University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Cailin Demps’ Strong Senior Season Yields All-Sun Belt Honors
11/19/2025 1:01:00 PM | Volleyball
The cornerstone for Louisiana’s offense, Demps eclipsed the 300-kills plateau in final season
LAFAYETTE – Louisiana Volleyball's senior opposite hitter Cailin Demps received second team honors on the 2025 All-Sun Belt Conference Volleyball team which was released by the league office on Wednesday (November 19, 2025).
Demps led Louisiana's offense in production a second straight year, scoring a career-high 337 kills (3.59/set) for the first 300-kills campaign of her collegiate career.
She was a steady and consistent source of offense for the Ragin' Cajuns (15-11, 7-9 SBC), scoring at least eight kills in every match for 11 consecutive weeks.
One of the most dynamic players within the Sun Belt's volleyball landscape, Demps wound up producing double digits in kills 20 times in 26 matches, overall, and 14 times in 16 SBC outings. Her final season stat line included a career-best .287 hitting percentage.
She was the leading catalyst for a Ragin' Cajuns offense that ranked Top 3 in the SBC in kills per set at 13.28 overall, marking an increase of over two kills per set from the previous season (11.30 in 2024)
The Tallahassee, Florida product recorded 20-plus kills in seven of the eight SBC series, leading her to a Top 5 finish in conference play with 3.57 kills per set. She was one of only seven players to record 200-plus kills in conference play.
Her senior season production brought her final overall career tally to 978 kills which includes 631 kills scored wearing the Ragin' Cajuns uniform the past two seasons (2024-25).
It's the ninth consecutive season (2017-25) Louisiana places at least one honoree on the All-Sun Belt Team – continuing the longest stretch as a member of the league. The total number of All-Sun Belt selections in program history grew to 36.
Demps' selection to the All-SBC Team increases the number of individual honorees in the Kristi Gray era to eight. She caps off her senior season with her first all-conference accolade.
The 2025 All-Sun Belt postseason awards were voted on by the league's 14 head coaches.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Awards
All-Sun Belt Conference First Team
Maya Winterhoff, App State
Daedrianna Cail, Arkansas State
Jalyn Stout, Coastal Carolina
Reagan Barth, Georgia Southern
Kirsten Barrett, Georgia Southern
Marta Lazzarin, Georgia State
Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Anna Loberg, South Alabama
Sadie McAda, Southern Miss
Samantha Wunsch, Texas State
Jade Defraeye, Texas State
Amiah Butler, Troy
All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team
Mia Maloney, Arkansas State
Kaitlin Whitlock, Arkansas State
Emily Fowler, Coastal Carolina
Anna Rita, Coastal Carolina
Alex Myers, Georgia Southern
Maria Cecilia de Pinho, Georgia State
Ayen Nhial, James Madison
Cailin Demps, Louisiana
Beatrice Ciccarelli, Marshall
Cambria Gaier, South Alabama
Briana Wilson, South Alabama
Sarah Gooch, South Alabama
All-Sun Belt Conference Third Team
Addison Collum, Arkansas State
Erin Madigan, Arkansas State
Maddie Cugino, Georgia Southern
Julia McNeley, James Madison
Addie Norman, James Madison
Ana Toumazatos, James Madison
Emma Barnett, Marshall
Brynn Botkin, Southern Miss
Sunni Sheppard, Southern Miss
Maggie Walsh, Texas State
Nina Moorer, Texas State
Bailey Hanner, Texas State
Player of the Year: Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Libero of the Year: Marta Lazzarin, Georgia State
Setter of the Year: Anna Loberg, South Alabama
Freshman of the Year: Cambria Gaier, South Alabama
Newcomer of the Year: Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Coach of the Year: Lauren Steinbrecher, James Madison
ABOUT LOUISIANA
Louisiana (15-11, 7-9 SBC) produced a winning overall record for the fourth time in five seasons with Kristi Gray, guided by an offensive unit which ranked Top 100 nationally and among the Top 3 in the Sun Belt Conference in kills per set (13.28) and hitting percentage (.238).
