Gray Announces Louisiana Volleyball Staff Additions

LAFAYETTE – Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Volleyball head coach Kristi Gray has announced two additions to her 2025 season coaching staff, welcoming back Will Boyd and hiring Sara Parson.

Boyd, a member of the Ragin' Cajuns staff in 2023, returns to Louisiana after coaching at SEC-member Alabama during the 2024 season. Parson spent the past two seasons at the University of Pennsylvania and prior to had gained championship experience with the nationally recognized Kentucky program.

When last with the Ragin' Cajuns, Boyd oversaw and offense and setters group that finished second in the Sun Belt in assists (1,481, 12.45/set) with setter Siena DeCambra ranking third individually (1,165, 10.22/set).

"We are all thrilled to get Will back as our top assistant – it was a no-brainer," Gray said. "He is very passionate about the development of his student athletes, both on and off the court, while also developing the relationships with those around him.

"Will is going to have a big hand in our training and development on the court, as he has been a part of some great programs and brings a lot of experience in that space," Gray added. "He will take on the role as our offensive coordinator, while working with our setters and attackers."

Boyd's established coaching career also includes five-plus seasons of coaching on the Texas volleyball scene. He helped guide Texas State to the 2022 SBC West Division title, made an NCAA DII Tournament appearance and mentored the conference's Freshman of the Year at West Texas A&M (2019-20) and had a 2018 season with Texas that saw a Big 12 Championship, an Elite Eight appearance and a No. 5 finish in that season's final AVCA rankings.

He started his coaching career in the state of Alabama at UAB in 2015, earning a 2016 AVCA Coaches for Coaches Scholarship recipient. Following that, Boyd made the nearby move to Samford (2016-17), helping guide the Bulldogs to a 2016 Southern Conference title and NCAA Tournament appearance.

Boyd has also coached on the club level with Austin Skyline Juniors Volleyball Club, Southern Performance Volleyball Club and Sports Performance Volleyball Club.

Parson helped engineer a noticeable uptick at Penn. In particular, the team more than tripled its 2023 win totals both overall (from 4 to 13) and in Ivy League play (from 2 to 7) in 2024. Following the 2024 campaign, sophomore Zada Sanger and freshman Adell Murray received honorable mention All-Ivy recognition.

Before her time at Penn, Parson spent two years as a graduate assistant at SEC powerhouse Kentucky working alongside renowned volleyball coach Craig Skinner. The Wildcats won a pair of SEC titles – going a combined 32-4 in conference play across the two seasons – and made the NCAA Tournament both years, advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 in 2022 and the NCAA second round in 2021.

"Sara is someone who I have had on my list for a while now to go and hire," Gray mentioned. "She is an up-and-coming coach who is everything we want to help continue building our success and the brand here at UL.

"She is extremely relational, values mentoring and is very passionate about bettering her student athletes," Gray continued. "Sara has been a part of some phenomenal programs and will bring a lot of great experience to this program. She will take on the role as our defensive coordinator, while also serving as our recruiting coordinator."

Prior to her stint at Kentucky, Parson spent two years on staff at North Texas as the Mean Green's operations coordinator. Parson also has served as the head coach for several club volleyball teams in the North Texas area and was an administrative director for the North Point Volleyball Club in Denton, Texas in 2019-20.

in February 2023, Parson was announced as a selection for the Pac-12 Conference's women's volleyball Diversity Mentorship Program, where she was paired with then-Oregon head coach Matt Ulmer.

Boyd and Parson are joining Gray and returning assistant coach Kelsey Bennett in leading the Ragin' Cajuns through the team's current spring drills and the upcoming 2025 season later this fall.

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Gray Announces Louisiana Volleyball Staff Additions

Players Mentioned

Siena DeCambra

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