MARIETTA, Ga. – The William Carey Lady Crusaders split their opening day at the Carlos Soler "La Tribu" Invitational, hosted by Life University, falling 3-1 to New College of Florida before bouncing back with a 3-1 victory over Florida College.
In a rematch from a week ago, Carey found itself in another tightly contested battle against New College of Florida. The opening set was deadlocked throughout, requiring extra points to determine the winner. With the score tied at 28-28, an attack error by the Banyans gave WCU set point. On the ensuing rally,
Emily Martin came up with a diving save, and
Evelyn Araujo finished the play with a kill to secure a 30-28 first-set victory.
The battle continued in the second set as neither team could create much separation. Tied at 18-18, New College used a 4-0 run to gain control and eventually claimed the set 25-22.
The Lady Crusaders grabbed an early 13-9 lead in the third set, but the Banyans slowly worked their way back. New College took its first lead at 19-18 and rode the momentum to a 25-21 victory, taking a 2-1 lead in the match.
New College carried that momentum into the fourth set, building an 18-10 advantage before closing out the match with a 25-16 win.
Against Florida College, the opening set was close early before the Lady Crusaders gained some breathing room with a 5-2 run to take a 13-10 lead. The Falcons responded with four straight points, and the teams traded blows the rest of the way. Tied at 20-20, Carey took control behind a block from Agnes Hegart and
Malorie Gaughf, followed by back-to-back kills.
Aubrey Easley capped the set with a kill, giving WCU a 25-21 victory.
The Lady Crusaders carried that momentum into the second set, racing out to an 8-1 lead and later extending the advantage to 14-7. Florida College trimmed the deficit to four at 17-13, but Carey answered with a 6-2 run to regain control and take the set 25-19.
The Falcons responded in the third set, jumping out to an 8-4 lead. Carey slowed the run briefly, but Florida College seized control with an 11-2 surge and went on to claim the set 25-14, avoiding the sweep.
WCU quickly regrouped in the fourth set, building a 9-5 lead. Florida College repeatedly cut the deficit to a single point, but the Lady Crusaders never relinquished control. A combination of Falcon attack errors and kills from Easley and
Reagan Ziegler helped Carey pull away for a 23-18 advantage. That proved to be all the separation WCU needed as it closed out the set 25-19 and secured the match victory.
The Lady Crusaders return to action Saturday to wrap up tournament play, facing Webber International at 10 a.m. before taking on Point University at 2 p.m.
