OXFORD, Miss. – The Southeastern Louisiana University Volleyball team ended the opening weekend of the 2026 season Sunday at the Gillom Athletics Performance Center in Oxford, Miss. Northern Arizona overcame SLU's best efforts to win the match, 25-17, 25-17, 23-25, 25-21.
Southeastern (0-3) remained close in Sunday's matchup against NAU (1-2). The 2025 Big Sky Conference Regular Season Champion Lumberjacks managed to hold on in the fourth set as the Lions built momentum after winning the third frame.
After tallying a team-high 16 kills in Sunday's match,
Kyra McKelvey ended the weekend with 41 kills in the first three matches of 2026.
Ashley Richardson posted her second double-double of the weekend with team-highs of 32 assists and 14 digs. In her first appearance of the season, sophomore
Gracie Brown totaled a career-high and match-leading eight blocks, just two short of NAU's total as a team.
Northern Arizona put together strong performances offensively, with four Lumberjacks reaching kills in double figures. Hannah Stoddard (17 kills) led NAU, while Gigi Greenlee (14), Quincey Coyle (13), and Laney Wilson (11) also reached the double-digit mark. Ella Hosfeld led the match with 37 assists, while Lilly Holmes notched 21 digs.
Southeastern will continue the season at the Sawyer Camillo Memorial Classic, hosted by UL Lafayette at Earl K. Long Gym in Lafayette, La. The Lions will play two tourney matches this week, starting Thursday at 6 p.m., against the Ragin' Cajuns. Live stats for this week's upcoming matches will be available on the volleyball schedule page on
www.LionSports.net.
DIGGIN' IT CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the Southeastern volleyball program are encouraged to join the Diggin' It Club. Lion volleyball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
All membership fees and donations to both the Diggin' It Club and S Club (volleyball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern volleyball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at
laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting
www.LionUp.com.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lions Volleyball, follow @LionUpVB on X and Instagram or like /SLUathletics on Facebook.
