Undermanned Cougars overwhelmed by Utah in SLC | News, sports, jobs

SALT LAKE CITY – Playing without leadoff hitter Claire Little, the No. 21 BYU women’s volleyball team lost a three-set game to No. 23 Utah (16-25, 15-25, 16- 25).

The Cougars (14-8, 7-5 Big 12) hit just .103 in the match, while the Utes hit .294. Utah also blocked BYU nine to three and outscored the Cougars 11 to two.

Little, who averages 3.96 kills per set, was on the bench with her teammates during the game but not in uniform.

Elli Mortensen finished with nine kills while Kate Prior added six. Addie Benson, Kjersti Strong and Brielle Kemavor each scored four points. Alex Bower recorded 23 assists and Lulu Uluave had 15 digs.

The Utes won the program’s 900th game and set an attendance record with 5,953 fans. Utah defeated the Cougars for the first time since 2019 and defeated BYU in Salt Lake City for the first time since 2006.

BYU got its first point of the game before Utah scored four straight points. A Mortensen kill sparked a 3-0 run for the Cougar, which included a Hannah Billeter ace to tie the set at 4-0.

The Utes scored two 3-0 runs and another 4-0 run as BYU took both timeouts early and trailed 14-7. Trade Points: The Cougars are killed by Mortensen, Benson and Strong.

However, Utah scored six of the final ten points to close out the set, winning it 25-16.

Early in the second period, BYU got kills from Prior and Mortensen, but called a timeout after a 3-0 Ute run led to an 8-4 deficit. Two Benson kills and a speedy hitter from Kemavor helped the Cougars respond and get within 10-9.

BYU called a timeout after a 3-0 Utah run and faced a 15-10 deficit. BYU rallied with a 3-0 run following a kill from Prior and two from Bower, making the score 16-14.

After a kill by Strong to make the Utes 17-15, Utah closed the set with an 8-0 run to make the score 25-15.

The Cougars opened the final frame with a double block from Mortensen-Strong and a Prior kill before surrounding a 5-0 Ute run and calling a timeout, 6-2.

After trading points, BYU got kills from Blaykli Bobik, Kemavor, Prior and Mortensen, a solo from Kemavor, Bobik-Strong double block and Bower Ace that cut the lead to three at 16-13.

Mortensen and Prior each had kills down the stretch, but Utah closed the game with a 5-0 run to seal the game 25-16.

BYU will travel east next week for two road games, visiting UCF on Thursday and Houston on Saturday. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.