No. 11 BYU women’s volleyball hits the road this week to open the season at the Women of Troy Baden Invitational in Los Angeles.
The Cougars kick off the tournament with a match against Chicago State. The following day, BYU takes on No. 7 North Carolina and No. 22 USC.
Chicago State
The BYU Cougars open the season against the Chicago State Cougars on Friday, Aug. 28 at 5 p.m. PDT, on the neutral USC court. BYU and Chicago State have never faced each other previously. This will be the first meeting between the two schools. Chicago State went 6-24, 0-16 in 2014, its second season of competition in the Western Athletic Conference. The Chicago State Cougars are led this season by new head coach Brandon Reeves.
No. 7 North Carolina
BYU next faces No. 7 North Carolina at USC’s court on Saturday, Aug. 29 at 12:30 p.m. PDT. The Cougars and Tar Heels have faced each other only twice previously, with BYU holding the undefeated 2-0 record. The last match played between the two schools was part of the Nebraska Invitational on Sept. 29, 1990, where the Cougars came out on top, 3-0. North Carolina went 29-3, 17-1 ACC in 2014. It competed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament, advancing to the regional finals before falling to Texas. The Tar Heels return seven starters, while losing three from last year.
No. 22 USC
The Cougars cap off the tournament against host No. 22 USC on Saturday, Aug. 29 at 8 p.m. PDT. The two schools last squared off in the regional semifinals of the 2013 NCAA Tournament with the Trojans taking a 3-1 victory. USC holds a 12-6 advantage in the overall series against BYU. The Trojans went just 16-16, 8-12 last year, finishing 10th in the Pac-12. They participated in their 24th consecutive NCAA tournament in 2014, falling in the second round to the Tar Heels.
Video/stats
Live stats will be provided for each match. The first two matches against Chicago State and North Carolina will be streamed live on the Pac-12 website. Saturday’s matchup against USC will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks. Links to live stats and a video feed can be found on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page.
Royce Hinton is the men's and women's volleyball sports information director for BYU Athletic Communications.