LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The No. 4 BYU men's volleyball team lost a tough five-set match on Friday against No. 3 UCLA on the road at the John Wooden Center. 

It appeared BYU had won the match in the fifth set on an ace from Josue Rivera that made the score 17-15, but after a 10-minute discussion the call was overturned and it was determined the point would be replayed. From there, UCLA came back to win set five 20-18 for the victory. 

Senior Robb Stowell led the Cougars with a .351 attack percentage, 18 kills and five digs. Taylor Sander contributed 21 kills, six digs and a career-high six aces.

In an exciting first set that both teams knew would set the mood for the rest of the match, UCLA took a long 29-27 victory after the Cougars couldn't convert on three set points. Stowell led BYU in the first set with a scorching .860 attack but the Bruins were able to get the victory behind four service aces.

The Bruins added four more aces in a convincing 25-16 second-set win with three-straight points to close out the set. BYU hit just .053 in the second.

Game three was a back-and-forth battle, but when it mattered the Cougars were able to take control and eventually win 25-22. Riding the momentum, BYU dominated the fourth set behind Sander's four aces to take the 25-18 win and tie the match at 2-2. 

The Cougars (20-6, 16-5) and Bruins (20-4, 14-3) will meet again tomorrow at 7 p.m. PT. Live stats, video and audio are all available through UCLA's men's volleyball schedule page.  

Quick Look
#4 BYU Cougars: 20-5, 16-4
#3 UCLA Bruins: 19-4, 13-3

The No. 1 MPSF tournament seed is on the line this weekend as the #4 BYU men's volleyball team travels to play a pair of matches against #3 UCLA on Friday and Saturday, April 6 and 7, at 7 p.m. PT.

After winning both matches on the road last weekend, BYU placed the hunt for the No. 1 seed in its own hands. The Cougars travel to UCLA to end the conference schedule, where a pair of wins would guarantee the top seed and home court in their MPSF postseason run. BYU owns the tiebreaker over both UC Irvine and USC, defeating each team twice in conference action.

BYU is riding a 20-5 overall record after winning out last weekend’s home matches. Senior Robb Stowell leads the Cougar offense on 319 kills with 4 other players recording 100+ kills and six more players recording double-digit kills. Taylor Sander, Josue Rivera, Russ Lavaja and Futi Tavana have totaled 318, 235, 156 and 137 kills, respectively.

Lavaja leads the team with 136 blocks and is third all-time in BYU history for total blocks. Tavana is now the all-time blocks leader & block assist leader in BYU’s rally scoring era and is just four away from becoming the solo blocks leader. Joe Kauliakamoa leads the squad with 927 assists. 

The Cougars are averaging 3.3 blocks per set to lead the nation.

The Bruins have lost three of their last five matches but, most recently, defeated then-No. 1 UC Irine on the road for a win when it mattered most. Jeremy Casebeer leads the team on 221 kills with four other players recording 100+ kills and four more players contributing double-digit kills. Thomas Amberg’s 126 total blocks (1.59 b/s) leads the squad and is helping contribute to the team’s season average of 2.4 blocks per set.

UCLA leads the all-time series against BYU, 28-22. 

Fans can follow the match online through video and radio, and Gametracker.

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