POCATELLO, Idaho – Amy Boswell and No. 10 BYU women’s volleyball cruised past Missouri in three-sets (26-24, 26-24, 25-17) Saturday afternoon at Reed Gym.

“I loved the fight we showed in this match,” BYU head coach Heather Olmstead said. “Missouri has a well-balanced attack that we had to figure out. I'm proud of the way we competed.”

Boswell led the Cougars with 12 kills on a .381 clip while adding a team-high four blocks. Mary Lake contributed a match-high 11 digs and Lyndie Haddock collected 30 assists. Danelle Parady-Stetler chipped in 10 digs and three aces and McKenna Miller had 12 kills in the win.

Missouri (5-3) took an early 6-2 lead in the first set against BYU (8-0) with help from a pair of blocks. A Miller kill helped BYU stay in the set, down 7-5, before a Makenna Santiago ace tied the set at 11 apiece. The Tigers scored the next four points, three off of Cougar miscues, to regain their advantage at 15-11. Missouri maintained its lead from there, taking a 20-15 lead from a block, forcing BYU to take a timeout. After the break, the Cougars went on a 7-2 run, with help from kills by four different players, to tie the set back at 22-all. BYU continued its rally with a 3-0 spurt to force extra points and a set one win, 26-24.

Two kills and a block from Boswell helped the Cougars tie the second set at 3-3 early on. After the Tigers took a 6-3 lead, BYU was fueled by a 6-1 run to take a 9-7 advantage. A Parady-Stetler ace extended BYU’s lead to four at 14-10 and a bad set from Missouri put the Cougars ahead 17-12. The Tigers then rallied with three quick points, but a Veronica Jones-Perry kill extended BYU’s lead to six, 22-16. A Whitney Young Howard solo block gave the Cougars set point at 24-18, but Missouri rallied with a 6-0 run to tie the set at 24-all. Kills from Parady-Stetler and Howard then ended the close set 26-24 for BYU.

The Cougars took a 5-3 advantage to start the third set following a Miller kill. The Tigers quickly rallied with a 4-0 run to take the lead at 7-5. BYU countered with a 5-0 rally, which included three kills from Miller, to go back up at 10-7. Missouri used its first timeout of the set after a 4-1 Cougar run gave BYU a four-point edge at 14-10. The Tigers came back within two at 15-13, but another 6-1 Cougar rally, capped off by back-to-back Parady-Stetler aces, extended BYU’s advantage to eight, 21-13. The Cougars cruised from there, ended the set and match 25-17 on a Miller kill.

The Cougars return to action at Reed Gym against host Idaho State later tonight at 7 p.m. MDT. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.

PROVO, Utah – No. 10 BYU women’s volleyball hits the road again this week for the Idaho State Invitational.

The Cougars (6-0) will face off against Boise State, Missouri – who is receiving votes in the AVCA poll – and Idaho State.

Last Time Out

BYU won the Sports Imports D.C. Koehl Classic last week by defeating Wyoming, LIU Brooklyn and host then-No. 11 Ohio State. Mary Lake was named the tournament Most Valuable Player and was added to the all-tournament list along with Amy Boswell.

Boise State

The Cougars face off against Boise State (4-2) Friday, Sept. 9, at 4 p.m. MDT at Reed Gym.

BYU leads the Broncos in the overall series history with a perfect 6-0 record, winning most recently in four sets in 2008.

Boise State has won its past three matches, picking up victories against Wright State, Kent State and Cleveland State last week.

The Broncos ended the 2015 season with a 23-7, 15-3 (2nd) MWC record.

Missouri

Missouri (4-2) will take on the Cougars Saturday, Sept. 10, beginning at noon MDT at Reed Gym.

The Tigers lead the short overall series history 2-1-1. Missouri won the last matchup in four sets in 2009.

Mizzou went 1-2 over the weekend, falling at home to Utah and Miami (Ohio) before picking up a four-set win against recent BYU opponent Rice.

The Tigers advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament in 2015 and ended the year with a 27-6, 14-4 (2nd) SEC record.

Idaho State

Idaho State (4-3) will compete against the Cougars Saturday, Sept. 10, at 7 p.m. MDT at Reed Gym to conclude the Idaho State Invitational.

BYU leads the series history with a near-perfect 26-1 overall record. The Cougars won a five-set thriller against the Bengals at home last year.

Idaho State won its past four matches last week, winning first at Utah Valley before taking the Cougar Classic title with wins against Lamar, Houston and Texas Southern.

The Bengals went 23-10, 13-3 (2nd) Big Sky in 2015.

Additional Info

There will be live stats available for each of the three matches this week. Saturday’s match against Idaho State will have audio/video feeds as well. Links to everything can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.