PROVO, Utah – In a four-set match, the BYU women's volleyball team was able to pull away from the San Francisco Dons (25-23, 25-14, 25-19, 25-22) Saturday night in the Smith Fieldhouse to continue a four-match winning streak.

“We’re happy about the win, but especially the way we played in the first two sets,” BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead said. “We did a lot of good things, but we let it slip in the third and there are definitely a few things we saw that need improvement. I think our defense was good tonight, but we gave away a little more than we should have and we’re lucky that we were able to take the fourth set.”

Heather Hannemann, Christie Carpenter and Jennifer Hamson achieved double-doubles with Hannemann obtaining a career-high 55 assists and 12 digs. Carpenter added 14 kills and 12 digs. Hamson tallied the match-high 20 kills for the night and contributed 10 digs. Kathryn LeCheminant tied her career high of 10 kills for the second time this week. Kendalyn Hartsock totaled 20 digs on the night, helped out by Tia Withers with 15.

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After lagging a little in the first set, the Cougars (20-7, 9-4) pulled off a 9-1 run to put them ahead at 11-6. Building off its lead, BYU was able to obtain another five-point run for a 19-12 lead before finishing the set at a close 25-23.

The second set started a little quicker for the Cougars as they reached a lead at 11-5 early on in the set. Aiding to offensive play, Nicole Warner put down 5 kills with the help of Hannemann and allowed the Cougars to work up to an 18-8 lead. Unable to fill the deficit, the Dons (13-12, 5-7) came up short once again at 25-14.

Hannemann not only supplied 14 assists to the set, but six digs as well. Other contributers include Hamson, Carpenter and LeCheminant adding three kills apiece.

The third set proved a little more challenging for the Cougars as they played back and forth with Dons for the lead. A 5-0 run put San Francisco ahead at 17-14. The Cougars were unable to make up the difference and the Dons took the set victory at 25-19.

In similar fashion to the third set, the Cougars battled during the fourth for the lead over the Dons. With both teams making a number of errors, the set saw 11 tied scores. After a three-point run from San Francisco to tie the score at 22-22, the Cougars earned a 3-point run of their own before a kill from Hamson ended the set to give the Cougars the win over the Dons.

Next up, the Cougars will travel to California Nov. 10, to face off with the Gaels of Saint Mary’s at 7 p.m. PST in their last road trip of the season.

BYU vs. USF Box Score

PROVO, Utah—Returning to the Smith Fieldhouse after securing the No. 3 position in the West Coast Conference, the BYU women’s volleyball team is set to take on Loyola Marymount Thursday and San Francisco Saturday.

“This is an exciting week for BYU Volleyball,” BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead said.  “Both LMU and San Francisco are quality opponents and we hope to follow up a great road trip with a strong home stand. “

The Cougars (18-7, 7-4) come off back-to-back wins against USF (13-11, 5-6) and Santa Clara. BYU defeated SCU 3-1 when the teams met in Santa Clara, Calif. and shutdown USF 3-1 in San Francisco.

The last time BYU faced LMU (13-11, 6-5), the Cougars came away with a 3-2 win in their only five-set match of the season.

Jennifer Hamson and Nicole Warner continue to dominate the WCC statistics list, Hamson leading in kills with 4.00 kills per set and Warner leading in blocks with 1.49 blocks per set. Senior Christie Carpenter takes second on the team with 2.87 kills per set and Kathryn LeCheminant helps out at the net with 1.16 blocks per set. LeCheminant passed 100 season blocks in the match against Santa Clara and currently totals 102.

Libero Kendalyn Hartsock set a career high of 31 digs against USF, which also broke the team’s season high of 25 digs in a match. Hartsock has 4.36 digs per set. Freshman defensive specialist Tia Withers helps out with 2.10 digs per set and set her own career record with 17 digs against USF.

LMU ranks just behind the Cougars at No. 4 in the WCC after wins against Gonzaga and Portland last week. Betsi Metter leads the league in digs with 4.80 per set.

USF boasts a win against nationally ranked San Diego in the first round of WCC play, but currently resides at the No. 6 position in the conference. The Dons are on a five-match losing streak that began with a loss to Pepperdine Oct. 15.

Vendula Strakova leads the Dons’ offense with 3.33 per set and is aided by Valentina Zaloznik’s 2.61 kills per set. Rebecca Kopilovitch earns 4.35 digs per set.

The matches will both be televised on BYUtv and simulcast on BYU radio. For links to online streaming and live stats, click HERE. Both matched begin at 7 p.m.

Thursday is 3-for-3 Night. If fans mention the offer at the ticket office, they will receive admission for $1, a small popcorn for $1 and a small flavor pop for $1. Saturday is this season's Y. Game, where members of other BYU teams will come out to support the volleyball team. Admission is $1 for those who bring a can of food to the match.

BYU vs. LMU Notes

BYU vs. USF Notes