BYU’s home opener against Eastern Illinois was supposed to end quickly. The useful part was how the Cougars made it quick.
No. 24 BYU swept the Panthers 25-14, 25-18, 25-22 on Sept. 3 at the Smith Fieldhouse. The Cougars hit .250, held Eastern Illinois to .130 and won the ace count 8-1. Elli Mortensen matched her career high with four aces and led BYU with 12 kills.
An expected win over a first-time opponent does not tell us where BYU belongs nationally. It can reveal whether the Cougars create their own separation or simply wait for a smaller program to miss. BYU created it from the service line, then had to recover when the third set stopped following the first two.
BYU-Eastern Illinois match receipt
| Match item | BYU | Eastern Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| Sets | 3 | 0 |
| Set scores | 25, 25, 25 | 14, 18, 22 |
| Kills | 37 | 26 |
| Hitting percentage | .250 | .130 |
| Service aces | 8 | 1 |
| Elli Mortensen | 12 kills, 4 aces | — |
| Kelli Jo Burgess | 5 blocks | — |
Mortensen supplied nearly one-third of BYU’s kills and half of its aces. Claire Little Chambers added eight kills, and freshman Brooke Hardy finished with seven. Kaylie Kofe had 16 assists while Alex Bower added 14, continuing BYU’s use of two setters rather than asking one player to carry every second contact.
The distribution matters because a sweep can become deceptive when one attacker simply overwhelms an overmatched block. Mortensen was the best scorer on the floor, but BYU still had three players with at least seven kills and two setters with double-digit assists.
Eight aces changed the geometry
A service ace is the cleanest outcome, but the pressure around it matters too. A difficult serve can force a poor first pass, pull a setter away from the net and make the opposing attack predictable even when the ball stays in play.
BYU’s 8-1 ace advantage gave the Cougars more than seven free points. It helped keep Eastern Illinois at .130 and made long stretches of the first two sets feel one-directional.
Mortensen was the sharpest server. Her ace after the first-set technical timeout helped start the run that moved BYU from a manageable lead to 23-13. The Cougars then closed the set 25-14.
BYU did not need the same dramatic run in the second. It created a 9-5 advantage, protected it through the middle and finished 25-18 on a Mortensen kill.
The larger point is repeatability. Kills depend on the quality of the pass and set before them. Serving gives a team the first chance to dictate the rally. BYU used that first contact to make an expected result look controlled rather than merely inevitable.
The third set supplied the resistance
Eastern Illinois led 15-13 at the third-set technical timeout. BYU had to win a set that no longer looked like a procession.
Kofe’s ace and another Mortensen kill helped erase the gap. Burgess tied the set at 17 with a solo block. Sophia Callahan later helped BYU move in front 22-21, and Mortensen delivered the final kill at 25-22.
That sequence is the piece worth keeping. The first two sets showed that BYU could impose a talent and serving advantage. The third showed the Cougars could solve a modest deficit without extending the match.
Burgess’ five blocks gave BYU a net answer when the serving margin stopped doing all the work. Little Chambers and Hardy also contributed to a lineup that could score and defend through different rotations.
A three-point final set against Eastern Illinois should not be decorated into a pressure classic. The Panthers made BYU play from behind, and the Cougars responded before a fourth set became necessary. That is enough.
What the opener carried into the next tests
BYU left the match 3-0 and immediately faced No. 2 Pittsburgh the following night. The Pittsburgh result exposed a much harsher standard: BYU lost in four sets after its offense collapsed late.
The Cougars then answered at Boise State. Their three-set win over the Broncos included a .400 third-set hitting percentage and another useful late-match response.
That sequence puts Eastern Illinois in the right place. It was not a signature win. It was the first home receipt for a few traits BYU would need against better opponents: Mortensen carrying a large offensive share, Kofe and Bower dividing the setting load, Burgess changing rallies at the net and the service line creating pressure before the block had to react.
The score was expected. Eight aces and a clean third-set recovery explained why BYU earned it in only three.
Follow the women’s volleyball hub, schedule and results for every match and the postgame analysis that follows.
Sources and further reading
- BYU Athletics, Sept. 3: No. 24 BYU sweeps Eastern Illinois for the official set scores, team totals, player leaders and set-by-set account.
- BYU Athletics: official match box score for the full match statistics and participation record.
- BYU Athletics: official event record 25275 for event identity, venue, scheduled time, completed status and official box-score destination.
