentioned Drews, who ended a stellar occupation for the Utes that incorporated All-Pac-12 honors for 4 years. “It’s undoubtedly now not a laugh to finish on a loss, however the best way that we fought, we had been by no means down-and-out irrespective of the rating.”

The Utes’ assault gave the impression out-of-sorts within the 3rd set because the guests fell at the back of 16-9 after six immediately issues off the serve of BYU’s Tayler Tausinga Hifo.

Despite the fact that Utah closed the space to a unmarried level, at 24-23, Cougars’ center Heather Gneiting scored a kill from the best to complete off that set and ship the fit to the fourth.

It used to be a back-and-forth affair at the scoreboard for far of the fourth set with Brigham Younger main 22-20 past due. Utah then scored 3 immediately issues, together with a large block by means of Robinson, to move up by means of some extent.

However the Cougars rebounded immediately, with a kill from Ballard-Nixon adopted by means of a block by means of Gneiting to move up 24-23. Miscommunication by means of the Utes at the subsequent level ended with a hitting error to finish the competition.

“This used to be, for a large number of us seniors, our final fit within the fieldhouse and … what a second to be enjoying Utah and feature it’s shut — have it’s a combat,” mentioned BYU’s Kennedy Eschenberg, who had 9 kills.

“We’re simply in reality excellent at problem-solving,” Cougars’ outdoor hitter Kenzie Korber mentioned. “They had been in our face and put us in a struggle and we simply persevered to challenge resolve.”

It’ll be the 5th go back and forth to the Candy 16 for BYU underneath Olmstead, who’s hoping to take the Cougars into the Ultimate 4 for the primary time since 2018. For Utah trainer Beth Launiere, it used to be the fruits of her thirty second yr main the Utes.

“I’m nonetheless going robust,” Launiere mentioned. “Don’t rely me out.”