JONESBORO, Ark. (8/19/26) – Arkansas State volleyball leads the West Division in the 2026 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll and Erin Madigan has been tabbed Preseason Setter of the Year, the league announced Wednesday.
 
The defending Sun Belt Volleyball Tournament champions garnered 12 first-place votes and 95 points in the preseason poll. Both totals tie with East Division leader James Madison for the most in the conference.
 
Madigan recorded 741 assists in 2025, the most among all returning setters in the Sun Belt, and averaged 6.28 per set en route to Third Team All-Sun Belt honors. The Macomb, Michigan, native accounted for 52 percent of A-State's 1,425 assists during the season, which ranked inside the top 70 nationally.
 
Along with Madigan, Addison Collum and Kaitlin Whitlock were named to the 2026 Preseason All-Sun Belt Team. The Red Wolves lead the league in preseason all-conference selections this season.

Collum was named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team and was a Sun Belt Volleyball All-Tournament selection after posting 173.5 points and a team-best 147 kills against conference competition in 2025. Overall, she ranked fourth on the team with 267 kills and tallied the third-most total blocks on the team with 82.0.
 
Whitlock earned 2025 Second Team All-Sun Belt honors after posting a team-high 323 kills alongside 37 service aces and 336 digs. She ranked 10th in the conference for service aces and 12th for digs, and posted a team-high eight double-doubles.
 
Alongside Collum, Whitlock helped lead the Red Wolves to top 65 national rankings in kills (1,545) and hitting percentage (.248).
 
2026 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Preseason Awards
 
Preseason Player of the Year:
Kennedy Louisell, James Madison (4th Yr., OH, Grand Rapids, Mich.)
 
Preseason Libero of the Year:
Maddie Cugino, Georgia Southern (3rd Yr., L, Columbus, Ohio)
 
Preseason Setter of the Year:
Erin Madigan, Arkansas State (4th Yr., S, Macomb, Mich.)
 
Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
Addison Collum, Arkansas State (3rd Yr., RS, Buena Park, Calif.)
Erin Madigan, Arkansas State  (4th Yr., S, Macomb, Mich.)
Kaitlin Whitlock, Arkansas State (4th Yr., OH, San Antonio, Texas)
Anna Rita, Coastal Carolina (4th Yr., MB, Riga, Latvia)
Reagan Barth, Georgia Southern (4th Yr., OH, Lenexa, Kan.)
Maddie Cugino, Georgia Southern (3rd Yr., L, Columbus, Ohio)
Kennedy Louisell, James Madison (4th Yr., OH, Grand Rapids, Mich.)
Ayen Nhial, James Madison (3rd Yr., MB, Louisville, Ky.)
Emma Barnett, Marshall (2nd Yr., OH, Louisville, Ky.)
Cambria Gaier, South Alabama (2nd Yr., OH, Caledonia, Mich.)
Sadie McAda, Southern Miss (4th Yr., OH, Pleasanton, Texas)
Sunni Sheppard, Southern Miss (4th Yr., L, Brandon, Miss.)
 
2026 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Preseason Poll
East Division
1. James Madison (12) - 95 
2. Georgia Southern (2) - 84
3. Coastal Carolina - 68
4. App State - 52
5. Marshall - 44
6. Georgia State - 29
7. Old Dominion - 20

West Division
1. Arkansas State (12) - 95
2. South Alabama (1) - 79
3. Southern Miss (1) - 64
T4. Louisiana - 56
T4. Troy - 56
6. Louisiana Tech - 24
7. ULM - 18

(Parentheses indicate first-place votes)
 
NEXT UP
A-State hosts Ole Miss in an exhibition match on Saturday, Aug. 22, inside First National Bank Arena. Tickets to the matchup can be found by clicking here.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
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