By Kyle Roberts
RUSTON, La. — Ruston High spent Tuesday night first by honoring five seniors before the match, then by closing the regular season with a sweep of Evangel by scores of 25-11, 25-7 and 25-14.
Seniors Baylor Cauley, Jane Ramsey, Ava Crowe, Brooklynn Bissell and Kayden Walker were recognized in the pregame, and the Lady Bearcats (23-12) took early leads and never trailed in the first two sets.
“The presentation we had for our seniors was really nice,” Ruston head coach Mandy Cauley said. “I think we did a really good job of honoring them, and I was grateful that everybody showed up, because a lot of people came from out of town for that.”
The match itself was lopsided from the start. Setter Baylor Cauley followed two early Lady Bearcat points with five straight aces to push Ruston’s lead from 2-0 to 7-0. The Lady Bearcats led 25-11 at the end of the set.
The second set was even more one-sided. Ruston led 7-4 before scoring 12 straight points, including one after an Evangel timeout at 17-4, and went on to win 25-7. The 18-point margin was the largest lead of the night.
Evangel never scored more than three points in a row, and Ruston’s largest deficit all night was two points, at 1-3 and 2-4 early in the third. The Lady Bearcats answered with eight straight points to lead 10-4 and cruised from there.
Ramsey led Ruston with nine kills and three block credits. Crowe tallied seven kills, while junior middle hitter Addie Powell and freshman outside hitter Josie Cauley each had six. Baylor Cauley finished with 21 assists and seven aces, and junior setter Bridget Crittenden led the team with seven digs.
“We executed. Our offense was really, really good,” Mandy Cauley said. “We still need to work on some things defensively. Even on our misses, the serves were fast, flat and just a little deep. That’s the kind of tempo I think we’re going to need in the playoffs, so I was OK with those misses.”
Cauley said Ramsey’s performance stood out, especially after an emotional senior night.
“I thought she did a good job of getting composed, because she did get emotional during the senior night stuff. This game means a lot to her,” Cauley said. “But for her to come back and play as well as she did, I thought she was pretty ferocious up there.”
Cauley also coaches her middle daughter, Baylor Cauley. Mandy Cauley said she was surprised she held it together as well as she did.
“It means a lot to me,” Cauley said of coaching her daughter. “She’s just an incredible player and leader. Coaching her has been easy and a joy, too. She’s just a lot of fun to be around.”
The regular season is over, and Ruston now waits on the 2026 LHSAA playoff bracket, which will release coming Monday, Nov. 2. The Lady Bearcats are slated to finish high enough to host the first round at home.
Cauley closed by praising the senior class.
“Each of them brings something unique to the table, whether it’s comic relief, leadership, gentleness, kindness, enthusiasm. All of our seniors lead in their own way, and they’re wonderful humans and great students,” Cauley said. “I couldn’t pick a better sample population for Ruston High School than the five seniors that we have. They just embody what it means to be a Bearcat, and they make us all proud.”
