University of Louisiana at Lafayette Athletics
Tuesday, September 1
Lafayette
6:00 p.m.
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
vs
McNeese
Louisiana Makes Home Debut During Week-Long Homestand
8/31/2026 4:16:00 PM | Volleyball
Ragin’ Cajuns host McNeese and the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic in the first action of the fall on campus
LAFAYETTE – The first on-campus volleyball action of the 2026 season for the Louisiana Volleyball squad takes place this week as the Ragin' Cajuns make their official home debut at E.K. Long Gym.
Play begins on Tuesday, September 1 when the Ragin' Cajuns host McNeese in their home opener. First serve with the Cowgirls is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
Louisiana continues the homestand on Thursday, September 3 by starting off the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic with Southeastern at 6:00 p.m. and wraps up the week on Saturday, September 5 at 1:00 p.m. vs. Memphis in the final match of the tournament.
Admission to all UL Volleyball home matches throughout the season is free and open to the public. Available parking lots can be found on the Volleyball Match Day Parking page.
The Ragin' Cajuns are celebrating the program's 50th anniversary season during the 2026 campaign. The season got underway last weekend in San Marcos, Texas at the Texas State Invitational.
Newcomers Sarah Schnell (3.0 kills/set) and Lolo Lambert (2.7 kills/set) – both all-tournament honorees in San Marcos – rose to the forefront as the early leaders of the offense during opening weekend action. The team's frontline defense got off to a strong start with an impressive 10 blocks in the season opener vs. Oklahoma.
THE MATCHUPS
Tuesday, Sept. 1 vs. McNeese // E.K. Long Gym // 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic (E.K. Long Gym)
Thursday, Sept. 3 vs. Southeastern // E.K. Long Gym // 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Saturday, Sept. 5 vs. Memphis // E.K. Long Gym // 1:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
SERIES HISTORY
- McNeese: UL leads, 42-16 | Last match: W, 3-2 on 9/6/2019 at E.K. Long Gym
Streak: UL +1
- Southeastern: UL leads, 46-16 | Last match: L, 0-3 on 9/17/2024 in Hammond, La.
Streak: SLU +1
- Memphis: MEM leads, 9-5 | Last match: L, 0-3 on 9/16/2016 in Birmingham, Ala.
Streak: MEM +1
SET POINTS
NUMBERS TO KNEAUX
2: Head coach Kristi Gray is two wins shy of her 200th career victory as a collegiate head coach.
14: The Ragin' Cajuns return 14 members to the roster from the 2025 season.
50: Established as a D1 program in 1976, Louisiana Volleyball celebrates its 50th anniversary season in the fall of 2026.
.238: Louisiana looks to build upon the rally scoring era record setting .238 hitting percentage the offense produced in the 2025 season.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin' Cajuns spend a week on the road in Tallahassee, Florida with stops on the campuses of Florida State and Florida A&M for matches that are scheduled from Wednesday-Saturday, September 9-12.
Louisiana meets FSU in a midweek contest on Wednesday, September 9 with first serve at 5:00 p.m. (CDT) from Tully Gymnasium before transitioning to the Al Lawson Center for the FAMU Tournament with contests against Florida A&M (Sept. 10), Hampton (Sept. 11) and FIU (Sept. 12).
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.
Play begins on Tuesday, September 1 when the Ragin' Cajuns host McNeese in their home opener. First serve with the Cowgirls is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
Louisiana continues the homestand on Thursday, September 3 by starting off the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic with Southeastern at 6:00 p.m. and wraps up the week on Saturday, September 5 at 1:00 p.m. vs. Memphis in the final match of the tournament.
Admission to all UL Volleyball home matches throughout the season is free and open to the public. Available parking lots can be found on the Volleyball Match Day Parking page.
The Ragin' Cajuns are celebrating the program's 50th anniversary season during the 2026 campaign. The season got underway last weekend in San Marcos, Texas at the Texas State Invitational.
