University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Friday, September 5
Nacogdoches, Texas
7:00 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
4-1
3
vs
1
Sam Houston
2-3
1
2
3
4
F
Louisiana
25
25
25
25
3
Sam Houston
12
15
27
21
1
Strong Showing Leads Louisiana to Rebound Win at SFA Tournament
9/5/2025 11:14:00 PM | Volleyball
Ragin’ Cajuns offense proved problematic for Sam Houston the entire match
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – On a night where the offense could do no wrong, specifically opposite hitter Cailin Demps, the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Volleyball scored a 3-1 win (25-12, 25-15, 25-27, 25-21) over Sam Houston on Friday, September 5 at the SFA Tournament in Nacogdoches, Texas.
Louisiana (4-1) hit a season-best .381, set in motion by the squad scoring 30 kills on .509 hitting over the first two sets alone in building a commanding 2-0 match lead. The Ragin' Cajuns averaged over 16 kills per set in totaling 65 against the Bearkats (2-3).
Demps shone brightly in the spotlight recording her season-high of 21 kills on 34 swings while hitting .559. She reached 15 kills before her 20th swing of the contest – all without error.
The Cajuns' defense, particularly the frontline which recorded a season-high 10 blocks, worked in tandem with the offense in delivering the early knockout punch. Louisiana tallied five blocks and pressured SHSU into 14 attack errors in limiting the Bearkats to just 19 kills on .079 hitting over the first two frames.
In controlling play in both phases early on, the Ragin' Cajuns held commanding leads of 21-9 and 21-12 in landing convincing wins in the first and second set, respectively.
Louisiana's bid at a straight sets sweep was spoiled by the Bearkats' best effort of 16 kills in Set 3. SHSU had to fend off a late Cajuns' push, a 6-2 run capped off by a dump kill from Ryleigh Garis, extending the match by coming out ahead in extra points at 27-25.
Demps would send the Ragin' Cajuns over the finish line in Set 4, scoring her final three kills of the night to charge a match-ending 4-1 run. The spark, which started with her landing back-to-back kills to create separation from a 21-20 score, end a seesaw exchange of side outs which had existed for six straight rallies.
Louisiana topped Sam Houston for the fourth time in the past six meetings dating back to 2010.
LEADING THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Joining Demps in scoring double-digit kills was Jazmine Gaston with 12 kills and Grace Sweeney who produced 11 kills.
The blocking efforts were spearheaded by Chelsea Gilmore and Lindsey Henry who each had a hand in five blocks. Demps was a close second with four blocks.
Libero Kennedy Gustafson rounded up a match-high 20 digs for her third time reaching the 20-dig mark in the past four matches.
Garis led with 27 assists while Nene Hawkins handed out 22 assists in steering Louisiana to a healthy advantage over Sam Houston in offense (65-48 edge in kills).
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
Louisiana finishes its stay at the SFA Tournament in Nacogdoches, Texas on Saturday, September 6 with an 11:00 a.m. match against Abilene Christian inside Shelton Gym.
The matchup with the Wildcats marks the first meeting since September 2022 in Fort Worth, Texas. It's the third all-time meeting between the two programs, UL coming away victoriously each time previously.
Fans can track the progress of Saturday's contest with live stats at CajunStats.StatBroadcast.com and Twitter updates at @RaginCajunsVB.
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.
Louisiana (4-1) hit a season-best .381, set in motion by the squad scoring 30 kills on .509 hitting over the first two sets alone in building a commanding 2-0 match lead. The Ragin' Cajuns averaged over 16 kills per set in totaling 65 against the Bearkats (2-3).
Demps shone brightly in the spotlight recording her season-high of 21 kills on 34 swings while hitting .559. She reached 15 kills before her 20th swing of the contest – all without error.
The Cajuns' defense, particularly the frontline which recorded a season-high 10 blocks, worked in tandem with the offense in delivering the early knockout punch. Louisiana tallied five blocks and pressured SHSU into 14 attack errors in limiting the Bearkats to just 19 kills on .079 hitting over the first two frames.
In controlling play in both phases early on, the Ragin' Cajuns held commanding leads of 21-9 and 21-12 in landing convincing wins in the first and second set, respectively.
Louisiana's bid at a straight sets sweep was spoiled by the Bearkats' best effort of 16 kills in Set 3. SHSU had to fend off a late Cajuns' push, a 6-2 run capped off by a dump kill from Ryleigh Garis, extending the match by coming out ahead in extra points at 27-25.
Demps would send the Ragin' Cajuns over the finish line in Set 4, scoring her final three kills of the night to charge a match-ending 4-1 run. The spark, which started with her landing back-to-back kills to create separation from a 21-20 score, end a seesaw exchange of side outs which had existed for six straight rallies.
Louisiana topped Sam Houston for the fourth time in the past six meetings dating back to 2010.
LEADING THE RAGIN' CAJUNS
Joining Demps in scoring double-digit kills was Jazmine Gaston with 12 kills and Grace Sweeney who produced 11 kills.
The blocking efforts were spearheaded by Chelsea Gilmore and Lindsey Henry who each had a hand in five blocks. Demps was a close second with four blocks.
Libero Kennedy Gustafson rounded up a match-high 20 digs for her third time reaching the 20-dig mark in the past four matches.
Garis led with 27 assists while Nene Hawkins handed out 22 assists in steering Louisiana to a healthy advantage over Sam Houston in offense (65-48 edge in kills).
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
Louisiana finishes its stay at the SFA Tournament in Nacogdoches, Texas on Saturday, September 6 with an 11:00 a.m. match against Abilene Christian inside Shelton Gym.
The matchup with the Wildcats marks the first meeting since September 2022 in Fort Worth, Texas. It's the third all-time meeting between the two programs, UL coming away victoriously each time previously.
Fans can track the progress of Saturday's contest with live stats at CajunStats.StatBroadcast.com and Twitter updates at @RaginCajunsVB.
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.
- www.RaginCajuns.com -
Team Stats
UL
SHSU
Kills
65
48
Errors
14
22
Attempts
134
138
Hitting %
.381
.188
Points
79.0
56.0
Assists
58
41
Aces
4
5
Blocks
10.0
3.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
21
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
OPP
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
/ VolleyballOH
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