HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The Lady Crusaders put in a dominant performance Friday evening, sweeping Life University at the Ben Waddle Complex.
 
The Lady Crusaders got off to a great start in the first set, picking up four kills and a block to go along with three errors to take an early 8-3 lead. The Running Eagles managed to get within three points at 12-9 but Carey quickly shut down any hope of a comeback with a 7-1 run.
 
After some back and forth, Carey pulled within two points of victory with back-to-back kills by Zoie Mitchell and Natalie Bartholomew and an ace by Gabriela Maceira with the final two points coming off errors by Life.
 
WCU again jumped out to an early 6-2 lead to start the second set. However, this time the Running Eagles answered with four straight points to tie the set. From there, both teams went back and forth, with each taking turns with the lead and the set tied on numerous occasions.
 
That trend continued until the Lady Crusaders used two service aces by Bartholomew and two errors to take the lead for good at 19-17. Carey extended their lead to 22-19 with Mitchell and Jahaziel Alualu-Talamoa putting WCU within one point of victory with a kill by Mitchell giving the Lady Crusaders a 2-0 lead.
 
Set three saw one team battling to avoid being swept, with the other having a straight sets victory in their sites. It looked like the Lady Crusaders were slowly seizing control of the set, pulling away to a 16-12 advantage but the Running Eagles had other plans and battled their way back to an 18-17 lead.
 
Life would get no closer, as multiple errors along with a kill by Bartholomew and an ace by Maurin Reyes allowed Carey to pull away to a 23-18 lead. The Lady Crusaders sealed the sweep with a block by Alyssa Portee and an ace by Bartholomew.
 
WCU returns to action tomorrow, as they take on Brewton-Parker in SSAC action. Play is set to begin at 1:00 pm at the Ben Waddle Complex.