PROVO — BYU has consistently featured at least one player whose skills and charisma make the Smith Fieldhouse one of the most difficult places for opponents to visit. Ossie Antonetti was one. So were Ryan Millar and Ivan Perez.
So, what about this year's team? Fresh off an 11-match win streak and sporting a shiny No. 2 national ranking, BYU certainly has a marquee player to hang its hat on, right?
Wrong.
This isn't meant to disrespect offensive stalwarts Andrew Stewart and Robb Stowell. And it's certainly not intended as an insult to Russell Lavaja and Futi Tavana — the most productive front line in the country. No, it's more of a compliment to the hottest collegiate volleyball team around.
"I think we take pride in playing as a team," setter Reed Chilton said. "I don't think there's one player who goes out of his way to seek individual attention, and that kind of attitude has really helped us be in sync on the court."
When asked if there was one individual who stands out, BYU coach Shawn Patchell paused and seemed almost reluctant to single out only one player. It made perfect sense, though, that he pointed to Chilton — the player who sets the table for others to make eye-catching plays — as the team's catalyst.
"If I had to name one guy it would have to be our setter, Reed," Patchell said. "He's been distributing the ball very well. It's tough to play defense against a team that is well-balanced, and we have a deep team with a lot of guys who can get the job done."
BYU's strength lies in its depth. The Cougars are third in the MPSF in total kills, yet Stewart, who leads the team with 433 kills, barely cracked the individual top 10. Where other schools sport elite individual players — UCSB's Jeff Menzel and Cal Irvine's Carson Clark, for example — BYU boasts six players who notched at least 100 kills and a bench full of guys ready to step in and make a play.
"I feel great about all my hitters," Chilton said. "I'll set any of them and feel confident that they'll be able to finish. Having so many talented teammates makes my job really easy. I just stand there and pass the ball around and know things will work."
Stewart, who has been a fixture on the court since he was a freshman, agrees that winning doesn't always come from jumping the highest or hitting the hardest.
"My teammates are my very best friends," he said. "They're always sleeping over at my house, even though I'm married. They sleep in the basement, they come over and eat my food, whatever. We hang out 24-7, and our chemistry on the court is a direct result of our friendship."
This kind of trust is the true source of BYU's success this season, and it has to be with the way the coaching staff rotates through the players. Patchell is a self-described substitution junkie — he constantly tinkers with the lineup in search of any possible advantage.
BYU has used 15 different lineups in 29 contests, and there isn't one player who has started every match this season. It's a general rule in sports that each player has to accept his role — as a star, supporting player or cheerleader on the bench — for the team to succeed. For BYU, the rule is simple: Be ready because you never know when your name is going to be called.
"It's just part of how the team works, so we don't let it throw us off when we're subbed out or when we're on the bench to start the match," Stewart said. "If we're not clicking, then I'm glad when the substitutions come — If I get subbed out I'm not angry. We have different guys step up every week, so I'm happy when other guys get a chance to shine."
By splitting the final two regular-season matches with No. 3 Cal State Northridge over the weekend, BYU clinched homecourt advantage in the first round of the MPSF playoffs. The Cougars will face UCLA — a team they beat twice in three meetings this season — at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the Smith Fieldhouse, and Patchell feels like his team is right where they want to be heading into the postseason.
Men's volleyball
BYU vs. UCLA
Saturday, 7 p.m.
Smith Fieldhouse