Career performance powers No. 2/2 Grand Canyon to sweep No. 6/8 BYU

Photo courtesy of Grand Canyon athletics

Outside attacker Karter Rogers did it all for No. 2/2 Grand Canyon.

Rogers finished with both a match-high four aces and six blocks along with a 10 kills on a .533 attack percentage as Grand Canyon swept No. 6/8 BYU 25-21, 25-20, 25-23 on Saturday in Provo, Utah.

This performance marked career-highs in all three categories for the redshirt junior. Rogers also was responsible for multiple runs throughout the match that helped Grand Canyon (11-0, 2-0 MPSF) complete the two-match road series sweep.

Rogers with Grand Canyon trailing 14-13 in the third game had three consecutive kills and then a block for a 4-0 run to give the team a lead that it would maintain for the rest of the match. The outside attacker early in the second game had back-to-back kills and then back-to-back blocks to jumpstart a 12-2 run.

Setter Nicholas Slight guided the Grand Canyon offense to out-hit BYU .427 to .276 in front of a crowd of 4,149 people. The Antelopes committed three or fewer errors in two of the three games and had a match-best .600 attack percentage in the final game.

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All six of Grand Canyon’s starters had more than a .300 attack percentage against BYU (9-5, 0-2 MPSF).

Along with Rogers, opposite Camden Gianni finished with a match-high 15 kills on a .333 attack percentage. Outside attacker Jackson Hickman added eight kills and hit .353, including having a game-high five kills in the final game.

BYU opposite Kupono Browne in the loss had a team-high 11 kills and was the only Cougar to have double-digit kills.

This match also featured a lengthy delay with Grand Canyon at match-point.

Grand Canyon was initially awarded a match-winning point on a BYU net violation. In addition, outside attacker Jon Stanley suffered an injury on the play and had to be helped off the court.

With Stanley off the court and the Antelopes lining up for the postmatch handshakes, BYU coach Shawn Olmstead began to protest the call. The officials following a lengthy internal discussion, conversations with both head coaches and a BYU challenge eventually awarded the point to BYU.

The match resumed after about a 10-minute delay and immediately ended with a service error in the net from middle attacker Teon Taylor.

Grand Canyon with this victory remains the only undefeated in the nation. The Antelopes also extended their winning streak against BYU to six matches dating back to 2022.