Ruston volleyball earns No. 16 seed in playoff field
Ruston High volleyball, earning the No. 16 seed in the Division I playoff field, will host East Ascension in the first round on Wednesday. Baylor Cauley (10) leads the team with 470 assists. Photo by Darrell James
The Ruston High volleyball team will start its playoff run in its home gym as the No. 16 seed in the LHSAA Division I playoffs after brackets were officially released Monday.
Ruston (23-13) will host No. 17 East Ascension (23-20) on Wednesday at 5 p.m. after the Bearcats’ productive regular season saw them win their second straight district title and eight of their last nine matches.
This is now the sixth time in the last seven years Ruston has hosted a first-round playoff game as a top 18 seed.
And if the Bearcats weren’t already playing with enough momentum, getting to host in their home gym should set them up for success. The Bearcats are 10-0 in their home gym this season and have not dropped a single set along the way. In fact, Ruston’s last loss inside its home gym was Sept. 27, 2022.
“I am so excited about another chance for the girls to play at home,” Ruston head coach Amanda Cauley said of the playoff selection. “East Ascension is a tough draw for round one. They have some size and power. We are going to have to take care of business and control the tempo of the game.”
East Ascension won its last three matches in the regular season and won four of its last five road games.
The winner of Wednesday’s contest will face No. 1 Slidell (34-4) on the road in the second round. Ruston would have to win its first two playoff games to make back-to-back trips to the state tournament in Lafayette.
Ruston’s top players heading into the postseason include Harper Cauley, a senior, who leads the team in kills (285), hitting percentage (.283), and digs (194), while her sister, sophomore Baylor Cauley, leads the team in service aces ( 79) and assists (470). Laia Canovas is second on the team in service aces (54) and assists (194). Sophomore middle blocker Ava Crowe is second on the team with 189 kills and ranks first with 48 total blocks.
