Ruston sweeps Woodlawn-B.R. in opening round

One step closer.

No. 7 Ruston handled business and swept No. 26 Woodlawn-Baton Rouge in a competitive three-set match (25-21, 25-23, 25-16) on Wednesday night at the Sports Complex, advancing to the second round of the Division I playoffs.

The Bearcats, who entered the postseason with the highest seed in program history, needed multiple players to step up throughout the match as the Panthers didn't play to their seeding, giving Ruston all it could handle in the first and second set. But in the end, Ruston stood firm and will now host the winner of No. 10 Mandeville vs No. 23 Benton 11 a.m. Saturday at the Sports Complex.

Jade Smith led the way with a team-high 12 kills and team-high 7 blocks, taking over in the final two sets with momentum-shifting plays. Harper Cauley put up 4 kills, 1 block, 3 aces, 10 digs, while Hannah Rollins delivered 7 kills, 1 block, and 1 ace. Baylor Cauley ended with 4 kills, 2 blocks, 7 digs, and 23 assists in the match, while senior Shelby Freeman produced 3 kills.

“First of all, I'm so proud of these girls," Ruston head coach Amanda Cauley said. "We executed very well. Huge thank you to the community because it really was a huge crowd difference tonight. Student section was amazing. They actually got into it and did the cheers and celebrations and the chants. The coaching staff just wants to thank everybody that showed up and supporting the girls tonight.

“I think we played very well. We were steady and we were a little more offensive than they were. I don’t really have a complaint. The girls stayed steady and we put the ball down more than they did and we had some good passes and were able to run a good offense and keep our hitters doing what our hitters are capable of doing.”

In set one, Ruston and Woodlawn traded blows with each offense finding spots to connect and eventually found themselves knotted up at 5-5. Woodlawn took a brief 6-5 lead but Ruston punched back with a 11-1 run for a 16-7 advantage, with each point sending the packed gym into a frenzy as Ruston looked to be on its way to coasting to an early win. However, the Panthers didn’t roll over and cut the Ruston lead on a 10-5 run to make it a 21-17 game, forcing a timeout. The Bearcats never relinquished their lead and held on to take the opening frame 25-21.

Set two started with Ruston taking control with a 6-1 lead, as Smith, Rollins and Baylor contributed timely offense throughout. But just like the first set, Woodlawn refused to go away and eventually tied the set at 8-8 and then pulled ahead up 12-11. But then, Smith awoke and rattled off three kills over the next four points for the Bearcats, with the home squad reclaiming a 15-12 lead. The Panthers stuck around as Ruston continued to lead 21-18 in the final stages of the set before Smith and Baylor delivered the final two points to secure a tight 25-23 victory.

Ruston saved its best performance for last, taking the third and final set 25-16, with Smith taking over with 5 kills in the frame alone. The Bearcats pulled ahead 11-5 and never looked back, even when Woodlawn cut the deficit to 14-11. Ruston closed the match on an 11-5 run.

“Huge night for Jade," Cauley said. "I think Jade’s locked in and in the zone. I think all my seniors are. They want this. And I feel like we’ve gotten to a point where they believe they’re a good team. That’s been part of the battle is them thinking, ‘well, we’re not that caliber of team.’ And my mission has been to say to them, ‘yes, you are a good team.’”