The Difference Maker

It only takes one swing for Har per Cauley to know what kind of night she’s in for.

Harper, the top outside hitter for the Ruston volleyball program, plays with emotions on her sleeve. She has a sense of when it’s time to build up her teammates, let out a primal scream after a swift kill, or settle in and calm tension during a lull. Playing based on a feeling is her best self. It’s why all she needs is one hit in warmups to determine if she’s about to put on a show for each match.

On Monday, with the Bearcats hosting No. 9 (Division II) Northwood-Shreve por t , Harper got all she needed to go to her mom and head coach Amanda Cauley with a firm d e t e r mination.

“She told me pregame, ‘Mom, I’m on one,’” Amanda said. “And I’m like, ‘OK. Roll with it.’ When she’s dialed in like that, she is. I felt like there was no stopping her at the net tonight. She was going over, around, and through. She’s in her zone right now.”

Harper’s hunch was right as she delivered a game-high 17 kills for the Bearcats in a sweep of the Falcons (25-14, 25-14, 25-15) –— putting her at 109 kills through just nine games this season for Ruston. In nine games, Harper is hitting well over .340 — a sharp improvement from her previous seasons — along with a team-best 66 digs. If you needed a stronger indication of just how “on one” she is, Harper has 50 kills over her last three matches.

Less than a month into her senior season, Harper is right where she wants to be: proving she’s a consistent playmaker and emotional life vest for the Bearcats.

It’s all she’s ever wanted, really. “I want to be a difference-maker,” Harper said. “If I’m not on the court, I want people to know I would make a difference if I was out there. I want to have that factor that’s intense and brings energy. I want people to rely on me, and I want my teammates to see that they can rely on me.”

Ruston will make sure of that this season after losing productive middle-blockers Hannah Rollins and Jade Smith to graduation – changing the style of the Bearcats’ attack to funnel attempts to the outside at a higher rate than year’s past.

But when you lead like Harper does, with a love for the sport that goes beyond the game clock, responsibility to drive success in her play and her ability to build relationships isn’t a burden. It’s a welcomed mission, sometimes turning Harper’s pregame vibes from energetic to something so explosive it has to come out in a kill.

“I get very jittery, and then I just have that intense feeling that I want the kill, so it just makes me execute that much better and faster,” Harper said of her pregame gut feeling. “Everything’s just better when I have that feeling in me.

“I think I’ve just played with intensity, and I love the sport, so it’s been kind of natural for me.”

Red Leader

On every team, each player brings a unique skill to the table, whether in their God-given athletic abilities or the innate steadiness to bring people together.

For Ruston assistant coach Caleb Wug, now in his sixth year with the program, he’s seen hundreds of players come and go, many with one of those qualities.

But it’s rare to have someone like Harper with the duality to carry herself at a high-level on and off the court.

“At least in my experience, you have a lot of players that come and go through the program. And we’re ecstatic to have all of them and a lot of them bring a little bit of everything to the table. But there are some kids that come through and you know they’ve got something,” Wug said. “And from day one of meeting the Cauley family, you could tell each one of them had something. Whether it’s Josie, her (Amanda’s) youngest, or Baylor or Harper. Harper has always been so reliable on and off the court. She’s invested. She wants to give her all no matter what, and she wants everyone else to match that. It’s rare to see somebody give that much.”

Amanda Cauley calls her oldest daughter “the fighter” of the Bearcats, never one to turn off her switch of giving 100%.

“Harper is what they call a ‘red’ leader – meaning she’s fiery and vocal and energetic,” Amanda said. “She’s been doing a much better job of talking to her teammates and pulling people aside and explaining the why behind certain things. I think she’s done a much better job talking through the challenges that arise.” Harper enjoys being the fire that lights the Bearcats but knows there’s always a fine line to walk between having high standards and pushing too much. To help, she’s spent her summer, and now the early goings of the season, working to build stronger relationships with teammates to show them her style is always out of a place of love.

“I’m prioritizing making relationships with my teammates. Last year, I just thought it would come naturally. I realize it doesn’t,” Harper said. “So, I’ve been putting in effort to get closer to my teammates and have that chemistry and I feel like it’s really worked out on the court.” Harper, the 2023 Division I-District II Offensive Player of the Year (SR) and two-time first team all-district selection, burns bright in her play style. And Amanda knows it’s on her and Harper to manage the flame to avoid burning others and show that a leader has to sometimes sting for a moment to get the most out of a team. “She’s assertive and she’s abrupt and so we’ve been talking to her for six years about, ‘ Hey, not everyone has the same intensity or drive.’ And it’s sometimes what’s she’s saying is right, but the way she says it has to be adjusted,” Amanda said. “And I really feel like she’s matured into that better. But I’ll also say this, sometimes the leaders have to say things that nobody wants to say. And she’s comfortable doing that because she wants to win. I think she has a very mature grasp on that.”

Smart Attack

Harper’s high-flying attack is a sight to watch when the Bearcats take the court, but her rise in production is far more than just see-ball, hit-ball.

With defenses planning against her game-to-game, it’s rarely the case where the same attack setup works twice. But a crafty player finds a way.

“The court awareness and her ability to see what’s in front of her while also being able to track the ball is second to none,” Wug said. “She’s able to go around almost any block put in front of her. You can look at the stat book and you’ll see she›s got an extremely high kill rate.”

The extra attempts haven’t just boosted Harper’s stats, it’s made her adapt more than ever.

“It’s definitely made me more consistent for-sure and more aggressive,” Harper said. “I’ve learned a lot and learned when to go for the kill and when not to. It’s helped a lot with my volleyball IQ.”

Harper hopes to play at the college level but both she and her mom recognize her 5-6 frame as an outside hitter would require a lot of trust in a program to take a chance on her. And while she has no control over her height, Amanda knows her unmatched spirit will always give her a chance to reach her goals.

“I think Harper has always been a person you want to get the ball in her hands for the last three years. I think she’s even cleaned up her hitting percentage even more this year. She’s steadily in double-digit kills,” Amanda said. “But I think her difference-maker is her will to win and her intensity. And those are comments I’ve received from travel ball coaches and college coaches that have watched her and they say to me, ‘Her will to win is top notch.’ She has that something extra. I know if a college team picked her up, she would be a difference maker.”