OREM, Utah – Senior outside hitter Taylen Ballard-Nixon totaled a career-high 19 kills to lead No. 14 BYU women’s volleyball to a 3-1 victory over Utah Valley (25-17, 22-25, 25-20, 25-20) on Thursday.

Ballard-Nixon recorded the 19 kills on a .371 clip while adding a career-high 13 digs to her stat line to complete the double-double. Sophomore opposite Kate Grimmer also recorded a career high in kills with 15 on a .343 hitting percentage. Freshman outside hitter Leilani Dodson contributed eight kills while adding three aces and three blocks.

Freshman libero Madi Allen totaled 20 digs and six assists while sophomore setter Whitney Bower had 17 digs of her own along with 47 assists.

Final Box Score 

SET ONE

Grimmer had four kills early in the first game to help BYU (3-0, 2-0 WCC) take an 14-10 lead over UVU (2-1, 2-0 WAC). Ballard-Nixon and Dodson both contributed a pair of kills late in the set to help the Cougars take the first game, 25-17.

SET TWO

BYU jumped out to an early 12-7 advantage behind three kills by Grimmer and two kills by Ballard-Nixon. The Wolverines outscored the Cougars 10-3 to claim a 19-18 edge. Kills by middle blocker Allie Hakes and Bower briefly reclaimed the lead for BYU before Utah Valley won the set, 25-22.

SET THREE

The Cougars opened up the third game with a 5-0 run fueled by two Ballard-Nixon kills. Bower dropped consecutive aces to make the score 13-9. BYU scored six-straight points to break a 13-13 tie and claim a 19-13 advantage. Ballard-Nixon added two more late kills to clinch the set, 25-20.

SET FOUR

Both teams traded points early in the fourth game with UVU taking an early 12-9 lead. The Cougars reclaimed the advantage following a kill by outside hitter Erin Livingston and back-to-back Wolverine errors, 18-16. Livingston added three more kills to help secure the set, 25-20.

BYU will return to league play next week with a two-match series against Gonzaga at the Smith Fieldhouse. The Cougars will host the Bulldogs in their home opener Tuesday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m. MT. The two teams will then play again Wednesday, Feb. 10, at 4 p.m. MT at the Smith Fieldhouse.

PROVO, Utah – No. 14 BYU women’s volleyball will play its lone non-conference match of the regular season against Utah Valley at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4, at the Lockhart Arena in Orem, Utah.

The Cougars added the UCCU Crosstown Clash to their schedule last week after their two matches against Santa Clara were postponed due to the Broncos delaying their season two weeks. The in-state matchup will be broadcast on WAC Digital Network.

BYU Match Notes

No. 14 BYU Cougars (2-0, 2-0 WCC)

• BYU moved up two spots to 14th in this week’s AVCA national poll
• The Cougars opened up the season last week with consecutive sweeps over Portland
• On Monday, true freshman libero Madi Allen was named WCC Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 4.50 digs per set in her first two collegiate matches
• Kennedy Eschenberg currently ranks second in NCAA Division I with a .536 hitting percentage (min. 3.33 average attacks per set & play in 66.7% of their team’s sets)
• Senior outside hitter Taylen Ballard-Nixon currently ranks fourth in NCAA Division I with 1.00 aces per set (six total) and leads the team with 23 kills (3.83 kills per set)
• As a team, BYU is 10th in the NCAA in aces per set with an average of 2.33 and ranks 13th in hitting percentage with a .308 team average
• Sophomore setter Whitney Bower is averaging 11.00 assists per set (20th in the NCAA) and the Cougars are currently 10th in the nation with an average of 13.67 assists per set

Series Information

• BYU is currently 14-0 against UVU, including six wins at Lockhart Arena
• The Cougars swept the Wolverines last season in the BYU Nike Invitational
• BYU has only lost four sets in the entire series, three of which came in Lockhart Arena

Utah Valley Wolverines (2-0, 2-0 WAC)

• UVU opened its season this past Monday and Tuesday with a pair of wins over WAC foe Seattle University
• The Wolverines are led by first-team All-WAC outside hitter Kazna Tanuvasa, the senior ranks 19th in the NCAA with an average of .71 aces per set
• Freshman middle blocker Kendra Nock is 34th in the nation with an average of 1.43 blocks per set on a UVU squad that currently ranks seventh in NCAA Division I with an average of 3.67 blocks per set
• Utah Valley currently averages 2.43 aces per set, seventh-best average in the nation
• The Wolverines held Seattle U to a combined .133 hitting percentage in its first two matches, which ranks 25th in the NCAA in opponent hitting percentage

Broadcast Information

• Time: 6 p.m. MST
• Live Stream: WAC Digital Network
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast