The Cougars will welcome Eastern Illinois and No. 2 Pittsburgh to the Smith Fieldhouse for a pair of matches Thursday and Friday.

BYU remained at No. 24 in this week’s American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) poll after picking up a pair of wins at the FGCU Invitational in Fort Myers, Florida, last week, overcoming a 2-0 deficit to reverse sweep Florida State before beating host Florida Gulf Coast in four sets.

Following the weekend’s matches, opposite hitter Sophia Callahan was named the tournament MVP, while setter Alex Bower was honored as a member of the all-tournament team.

Callahan’s 19 kills came on a .325 hitting percentage, while Bower posted 44 assists and 12 digs. Callahan added seven digs and four blocks.

Bower and fellow setter Kaylie Kofe (45 assists) spread the Cougar offense around as seven different hitters recorded a kill in the tournament: Claire Little Chambers (21), Callahan (19), Kate Prior (16), Brooke Hardy (15, .393 hitting percentage), Elli Mortensen (14), Kelli Jo Burgess (13, .478 hitting percentage) and Dimitra Nanou (nine).

Burgess led the way defensively with 16 total blocks, averaging 1.78 per set, while Little Chambers contributed 11 (1.22 per set). Hardy tallied seven, while Prior posted five.

Through two matches, BYU is hitting .269 as a team while holding opponents to a .212 hitting percentage. The Cougars are averaging 12 kills per set, 11.22 assists per set, 9.22 digs per set, 2.61 blocks per set and 1.56 aces per set.

Individually, Mortensen’s 0.83 aces per set rank 20th nationally and third in the Big 12. Burgess’ 1.78 blocks per set rank 23rd nationally and fifth in the Big 12.

Beginning a stretch of four of the next five matches at home, the Cougars will square off with a set of Panthers, opening with the first-ever meeting against Eastern Illinois before their first Top 25 matchup of the season against No. 2 Pitt.

Eastern Illinois (1-2, 0-0 OVC)

–The Panthers went 1-2 to open the season, beating Santa Clara in five sets before falling to Wright State and Dayton in straight sets.

–EIU won both the regular-season and Ohio Valley Conference tournament titles last year but was swept by No. 3 seed Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

–Head coach Ryan Millar, a four-time All-American, 1999 national player of the year and national champion with the BYU men’s volleyball team, enters his second season with the Panthers. He is 25-10 (.714) in 35 matches.

–Thursday’s match will mark the first meeting between BYU and Eastern Illinois in women’s volleyball.

No. 2 Pitt (4-0, 0-0 ACC)

–The Panthers have gone 4-0 to begin 2026, with wins against No. 3 Kentucky, Xavier, No. 15 Kansas and No. 6 Wisconsin.

–Pitt has made the Final Four in five straight years (2021-25) but fell to eventual national champion Texas A&M last season.

–Head coach Dan Fisher is in his 14th year with the Panthers. He is 354-74 (.827) at Pitt and 429-76 (.850) in his 16-year career.

–BYU trails the all-time series, 3-2. The Cougars took the last matchup between the two teams, a 3-1 win to open the 2023 season in Missoula, Montana. The Panthers are 1-1 in Provo, taking the last meeting on Sept. 3, 2022, 3-1.

Up Next

BYU will head back out on the road for a Tuesday night match at Boise State before returning home to host UCLA later in the week.

Akina to compete in Walker Cup

LAHINCH, Ireland — BYU men’s golfer Kihei Akina will compete at the 51st Walker Cup at Lahinch Golf Club on Saturday and Sunday.

Akina was named to Team USA in August and became the sixth BYU golfer selected to a Walker Cup team, joining Michael Brannan and John Fought in 1977, Bobby Clampett in 1979, Rick Fehr in 1983 and Mitch Voges in 1991. Akina is the first Cougar selected in 35 years.

The sophomore earned a Walker Cup selection following a standout 2025-26 freshman season that included 11 top-10 finishes, seven top-five finishes and two victories. He also tied for eighth at the NCAA Championship en route to winning the 2026 Phil Mickelson Outstanding Freshman Award and earning PING All-America First Team honors.

Currently ranked No. 11 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Akina made the cut in two of four PGA Tour events and added three Korn Ferry Tour appearances. He also advanced to the Round of 64 at the 2026 U.S. Amateur Championship in August and competed in the 30th Arnold Palmer Cup, becoming the only freshman in BYU history to do so.

Akina will join nine other Team USA golfers and face Team Great Britain and Ireland in a two-day team match play tournament consisting of four morning foursome matches each day, followed by afternoon singles matches, with eight on Saturday and 10 on Sunday.

Team USA needs 13 points or more out of 26 possible to retain the cup. Team Great Britain and Ireland needs 13.5 points or more to win the cup outright.

The United States leads the series 40-9-1 and has won five consecutive Walker Cup contests.

Television coverage is available on the Golf Channel, with streaming available via the Golf Channel app. Live scoring is available at championships.usga.com. Saturday’s foursome pairings will be announced Friday.