Cardinals go 2-2 in Kelley’s coaching debut
FORT SCOTT — Starting the volleyball season 2-2 for the first time since 2021, the Labette Cardinals lost a pair of games on Friday before bouncing back with a pair of victories on Saturday at the Fort Scott Tournament.
In Deardin Kelley’s head coaching debut with the Cardinals, Labette fell to Seminole State, 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-16).
“When we’re uncomfortable and unsure of who we’re around, it doesn’t help,” Kelley said. “I wasn’t expecting perfection with that lineup being out there the first time. But I wasn’t expecting us to lose and not perform.”
Allie Rushing led the Cardinals with seven kills while Iniya Hinman and Jordyn Drayton added four apiece.
Charlotte Watson had 10 assists while Dayanara Castillo had a dozen digs.
Labette then fell to Western Iowa Tech in five sets to wrap Friday’s action, 3-2 (22-25, 25-14, 25-19, 20-25, 15-7).
“It was all about our inconsistency,” Kelley said. “When we got down, we started pointing fingers. We’re working on that.”
Rushing again led Labette with seven kills while Aubrianna Brown had nine. Watson had 16 assists while Castillo had 13 digs.
Serve-receive errors debilitated Labette in the loss to Western Iowa Tech as the Cardinals notched 15.
“I told them that we had kinks to work out, but if you want a different outcome, you have to behave better,” Kelley said. “They had to go out there and play for each other.”
Fortunes shifted for the Cardinals on Saturday as they opened with a five set, 3-2 (27-25, 23-25, 17-25, 25-15, 17-15) win over Dallas College-Brook.
“In the fifth set, it was 13-9 and we let them come back in,” Kelley said. “It’s still the ebbs and flows. When we get into our flow, it looks so natural. We’re still letting obstacles get in our way. How we respond makes or breaks us. I also made some changes in the lineup and pulled two starters. They held their own. That shows our depth, which is something Labette hasn’t had.”
Rushing dominated with 17 kills on 37 attacks. Brown added 15 kills for Labette.
Hinman led the Cardinals with a pair of blocks. Watson amassed 40 assists while Castillo had 22 digs.
Labette wrapped its stay at Fort Scott with a 3-1 (25-18, 19-25, 25-17, 25-21) win over Metropolitan, easily the Cardinals’ best match of its first four.
“Our serve receive was really consistent and our defense got into a flow,” Kelley said. “My hitters took their windows really well. We weren’t getting baby kills. We had bangers that put a hole in the floor. They smoked the 10foot line and we had a lot of big energy plays.”
Rushing again led Labette with 17 kills while Margaux Pique added 11 and Brown chipped in 10.
Castillo had 23 digs with Olivia Brand adding 16. Watson had 29 assists.
Rushing, a transfer sophomore from Texas, has the looks of perhaps the best outside hitter the Cardinals have had in a generation.
“The numbers don’t lie,” Kelley said. “She was insane. She does back row attacks as well, so she was just insane.”
Up next
Labette had a pair of matches on Monday against Pratt and Rose State. The Cardinals then play Western Iowa Tech again on Thursday before four matches in Sioux Falls, South Dakota over the weekend.
“We took really good care of our bodies during the preseason,” Kelley said. “We’re trying to give them the breaks they need. But they’re tough. Our schedule isn’t great, so it takes a different level of dog to be successful.”
