The BYU women’s volleyball team is embracing its first NCAA Tournament opening weekend road trip since 2014.

That was a magic year for the Cougars, who became the first unseeded team to reach the national championship match with a six-match road run through the tournament.

In the seven NCAA tournaments since (the 2021 spring tourney was played in Omaha), BYU has hosted the first two rounds in six of them, posting an enviable 13-1 record in the Smith Fieldhouse.

On Friday, the No. 7 seed Cougars (21-6) begin first round tournament play against Sun Belt champion James Madison (24-4) at the Peterson Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.

“Although it’s different to be in the tournament on the road, it’s been fun,” BYU coach Heather Olmstead said. “It’s been unique to be in a different gym to open up. A lot of time when you’re at home, you don’t get as much of the NCAA feel, although you get the home court advantage. It doesn’t feel as much like you’re playing in the NCAA Tournament because it’s a home game. I think this had been fun for our team to be in a new city and hotel, and just to be able to soak in the tournament vibes.”

The Cougars played in Pittsburgh last season in the Panther Challenge and played host and No. 2 seed Pitt in early September at the Smith Fieldhouse, losing 3-1.

However, James Madison has all of the attention of Olmstead and her coaching staff. She pointed out that the Dukes, who are making their first NCAA appearance since 2017, have a higher RPI (21) than the Cougars (26).

“They have more wins than us and they are a good team,” Olmstead said. “There’s nobody overlooking or not talking about JMU. Our staff and our players are anxious to match up. They’ve got a great middle (6-foot-1 senior Sophie Davis) who was was defensive player of the year in the Sun Belt. Lauren (Steinbrecher) was coach of the year, they have great outsides (Graduate student Cameryn Jones and freshman Breyna Reid) and they have a great setter (senior Caroline Dozier). They didn’t win 24 games for nothing. We’ve got our hands full tomorrow with a really good team that’s ready to play in the tournament.”

As for her own team, Omstead believes her team is stepping up the challenge.

“I think we’re playing some of our best volleyball of the season and we’re excited about this chance to be on the road in someone else’s gym and open up the tournament in a neutral site,” she said. “Our fight and our resiliency has been really good all year, just having to problem solve and figure out ways to play well. We’ve put an emphasis on our serve and pass game and I think our passing has gotten better. We’re passing some of our best balls in the past ten matches and you can see our passers making improvement. I think defensively we’ve tried to get better at blocking and getting more in people’s faces across the net and block a few more balls.”

The Cougars have some tournament veterans in middle blocker Heather Gneiting, who was a freshman when BYU advanced to the Final Four in 2018, and setter Whitney Bower, who has been a starter in three NCAA Tournaments.

“We’ve chatted about this for sure,” Olmstead said. “Our last road trip when we went to Pepperdine and LMU we said, ‘Hey, we’re going to use this trip as a tune-up’ because we knew we were going to go on the road in the NCAA’s. We said, ‘Let’s play our best volleyball on the road, stay in the match and grind it out and just be good over time.’ We’ve got kids who have been on the road a bunch throughout their careers.”

Olmstead and assistant coach Dave Hiatt were on the bench in the 2014 national championship match as assistants for Olmstead’s brother, Shawn, now heading up the Cougar men’s program.

“Dave and I were on that staff and went on the road with an unseeded BYU team and got all the way to the finals,” Olmstead said. “So we’re excited no matter what the rankings are. We have to have our best weekend, let the chips fall where they may and like every other team, just live to see another day.”

NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament

First Round

No. 7 seed BYU (21-6) vs. James Madison (24-4)

Friday, 2 p.m. MT

Peterson Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Live Stream: ESPN+

The Word: The Cougars have qualified for 11 straight NCAA Tournaments, while the Dukes are returning for the first time since 2017. … James Madison has won 15 straight matches, including a 3-1 victory vs. Texas State in the Sun Belt Tournament championship match. … BYU has won eight of its past nine matches, with the only loss to No. 3-ranked San Diego 3-1 in the Smith Fieldhouse on Nov. 22. … Host Pitt (27-3), a No. 2 seed, will play Colgate (24-5) in the first round nightcap.

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