The Ragin' Cajuns displayed a balanced offense with five different players accounting for 150-plus kills spearheaded by Cailin Demps' career-best 337 kills. As a team, Louisiana recorded 50-plus kills 11 times and produced a .300-plus hitting percentage nine times.
Transfer setters Ryleigh Garis and Nene Hawkins made an immediate impact, playing a significant role in Louisiana's sharp improvement in hitting percentage from the previous season – the team rising from a .156 clip in 2024 to a rally scoring era record .238 mark which ranked No. 3 in the SBC.
In her debut season as the primary libero, junior Kennedy Gustafson rounded up double figures in digs 21 times in 26 contests leading to a career-best 392 digs (4.17/set) which ranked Top 5 in the SBC. She recorded the rare libero double-double twice and ended the year with 135 assists added to her state line.
Freshman middle blocker Lindsey Henry became the first true freshman to lead UL in blocks since 2013 (Chanelle Gardner), totaling 88 blocks (1.02/set). Fellow middle blocker Chelsea Gilmore ranked No. 4 in offensive efficiency in the Sun Belt, hitting a career-best .346 over the 163 kills she recorded.
The Ragin' Cajuns continued to raise the bar in fan involvement, breaking the single-season total attendance record with 9,518 fans attending across the 13-match home slate at E.K. Long Gym – the third time in four years establishing a new mark. Twice during the season, a new single-match record was set: Aug. 29 vs. Texas Southern (984) and Oct. 3 vs. App State (989).
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsVB), Facebook (/RaginCajunsVB) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsVB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Volleyball.
Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Fans can support the volleyball student-athletes, and invest in the program's future, through The Cajuns Edge Fund (click here) to contribute directly to the Louisiana Athletics and Ragin' Cajuns Athletic Foundation's revenue-sharing initiative or by joining the Back Reaux Club (click here).
Demps led Louisiana's offense in production a second straight year, scoring a career-high 337 kills (3.59/set) for the first 300-kills campaign of her collegiate career.
She was a steady and consistent source of offense for the Ragin' Cajuns (15-11, 7-9 SBC), scoring at least eight kills in every match for 11 consecutive weeks.
One of the most dynamic players within the Sun Belt's volleyball landscape, Demps wound up producing double digits in kills 20 times in 26 matches, overall, and 14 times in 16 SBC outings. Her final season stat line included a career-best .287 hitting percentage.
She was the leading catalyst for a Ragin' Cajuns offense that ranked Top 3 in the SBC in kills per set at 13.28 overall, marking an increase of over two kills per set from the previous season (11.30 in 2024)
The Tallahassee, Florida product recorded 20-plus kills in seven of the eight SBC series, leading her to a Top 5 finish in conference play with 3.57 kills per set. She was one of only seven players to record 200-plus kills in conference play.
Her senior season production brought her final overall career tally to 978 kills which includes 631 kills scored wearing the Ragin' Cajuns uniform the past two seasons (2024-25).
It's the ninth consecutive season (2017-25) Louisiana places at least one honoree on the All-Sun Belt Team – continuing the longest stretch as a member of the league. The total number of All-Sun Belt selections in program history grew to 36.
Demps' selection to the All-SBC Team increases the number of individual honorees in the Kristi Gray era to eight. She caps off her senior season with her first all-conference accolade.
The 2025 All-Sun Belt postseason awards were voted on by the league's 14 head coaches.
