PROVO, Utah – No. 13 Stanford made a late run in the third set, but dropped a 25-12, 25-21, 25-22 decision at No. 2 BYU, Saturday, in front of 5,817 fans at Smith Fieldhouse.
Stanford (6-9, 2-4 MPSF) ended the match on a 7-0 run with senior Eric Beatty at the service line before BYU sided out and ended the match with an ace. The Cougars remained undefeated at 16-0 and improved to 6-0 in the conference.
The Cardinal was held to a .114 attack percentage - the lowest by a BYU opponent this season. The Cougars put up 15.5 blocks and kept the Cardinal out of system with seven service aces. BYU hit .329 as a team.
Junior opposite Jaylen Jasper led Stanford with 10 kills on .273 hitting to go with four digs and a block. Freshman outside hitter Will Rottman added nine kills, four digs, two blocks and an ace.
Some great defense by @StanfordMVB.
— BYUtv Sports (@byutvsports) March 1, 2020
Set 3: #Stanford 18 BYU 23@NCAAVolleyball #NCAAVolleyball pic.twitter.com/9xJQzdJILd
Freshman setter Nathan Lietzke controlled the offense with 25 assists and had four digs, four blocks and two kills. Redshirt freshman libero Justin Lui finished with six digs.
Beatty had three aces, including two down the stretch in the third set after returning from a scary moment. The Huntington Beach native dove over the scorer's table for a ball in the third set and hit his chin on a chair, taking him out of the match for a short period.
Back to back aces for Eric Beatty as @StanfordMVB cuts BYU's lead to one.
— BYUtv Sports (@byutvsports) March 1, 2020
Set 3: #Stanford 22 BYU 23@NCAAVolleyball #NCAAVolleyball pic.twitter.com/24WHpWvHZR
Junior middle blocker Kyler Presho finished with a team-high six blocks to go with three kills, while senior Stephen Moye had two kills and two digs.
BYU was led by opposite Gabi Garcia Fernandez, who registered 12 kills on .364 hitting and had five blocks. Middle Miki Jauhiainen chipped in with six kills and a match-high seven blocks.
Saturday's match was the highest attended match at BYU since 2005 and the fifth-highest attendance at Smith Fieldhouse all-time.
Stanford returns to The Farm next week, hosting No. 5 Lewis for a pair of matches, March 6-7, in Burnham Pavilion.