Newcomers Sarah Schnell (3.0 kills/set) and Lolo Lambert (2.7 kills/set) – both all-tournament honorees in San Marcos – rose to the forefront as the early leaders of the offense during opening weekend action. The team's frontline defense got off to a strong start with an impressive 10 blocks in the season opener vs. Oklahoma.
THE MATCHUPS
Tuesday, Sept. 1 vs. McNeese // E.K. Long Gym // 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic (E.K. Long Gym)
Thursday, Sept. 3 vs. Southeastern // E.K. Long Gym // 6:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
Saturday, Sept. 5 vs. Memphis // E.K. Long Gym // 1:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Twitter Updates
SERIES HISTORY
- McNeese: UL leads, 42-16 | Last match: W, 3-2 on 9/6/2019 at E.K. Long Gym
Streak: UL +1
- Southeastern: UL leads, 46-16 | Last match: L, 0-3 on 9/17/2024 in Hammond, La.
Streak: SLU +1
- Memphis: MEM leads, 9-5 | Last match: L, 0-3 on 9/16/2016 in Birmingham, Ala.
Streak: MEM +1
SET POINTS
- Louisiana makes its 2026 season home debut with a week-long homestand.
- The Cajuns host McNeese in the home opener followed by the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic.
- This week's action includes the first three of 14 total matches UL hosts at E.K. Long this fall.
- Louisiana continues the 50th anniversary season in program history (launched as a D1 program in 1976).
- Head coach Kristi Gray stands two wins shy of her 200th career victory.
- Year No. 6 with Kristi Gray officially kicked off last weekend at the Texas State Invitational.
- Boosted by 10 blocks in the opener vs. Oklahoma, UL averaged 2.3 blocks per set on opening weekend.
- Sarah Schnell (3.0 k/s) and Lolo Lambert (2.7 k/s) are the early frontrunners leading the offense.
- In her first collegiate start, sophomore Emily Williams threw up five blocks against Oklahoma.
- In contrast to the 2025 season where the Cajuns had 11 newcomers, this season's squad has 14 returning players.
- Outside hitters Marlee Ervin and Grace Sweeney and opposite hitter Jazmine Gaston, are each coming off a 150-plus kills campaign.
- Middle blocker Lindsey Henry, who posted 88 blocks in her collegiate debut last season, is leading returner on the frontline.
- The 6-2 setter combo of Ryleigh Garis and Nene Hawkins returns after leading UL to the program's rally era record .238 hitting percentage in 2025.
- Libero Kennedy Gustafson ranked Top 5 in the SBC last season with a career-best 392 digs (4.17/set), built by reaching double digits in 21 of 26 contests.
- The Ragin' Cajuns ranked Top 3 in the SBC in offense (kills per set and hitting percentage) in 2025.
- In the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Ragin' Cajuns were picked fourth in the West division.
NUMBERS TO KNEAUX
2: Head coach Kristi Gray is two wins shy of her 200th career victory as a collegiate head coach.
14: The Ragin' Cajuns return 14 members to the roster from the 2025 season.
50: Established as a D1 program in 1976, Louisiana Volleyball celebrates its 50th anniversary season in the fall of 2026.
.238: Louisiana looks to build upon the rally scoring era record setting .238 hitting percentage the offense produced in the 2025 season.
UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA
The Ragin' Cajuns spend a week on the road in Tallahassee, Florida with stops on the campuses of Florida State and Florida A&M for matches that are scheduled from Wednesday-Saturday, September 9-12.
Louisiana meets FSU in a midweek contest on Wednesday, September 9 with first serve at 5:00 p.m. (CDT) from Tully Gymnasium before transitioning to the Al Lawson Center for the FAMU Tournament with contests against Florida A&M (Sept. 10), Hampton (Sept. 11) and FIU (Sept. 12).
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 -
Players Mentioned
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L
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MB
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OPP
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OH
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MB
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