By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
 
HATTIESBURG – William Carey University has something special brewing in volleyball this season.
 
The Crusaders kept their record unblemished Saturday afternoon with a gritty 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 25-19, 25-15) victory over Life (Ga.) University in a Southern States Athletic Conference match at the Ben Waddle Sports Facility.
 
Carey improved to 17-0 overall and 5-0 in conference. The Running Eagles dropped to 5-4 and 2-2.
 
"We're super excited," said Crusader head coach Kelsea Weldon, who is in her seventh season after starting the program from scratch.
 
"We're a very young team. We only have one senior that's returning, and we have a junior out there. But it's mostly sophomores out on the court. It's been a very pleasant surprise to see our girls come out the way they have."
 
WCU spotted Life an early lead after dropping the first set 25-23. The Running Eagles led by as many as three points on five different occasions, but a pair of kill from junior Elaina Anderson kept the Crusaders in the set.
 
Carey outscored Life 7-3 midway through the set to grab the lead, but the Eagles reeled off five consecutive points to surge ahead, capped by a pair of service aces from junior Savannah Keener.
 
"We were still warming up a little bit, trying to figure them out and exactly how we needed to respond to them," said Anderson.
 
"We just weren't doing the little things right. Each job we had, we needed to execute, and we weren't doing that in the first set. The second set, we kind of figured it out. We got into a little bit of a groove, and the setters were really connecting."
 
Weldon credited Life with presenting the Crusaders with some problems early.
 
"I think Life is one of the toughest teams we've played in our last seven matches or so," said Weldon. "I think it was just adjusting to the tempo in the first set. But the girls did a really good job responding and getting ready for that second set."
 
In the second set it was senior Mia Hague who took over the match for the Crusaders. Hague had eight of her game-high 24 kills in the second set to power Carey into a lead it would rarely relinquish.
 
"You just have to be confident, relaxed and very knowledgeable about what you can do," said Hague.
 
"It's very important for me to be a leader. We need some sort of leadership on this team, and I feel I'm the best fit for that role. Also, I think it's very good with our team culture."
 
Culture has become something of a buzzword in athletics at all levels, and Weldon said a positive culture shift has a big key in her team's development into a force in the SSAC.
 
"Everybody has decided to play together and figure out ways to do it together," said Weldon. "That's been the big difference. When teams come together, you can do a lot with your team."
 
The Crusaders had a 4-0 edge in solo blocks, a 20-10 advantage in block assists and forced Life into 34 attack errors, while committing 17 on their side.
 
"You always have to be ready," said sophomore Reagan Huff. "You have to stay low and ready to react to anything, even if it comes off a block, and just put yourself in the right spot to have the best possible outcome."
 
Fittingly, it was Hague who closed out the 25-19 second-set triumph with a spike from the upper left corner, her favorite spot on the court.
 
"I'd say that's my sweet spot," said Hague, who has a team-high 277 kills for the season. "Either that sharp cross or the line shot. I just look to see what's open and then I swing at it."
 
Carey briefly trailed early in the third set, taking a 3-1 lead before a service error and a pair of attack error by Life gave Carey the lead. The Eagles again led briefly, as sophomore Lilliam Cox had a pair of her team-high 10 kills.
 
But Carey's defense forced Life into too many errors, scoring 10 points off attack errors – handling errors or balls hit out of bounds – and cruised to the 25-19 win.
 
In the final set, Life again took an early lead, scoring the first two points of the set. But Hague got a kill off a feed from sophomore Rachel Hartmann, who had 29 assists to lead Carey.
 
The Crusaders then reeled off five straight points off the serve of Huff to take command.
 
"Honestly, I don't know what's so special about my serve," said Huff. "I just try to serve it where my coaches are telling me, then come in and play the best defense possible. I think we do really well in that rotation."
 
Life stayed in the set for a while, but Carey pulled away, with runs of 9-3 and 8-2 to close out the match 25-15.
 
"We do practice that a lot, drills to just execute the game, to take over the game and finish it out," said Anderson. "We finally relaxed and realized it was going to be our game and to play like we normally do."
 
WCU will be back on the road for its next four games, beginning Tuesday at Loyola-New Orleans, which sits in a tie for second place in the conference at 4-1 in league play.
 
"At this point, they're learning how to play together and they're finding ways to win, regardless of what type opponent we have," said Weldon. "We're super proud of them."