MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The pin-hitting duo of Roni Jones-Perry and McKenna Miller helped No. 3 BYU women’s volleyball sweep past Syracuse (25-23, 25-20, 25-20) Friday night at the Al McGuire Center as part of the Marquette Invitational.

“Lyndie (Haddock-Eppich) set a smart match and got a lot of players involved offensively,” BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. “We had good block touches and stayed steady the whole match.”

Jones-Perry led the Cougars with 16 kills to go with four blocks and five digs while McKenna Miller put up 15 kills on a .429 clip. Lyndie Haddock-Eppich contributed 36 assists and Kennedy Eschenberg had seven blocks. Mary Lake and Sydnie Martindale added seven digs apiece in the win.

Syracuse (2-1) got off to a 4-2 lead to start the first set against BYU (7-0) after three-consecutive kills. The Cougars countered with a 5-1 run, which included two kills from Miller, to go ahead 7-5. BYU stayed ahead at 14-9 following a block by Eschenberg and Jones-Perry. The Cougars were up by six before Syracuse went on an 8-1 run to take a 19-18 lead. The Orange remained ahead 23-21 after a kill, but a pair of kills from Jones-Perry helped BYU on a 4-0 rally to secure the set, 25-23.

Syracuse took a 7-3 advantage to begin the second set after a strong offensive attack. From there, the Cougars went on a 7-2 run, capped off by consecutive Jones-Perry kills, to take a 10-9 edge. The two squads continued to stay within a point of each other until a Haddock-Eppich and Heather Gneiting block, followed by three Jones-Perry kills, pushed BYU in front 19-15. An ace from Lake made it 23-18 before Martindale ended the set 25-20 on an ace.

The Cougars jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the third set, capitalizing on several Orange errors. Syracuse inched its way back in the set, down by two at 9-7, but BYU scored the next three points to extend the advantage back to five, 12-7. The Orange then put up back-to-back blocks en route to a 5-1 run to get back within a point at 13-12. A Madi Robinson kill and two more kills from Roni Jones-Perry pushed the Cougars ahead 18-14. BYU maintained its lead from there, taking the set and match 25-20 on a Miller kill.

The Cougars will compete against No. 25 Marquette next, facing off against the Golden Eagles Saturday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. CDT. The match will be streamed live and live stats will be available. Links can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.

PROVO, Utah – No. 3 BYU women’s volleyball hits the road this week for a trio of challenging matches against No. 10 USC, undefeated Syracuse and No. 25 Marquette in the Marquette Invitational.

Last Week

The Cougars (5-0) won the BYU Nike Invitational with victories against West Virginia, then-No. 1 Stanford and Wichita State. Roni Jones-Perry was named the tournament MVP and was honored as the WCC and AVCA Player of the Week.

No. 10 USC

• BYU faces USC Friday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. CDT, at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee, Wis.
• The Trojans lead the all-time series history against the Cougars 13-6. USC has won the last five meetings between the two squads, but the teams are 6-6 when playing on a neutral court.
• The Trojans are 5-1 so far this season, picking up impressive victories against ranked opponents Kentucky, Creighton and Florida.
• USC is led this season in his first year by former Portland head coach Brent Crouch.
• The Trojans were picked to finish second in the Pac-12 this season, receiving one first-place vote. They finished 25-10, 14-6 last year and advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament.

Syracuse

• BYU competes against Syracuse Friday, Sept. 7, at 5 p.m. CDT, at Marquette.
• The Cougars won the only other meeting all-time in the history of the two squads, picking up a sweep in 1989.
• Syracuse is a perfect 2-0 to start the 2018 season, with wins over New Hampshire and Connecticut.
• The Orange were picked to finish ninth in the ACC this year after going 22-14, 12-8 last year.

No. 25 Marquette

• BYU faces host Marquette Saturday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. CDT.
• The Cougars are 2-0 all-time against the Golden Eagles, having last won a five-set matchup on a neutral court in 2013.
• Marquette is 5-1 to start the year, only falling at ranked Baylor along the way.
• The Golden Eagles are the favorite to win the Big East, according to the preseason coaches’ poll, after going 22-10, 15-3 a season ago.

Video/Stats

There will be a video stream for the match against Marquette. Live stats will be available for all three matches. Links can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.