BYU sweeps Weber State in opening round of the NCAA Tournament (2024)

When BYU women’s volleyball needs a spark, the Cougars turn to Erin Livingston.

The senior All-Big 12 First Teamer has delivered all season, helping BYU to its 12th straight NCAA Tournament and a 25-6 record, and in the No. 4-seeded Cougars’ first-round match against Weber State Friday, Livingston did it again.

Livingston totaled a game-high 21 kills to lead BYU to a 25-16, 25-16, 27-25 win over the Wildcats in Provo.

Livingston’s 21 kills were the most by a Cougar in the postseason since All-American Roni Jones-Perry had 25 against Texas in 2018, helping BYU reach advance to the second round of the tourney for the 12th consecutive year.

“I thought that was a really fun environment for our team to play,” said BYU head coach Heather Olmstead. “There are a lot of girls on their side that our players know, and it is always fun to play against your friends.

“I am really proud of the way our team was super resilient in that third set. We are happy to be here and grateful to be advancing.”

Besides Livingston, the rest of the Cougars attack was evenly spread out, with four other players with five kills or more, including Whitney McEwan-Llarenas with nine, Mia Lee with seven, Whitney Bower with six and Kate Prior with five.

Weber State, playing in its third-ever NCAA Tournament after winning the Big Sky tourney, didn’t go down without a fight, including having set point in the third frame.

Five attack errors on the Cougars’ first six swings gave the Wildcats an early 5-2 lead that Weber extended to 12-7 after three straight aces from Ashley Gneiting.

Three kills from Livingston helped BYU claw back to within two at 17-15, and McEwan-Llarenas’ kill tied the match at 19-19.

Weber State was on the cusp of extending the match with set point at 24-22, but a kill by Lee and an attack error by the Wildcats kept the set alive.

Another Lee kill and two more attack errors completed BYU’s comeback and ended the match at 27-25.

The win is the Cougars’ 13th-straight NCAA tourney first-round home victory dating back to 1992; BYU has also won its last 24 sets in the first round of the tournament since 2015.

“You need to have that pressure and those types of tests,” Olmstead said of the third set. “We are going to see that in the tournament, and we saw it from Weber for sure. I thought the crowd got into it and that gave us some energy that was good for our team.”

The Cougars controlled the first two sets, winning both by identical scores of 25-16. BYU scored the match’s first five points and never looked back in the first, outhitting Weber State .375 to .059.

The second set was closer, with the offenses clicking on both sides of the net. The two teams stayed within a point of each other until a kill by Prior and a solo block from McEwan-Llarenas gave BYU a slim 15-13 cushion.

A dump kill from Bower followed by a block by Bower and McEwan-Llarenas stretched the lead to 19-15 and forced a Wildcats timeout, but the Cougars continued to put on the pressure.

Livingston finished off the set with a kill off the Weber State block to give BYU the 2-0 advantage.

“I think that because we have played with each other for so long and in the NCAA Tournament before, we have trust in each other,” Bower said. “I trust my hitters to do their job and I am going to do my job. That makes it easier for everyone.”

Weber State star hitter Dani Richins led the Wildcats with 11 kills, 11 digs and two blocks, completing a career that includes five All-Big Sky honors.

BYU will next play No. 5-seed Arizona State in Provo on Saturday at 7 p.m. MST. The Sun Devils were three-set winners over Georgia on Friday and are facing the Cougars in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1983.

BYU won that match 3-0 in Provo.

“The Big 12, our preseason, our foreign trip and summer play has built up to these moments,” Olmstead said. “The next opportunity is to play Arizona State and we know every team is dangerous in the tournament, but that also makes us dangerous and forces teams to worry about us.

“We want to have that confidence while also being humble and knowing that we need to focus and play to our strengths.”