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The BYU women's volleyball team celebrates a point during a Big 12 match against Colorado in the Smith Fieldhouse on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU freshman Elli Mortensen (2) takes a swing against the Colorado block in a Big 12 women's volleyball match at the Smith Fieldhouse on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU's Brielle Miller passes the ball during a Big 12 women's volleyball match against Colorado in the Smith Fieldhouse on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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Once the Big 12 schedule starts, it’s on.

BYU may have come into Thursday’s league opener with Colorado as the ranked team (No. 17), but the Buffaloes gave the Cougars all they could handle in front of the home Smith Fieldhouse crowd.

After splitting the first two sets, BYU won the next two in tight fashion and finally closed out a 3-1 (25-17, 21-25, 25-23, 25-22) victory.

Claire Little led BYU with 15 kills, Elli Mortensen finished with 13 (and hit .357), Brielle Kamavor had 10 (and hit .526) and Kjersti Strong added nine. ALex Bower had her fifth double-double of the season with 40 assists and 13 digs. Kemavor was dominant at the net with eight block assists, leading the Cougars to 15 team blocks.

BYU broke open a close first set and took a 16-12 lead on a combo block from Kemavor and Bower. A 4-0 run, with Kemavor dominating at the net with a kill and a block assist with Blaykli Bobik, pushed the Cougars to a 21-13 lead. A couple of Colorado errors resulted in a 25-17 BYU win, with the Cougars hitting .346 and holding the Buffaloes to a -.033 percentage. Little and Mortensen had four kills each for BYU, which totaled six blocks.

Colorado’s Ana Burilovic got hot in the second set and totaled seven kills, jump starting what had been a sluggish offense. The Buffaloes got out a 19-13 lead on a 5-0 run and were never caught. BYU earned its was back to two, 20-18, on a solo block from Strong, but Colorado ended up finishing a 25-21 victory to tie the match at 1-1.

The third set was a good one with ten ties and five lead changes. Colorado took a 17-15 lead but BYU rallied to surge to a 20-18 advantage on a heady play by Bower, who found an empty spot in the Buffaloes defense with a long tip. The Cougars got to set point at 24-22 on a Colorado service error. The Buffs got a block to close to 24-23 but Bower set Kamavor and the 6-foot-5 sophomore delivered off the Colorado block for a 25-23 win and a 2-1 lead in the match.

BYU took an 11-9 lead in Set 4 and Colorado chased the Cougars the whole way, finally closing to within one at 19-18. Little bashed a kill, then teamed up with Kemavor for a block and a 22-19 advantage. The Cougars got to match point at 24-20 but had a hard time putting the Buffaloes away. At 24-22, Colorado served into the net and the home team took the victory.

BYU (8-3 overall, 1-0 Big 12) will play Saturday in another league matchup, this one with Texas Tech, in the Smith Fieldhouse at 1 p.m. MT.

Women’s soccer forges tie with Oklahoma State

BYU battled with Oklahoma State Thursday night and ended up earning a point with a 2-2 tie at South Field.

BYU opened the scoring with a goal from Mika Krommenhoek in the fourth minute for a quick 1-0 lead. Oklahoma State countered in the 31st minute with a header from Xcaret Pineda for the 1-1 tie at half.

The Cowgirls took a 2-1 lead in the 73rd minute when Nicole St. Ray popped a shot over BYU goalkeeper Lynette Hernaez’s head. The Cougars evened things up in the 76th minute when MacKenzee Vance scored her second goal of the season.

The Cougars (4-4-3 overall, 2-1-1 Big 12) will host Iowa State on Monday at 7 p.m. MT.