Loyola University New Orleans

Happy Juneteenth! Today, we celebrate and remember this day in 1865, when Union soldiers physically freed thousands of enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas, who remained enslaved for two years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth commemorates the end of legal slavery in the United States. Around the country, today is celebrated with parades, community activities, and food and entertainment known as Juneteenth Jubilee.

Courses and campus operations will be remote today, June 18, due to inclement weather. Campus is closed, except to essential personnel.

Please stay safe and informed.

Loyola Wolf Pack Athletics is making a historic return! Today Loyola announced its provisional membership to NCAA Division II Gulf South Conference welcoming supporters and athletics alum from some of its teams that competed in the NCAA.

Starting competition in fall of 2027, Loyola will become the first Division II school in Louisiana, after officially accepting an invitation to join the Gulf South.

Loyola previously competed in the NCAA from 1921-1972 before athletics was suspended. In 1991, athletics returned with baseball and began sponsoring women's sports programs as members of the NAIA. Over the last 35 years, athletics has achieved significant growth and success on the courts and fields, including a men's basketball national title in 2022.

Loyola looks to begin the 2-year provisional process this fall to become a full NCAA D2 member in 2029-30.

HOWL!

When Wolf Pack athletics was discontinued in 1972, the Wolf Pack men’s basketball team had the department’s only national championship, which came in 1945. After the resumption of athletics in 1991, Loyola men’s basketball program continued to build an upward trajectory that culminated in the University’s second national title in 2022 under head coach Stacy Hollowell. The program also celebrated 1,000 all-time wins in 2024, dating back to the pre-1972 era. 🏀

The Wolf Pack earned three consecutive Souther States Athletic Conference tournaments titles from 2022 to 2025 adding to their previous SSAC tourney title in 2019. Loyola also earned regular-season titles in 2022 and 2023.

*After a 20-year hiatus, athletics returned to Loyola University New Orleans in 1991. Wolf Pack athletics celebrates 35 years since the return of intercollegiate athletics by recognizing the excellence and achievements of its 22 sports programs.*

The Loyola University New Orleans women’s basketball team stands as the most decorated program of the Wolf Pack Athletics modern era. In 30 seasons, the Wolf Pack has recorded nineteen 20-win campaigns and 16 national tournament appearances, establishing itself as one of the NAIA’s most consistent and respected programs. 🏀

That tradition of excellence began under inaugural head coach DoBee Plaisance and has continued under current head coach Kellie Kennedy. Together, the program’s only two head coaches have combined for 17 conference regular-season and tournament championships and 564 victories, averaging more than 18 wins per season across three decades of competition.

*After a 20-year hiatus, athletics returned to Loyola University New Orleans in 1991. Wolf Pack athletics celebrates 35 years since the return of intercollegiate athletics by recognizing the excellence and achievements of its 22 sports programs.*

The longest-running women’s sports team for the new era at Loyola is our volleyball team. The Wolf Pack has become a consistent contender for conference titles with sixteen 20-win seasons in its 31 years of existence. Recently, Loyola has made two trips to the national tournament in the last three years, and the program has won both regular-season and tournament titles in the last five seasons. 🏐

*This is part of a series to celebrate the last 35 years of Wolf Pack Athletics, recognizing the excellence and achievements of its 22 sports programs after a 20-year hiatus. Athletics returned to Loyola University New Orleans in 1991 and we want to honor some of the highlights across more than three decades.*

After a 20-year hiatus, athletics returned to Loyola University New Orleans in 1991. Wolf Pack athletics celebrates 35 years since the return of intercollegiate athletics by recognizing the excellence and achievements of its 22 sports programs…starting with baseball. ⚾️

The new era of Wolf Pack athletics began with a student-driven push, which led to the Wolf Pack fielding a baseball team in 1991. Since then, the Loyola baseball program has won three conference tournaments, one regular-season title, and made a World Series appearance. This was only the beginning of excellence for the Loyola New Orleans Athletics Department, which has since grown to include more than 300 student-athletes.