Eagles Compete in the 2024 Faulkner Invitational

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (8/24/24) – The Williams Baptist University volleyball team lost four matches over the weekend at the Faulkner Invitational in Montgomery, Ala, falling to Keiser (25-8, 25-8, 25-11), William Carey (MS) (25-8, 25-7, 25-6), Reinhardt (25-23, 25-10, 25-10), and Faulkner (25-17, 25-21, 27-25).

WBU struggled to find footing on the offensive side of the ball in the first matchup of the tournament against Keiser.  The Seahawks took an early 5-0 lead in the first set and never looked back, taking the first set 25-8.  

The Eagles continued to struggle in the rest of the match, falling in straight sets in the first match of the day on Friday.

Meadow Jones led the squad in kills in the match with five, while Jaycie Cook notched eight assists.

WBU continued to struggle in the second match of the tournament against William Carey.  The Crusaders quickly took a 10-2 lead in the first set and did not allow the Eagles to catch a break before going on another 9-0 run to take a 20-4 lead.

Williams responded with a late four point effort led by two Hope Raymond aces, but it was not enough to bring the set back in the Eagles favor.

William Carey continued its dominance throughout the final two sets, taking the second set 25-7 and the third 25-6 to end WBU's first day in Montgomery at 0-2.

The Eagles started strong in the Saturday morning matchup with Reinhardt, fighting hard in the first set and just coming up short 25-23.  WBU failed to continue that momentum from the first set, and fell in the second and third sets by the score of 25-10.

The Eagles were matched up against the tournament host in Faulkner for the final game of the tournament on Saturday afternoon.  Faulkner used a 7-0 run in the early going to take the first set 25-17.

In the second set, the Eagles fought back by taking a 6-3 lead until an 8-1 Faulkner run took it away.  A Tinleigh Ruhman kill brought the Eagles within one, but failed to spark a comeback as Williams fell in the second set 25-21.

WBU fought hard in the third set against Faulkner.  Faulkner put up a 5-0 run to go up 12-6, but Williams fought back later in the set with a Riley Henson service ace to tie the game at 24-24.  The Teams traded points until Faulkner finished off with two in a row to take the set 27-25 and the match 3-0.

Natalie Collier paced the squad in kills in the weekend finale with eight, and Jaycie Cook led the team once again in assists, this time with 18.  Cook and Faith Raymond took the team lead in digs, each with seven in the match.

The losses drop the Lady Eagles to 1-6 on the season.

WBU will get another chance on the court to finish out the roadstand on Tuesday, August 27 against Freed-Hardeman in Henderson, Tenn.  The game is slated for a 6 p.m. start time.