From hosting one preseason tournament to another, the WSU volleyball team quickly prepares for a trio of matches throughout the week. After sweeping the Cougar Invitational, the Cougar Challenge will see UC Irvine, Towson and No. 8 BYU come through Bohler Gym to take on the Cougs.
Ranked No. 13, WSU Volleyball (5-1, 0-0 Pac-12) has no easy match ahead of them as they look to continue to prove that their No. 21 ranking to open the season undervalued the potential the team has. The Cougar Challenge is the last three home matches of the preseason for WSU, with two away matches bridging the gap between the preseason and Conference season.
UC Irvine (2-4) has the worst record of the three schools, but they finished 20-10 in 2022. Towson (6-1) is coming off an amazing 29-2 season and their lone loss this season thus far has come from the hands of a tough South Carolina team that they also beat the day before the loss.
But, the biggest matchup is the Friday night bout with No. 8 BYU (6-0), who already took down a then-No. 5 Pitt team in 2023. It is the biggest matchup in Bohler Gym this preseason and one of, if not the, biggest out-of-conference match that the Cougs will host in program history.
Entering their match, WSU is 3-0 all-time against UC Irvine, with wins in 2010, 2015 and 2016. Towson and the Cougs have never played against each other, so the Cougs have a new opponent for the second-straight hosted Tournament. Finally, BYU and WSU have split their two matches against each other, with BYU winning in 2022 and WSU in 2002.
The two Cougs met in Provo, Utah, last season and BYU came out with a sweep at home. The Cougs of Pullman hit just .138 in the match. Now, with home-court advantage and a year’s worth of extra experience, WSU is looking to get their revenge.
The usual suspects are dominating offensively, with Iman Isanovic, Katy Ryan, Pia Timmer and Magda Jehlárová all putting up at least 2.00 kills a set to this point, with Isanovic and Ryan both above 3.00 kills per set.
Argentina Ung will get her 200th season assist during the first match, as she currently has 198 on the year. Defensively, it has been a slow start in blocking, but Jehlárová went off during the Drake match as she had double-digit blocks en route to breaking the program record for total blocks in a career.
The Cougar Challenge begins for WSU at 6 p.m. Wednesday against UC Irvine in Bohler Gym. The next two matches are scheduled for 8 p.m. Thursday against Towson and 7 p.m. Friday against BYU.