2025 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Awards
All-Sun Belt Conference First Team
Maya Winterhoff, App State
Daedrianna Cail, Arkansas State
Jalyn Stout, Coastal Carolina
Reagan Barth, Georgia Southern
Kirsten Barrett, Georgia Southern
Marta Lazzarin, Georgia State
Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Anna Loberg, South Alabama
Sadie McAda, Southern Miss
Samantha Wunsch, Texas State
Jade Defraeye, Texas State
Amiah Butler, Troy
All-Sun Belt Conference Second Team
Mia Maloney, Arkansas State
Kaitlin Whitlock, Arkansas State
Emily Fowler, Coastal Carolina
Anna Rita, Coastal Carolina
Alex Myers, Georgia Southern
Maria Cecilia de Pinho, Georgia State
Ayen Nhial, James Madison
Cailin Demps, Louisiana
Beatrice Ciccarelli, Marshall
Cambria Gaier, South Alabama
Briana Wilson, South Alabama
Sarah Gooch, South Alabama
All-Sun Belt Conference Third Team
Addison Collum, Arkansas State
Erin Madigan, Arkansas State
Maddie Cugino, Georgia Southern
Julia McNeley, James Madison
Addie Norman, James Madison
Ana Toumazatos, James Madison
Emma Barnett, Marshall
Brynn Botkin, Southern Miss
Sunni Sheppard, Southern Miss
Maggie Walsh, Texas State
Nina Moorer, Texas State
Bailey Hanner, Texas State
Player of the Year: Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Libero of the Year: Marta Lazzarin, Georgia State
Setter of the Year: Anna Loberg, South Alabama
Freshman of the Year: Cambria Gaier, South Alabama
Newcomer of the Year: Kennedy Louisell, James Madison
Coach of the Year: Lauren Steinbrecher, James Madison
ABOUT LOUISIANA
Louisiana (15-11, 7-9 SBC) produced a winning overall record for the fourth time in five seasons with Kristi Gray, guided by an offensive unit which ranked Top 100 nationally and among the Top 3 in the Sun Belt Conference in kills per set (13.28) and hitting percentage (.238).
The Ragin' Cajuns displayed a balanced offense with five different players accounting for 150-plus kills spearheaded by Cailin Demps' career-best 337 kills. As a team, Louisiana recorded 50-plus kills 11 times and produced a .300-plus hitting percentage nine times.
Transfer setters Ryleigh Garis and Nene Hawkins made an immediate impact, playing a significant role in Louisiana's sharp improvement in hitting percentage from the previous season – the team rising from a .156 clip in 2024 to a rally scoring era record .238 mark which ranked No. 3 in the SBC.
In her debut season as the primary libero, junior Kennedy Gustafson rounded up double figures in digs 21 times in 26 contests leading to a career-best 392 digs (4.17/set) which ranked Top 5 in the SBC. She recorded the rare libero double-double twice and ended the year with 135 assists added to her state line.
Freshman middle blocker Lindsey Henry became the first true freshman to lead UL in blocks since 2013 (Chanelle Gardner), totaling 88 blocks (1.02/set). Fellow middle blocker Chelsea Gilmore ranked No. 4 in offensive efficiency in the Sun Belt, hitting a career-best .346 over the 163 kills she recorded.
The Ragin' Cajuns continued to raise the bar in fan involvement, breaking the single-season total attendance record with 9,518 fans attending across the 13-match home slate at E.K. Long Gym – the third time in four years establishing a new mark. Twice during the season, a new single-match record was set: Aug. 29 vs. Texas Southern (984) and Oct. 3 vs. App State (989).
FOLLOW THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Follow the Ragin' Cajuns on Twitter (@RaginCajunsVB), Facebook (/RaginCajunsVB) or Instagram (@RaginCajunsVB) to stay up-to-date on all that is happening with Louisiana Volleyball.
Fans are also encouraged to stay engaged with the Ragin' Cajuns by downloading the #GeauxCajuns app. Click here for iOS/Apple platforms and here for Android platforms.
Fans can support the volleyball student-athletes, and invest in the program's future, through The Cajuns Edge Fund (click here) to contribute directly to the Louisiana Athletics and Ragin' Cajuns Athletic Foundation's revenue-sharing initiative or by joining the Back Reaux Club (click here).
- www.RaginCajuns.com -
Players Mentioned
OPP
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
/ VolleyballKristi Gray Media Availability (Oct 10, 2025)
Monday, November 10
Kristi Gray Media Availability (Nov 3, 2025)
Monday, November 03
Kristi Gray Media Availability (Oct 27, 2025)
Monday, October 27
Kristi Gray Media Availability (Oct 20, 2025)
Monday, October 20
