LAFAYETTE – Aside from a hiccup in the second set the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Volleyball team walked out of E.K. Long Gym on Friday, October 27 with a convincing 3-1 (25-14, 27-29, 25-22, 25-18) win over ULM.
In each of the three set victories, the Ragin' Cajuns (14-11, 5-6 Sun Belt) stormed out to 10 points before the visiting Warhawks (4-21, 0-11 Sun Belt) could reach five points. As a result, there were no lead changes in any of those three triumphs.
When the Cajuns got going it was nearly impossible for the Warhawks to slow them down. UL produced at least 14 kills and hit .300-plus in locking up sets won. When the match was deadlocked, Louisiana hit .706 in Set 3 in building an insurmountable 20-11 advantage.
The offensive firepower of the Cajuns proved to be the difference with the defenses locked at 73 digs apiece. Louisiana finished with a 58-49 edge in kills, punctuated by a sizeable 17-8 margin in the match-clinching frame.
The Ragin' Cajuns followed the lead of outside hitters Shyia Richardson (16 kills) and Lauryn Hill (12 kills) who combined for 28 kills. Hill joined Mio Yamamoto in protecting the back row, her 21 digs supplementing the 24 from Yamamoto.
Louisiana collected its 11th straight win over ULM, while earning its 60th win in the all-time series, and recorded its first home conference victory of the season. Combined with Arkansas State's loss the Ragin' Cajuns secured a bye from the opening round of the upcoming SBC Tournament (6 seeds vs. 7 seeds).
HOW IT HAPPENED
Kills from Celeste Darling and Hill began the night and the Cajuns were off and running. The defense pressured ULM into three straight attack errors to build a 5-1 advantage and then it was Darling and Hill again with back-to-back kills opening up a 7-2 lead.
It was 10-4 after a dump kill from Siena DeCambra, then Richardson followed with a kill to increase the lead to seven points. The Warhawks would get no closer than six points and the Cajuns led by as many as 13 points, at 23-10, after another DeCambra kill capped off a 5-0 run.
ULM dialed up the defense in Set 2, holding the Cajuns to just eight kills until a 23-all tie prior to extra points. Meanwhile, the Warhawks offense sprung to life with 19 kills which aided in holding off a UL rally.
The bounce back was quick for the Cajuns who scored eight kills off their first 12 swings in Set 3 to quickly open an 8-4 lead. Later it was an 8-2 run that increased the lead to 19-11 and a kill from Hill that moved the edge near double figures at 22-13.
Cami Hicks had a hand in a block and followed with a kill to provide UL's quick start in Set 4, then it was back-to-back Richardson kills that opened a 6-2 advantage and began the pull away. The final push started with a quick deflection from DeCambra for the dump kill that was immediately followed by Kara Barnes putting away an overpass – upping the lead to 18-11 and kickstarting a 5-1 run that increased the lead to 21-12.
LEADING THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
In addition to the 28 kills combined by Richardson and Hill, the other offensive catalyst was Hicks who landed 10 kills off of 19 error-free swings (hit .526).
Barnes and Darling supplied seven and six kills, respectively, while DeCambra continued to be involved in the offense with her four kills.
Hicks was the lead blocker as she got a hand in all five of the stuffs the Ragin' Cajuns posted. Darling was the other Cajun with multiple blocks as she netted two block assists.
DeCambra assisted on 43 of the Cajuns 58 kills and Yamamoto continued her excellent passing while picking up six assists.
Yamamoto reached 20 digs for the fifth time in the past seven matches, her 24 scoops marked a match-high total. The 21 digs by Hill marked her season-high total and were two shy of her career-best figure.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
Louisiana and ULM wrap up the two-match Sun Belt Conference series on Saturday, October 28 in a 1:00 p.m. contest at E.K. Long Gym.
Live coverage of the Ragin' Cajuns-Warhawks series finale is available on ESPN+ and CajunStats.com.
Saturday's contest is designated as the Louisiana Salutes match – with fans encouraged to wear black – featuring a dog tag giveaway and military recognition.
The Cajuns will look to capture their first SBC series sweep since the Arkansas State weekend (Sept. 29-30) and extend their win streak over the Warhawks.