BYU volleyball squad sweeps defending champs
Shaking off early jitters, BYU (3-0, 1-0 MPSF) cruised to the 30-28, 30-22, 30-26 victory over the Bruins (2-2, 0-1), with the two meeting again tonight at 7 in the Smith Fieldhouse.
Outside hitter Yosleyder Cala logged 15 kills on 19 attempts and no errors for a .789 hitting percentage — the fifth-best on the BYU rally-scoring record books. Middle blocker Russell Holmes wasn't far behind at .786, with 12 kills and an error in 14 tries.
Throw in junior outside Ivan Perez's 11 kills and .500 hitting, and one can squelch the concern that there not be enough balls to spread among a trio of all-American caliber.
"Look at the distribution — everybody's hitting in the teens," said interim co-head coach Shawn Patchell. "I like our chances."
The team also hit .500 — likely a top 10 program performance since the records only go seven deep in that category, ending at a .506 Cougar match effort two years ago.
Perez credited freshman setter Yamil Perez. "You can see it in the stats — the team is hitting at .500, so Yamil is doing the best job. You can't key on any one player."
Paul George led UCLA with 15 kills and a .700 percentage, but no one else reached double-digit kills for the Bruins, which hit .330.
In the opening game, UCLA outhit BYU .323 to .250 and still lost. The Cougars didn't take their first lead until Ivan Perez's back-row smash at 14-13, with Cala making his 2007 debut — and first kill — soon thereafter.
UCLA turned a 21-19 deficit into a 25-23 lead before BYU's comeback came on unlikely points — an Ivan Perez back-row tip, a Bruin spike ricocheting off Robby Stowell's shoulder and onto UCLA's bare back row, and Rodnei Santos' awkward sidearm dink for game point.
BYU hit a blistering .643 — 20 kills and just two errors in 28 attempts — in the second game, paced by Cala's eight kills in 10 swings. Ivan Perez added five kills, Holmes three and Santos and Stowell two apiece as the Cougars led by seven by the time the score reached the 20s.
In the third game, BYU hit .636 and seemed to have its way with five-point margins by mid-match before squandering away the advantage with ties at each point from 18 to 24 before kills by Santos and Cala gave the Cougars the lead for good.
E-mail: taylor@desnews.com
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