No. 11 BYU hits the road for challenging opening tournament

PROVO, Utah – No. 11 BYU women’s volleyball hits the road this week to open the season at the Women of Troy Baden Invitational in Los Angeles.

The Cougars kick off the tournament with a match against Chicago State. The following day, BYU will take on No. 7 North Carolina and No. 22 USC.

Chicago State

• The BYU Cougars open the season against the Chicago State Cougars Friday, Aug. 28, at 5 p.m. PDT, on the neutral USC court.
• BYU and Chicago State have never faced each other previously. This will be the first meeting between the two schools.
• Chicago State went 6-24, 0-16 in 2014, its second season of competition in the Western Athletic Conference.
• The Chicago State Cougars are led this season by new head coach Brandon Reeves.

No. 7 North Carolina

• BYU next faces No. 7 North Carolina at USC’s court on Saturday, Aug. 29, at 12:30 p.m. PDT.
• The Cougars and Tar Heels have faced each other only twice previously, with BYU holding the undefeated 2-0 record.
• The last match played between the two schools was part of the Nebraska Invitational on Sept. 29, 1990, where the Cougars came out on top 3-0.
• North Carolina went 29-3, 17-1 (1st) ACC in 2014. It competed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, advancing to the regional finals before falling to Texas.
• The Tar Heels return seven starters, while losing three from last year.

No. 22 USC

• The Cougars cap off the tournament against host No. 22 USC Saturday, Aug. 29, at 8 p.m. PDT.
• The two schools last squared off in the regional semifinals of the 2013 NCAA Tournament with the Trojans taking a 3-1 victory.
• USC holds a 12-6 advantage in the overall series against BYU.
• The Trojans went just 16-16, 8-12 last year, finishing 10th in the Pac-12. They participated in their 24th consecutive NCAA tournament in 2014, falling in the second round to the Tar Heels.

VIDEO/STATS

Live stats will be provided for each match. The first two matches against Chicago State and North Carolina will be streamed live on pac-12.com. Saturday’s matchup against USC will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.