No. 17 BYU travels to Malibu to face Pepperdine

PROVO, Utah — No. 17 BYU women’s volleyball will travel to California for its final West Coast Conference (WCC) road trip of the season, taking on Pepperdine in a Thursday night matchup.

The Cougars (19-5, 13-2 WCC) moved up a spot to No. 17 in this week’s American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll after sweeping Saint Mary's on Saturday afternoon. Dating back to 2013, BYU has been ranked in the Top 25 for 148-consecutive polls.

Outside hitter Erin Livingston paced the Cougars with 20 kills in the match against the Gaels, while freshman middle blocker Kate Prior finished with nine kills on a .667 clip. Fellow middle blocker Whitney Llarenas added 10 kills while hitting .500.

Setter Abby Taylor posted her second double-double of the season, recording 34 assists and 12 digs. Opposite hitter Kate Grimmer contributed 11 digs herself, and Llarenas led the team with four blocks. 

No. 17 BYU @ Saint Mary’s

• Thursday, Nov. 17 (7 p.m. PST)
• Firestone Fieldhouse (Malibu, CA)
• WCC Network
• Live Stats
• Tickets

Going 6-3 away from Provo this season, BYU head coach Heather Olmstead is 80-14 (.851) on the road all-time, with a 124-10 (.927) record in WCC play.  

Olmstead’s teams are 14-1 against Pepperdine, going 7-0 at the Smith Fieldhouse and 7-1 in Malibu. Dating back to 2012, BYU has won 20 of the last 21 matchups.

The Cougars remain at No. 4 in the nation with a .303 team hitting percentage, also ranking 24th in kills per set, at 13.96, and 25th in assists per set, at 12.95. BYU leads the WCC in all three statistical categories.

Llarenas sits atop the conference and at No. 11 nationally with a .415 season hitting clip. With a block in the Saint Mary’s match, Gneiting tallied her 100th on the year. Averaging 1.23 blocks per set, Gneiting is 48th in the nation in the statistical category. 

Livingston ranks No. 17 in the country in kills per set (4.35) and No. 26 in points per set (4.83). She also stands at No. 92 in attacks per set (10.25). Livingston leads the conference in kills and attacks per set. 

Pepperdine (18-8, 9-6 WCC)

• The Waves dropped a four-setter to Loyola Marymount last week after sweeping both Saint Mary’s and Pacific on the road
• Since the two teams last met, Pepperdine reeled off a five-match win streak, also beating Portland and Santa Clara
• Grace Chillingworth (273), Meg Brown (270) and Emily Hellmuth (266) lead the team in kills, with Isabel Zelaya dishing out 973 assists
• Riley Patterson (395) and Chillingworth (229) pace the Waves in digs, while Vanessa Polk and Brown recording 107 and 90 total blocks, respectively. 
• Chillingworth (36) and Brown (28) lead Pepperdine in service aces.
• In eight seasons as head coach, Scott Wong has posted a 143-84 record. 
• BYU leads the all-time series with Pepperdine, 32-10. The Cougars are 11-3 against the Waves in Malibu.

Following BYU’s match at Pepperdine, the Cougars will head to Los Angeles for their final WCC road match of the season at LMU. The will be streamed on the WCC Network.