Orange Head to North Carolina to Take On UNC and Duke

The Syracuse volleyball team continues its 2026 ACC season facing off first against #22 North Carolina on Fri., Oct.30 at 7 p.m. and then Duke on Sun., Nov.1 at 1 p.m.

HITTING HER STRIDE

Kiernan Stamey entered the Power Four level after two seasons at Kennesaw State and has not looked back.
Stamey leads the Orange with 232 kills and 3.57 kills per set.
Stamey has led the Orange in kills in 15 of the first 19 matches of the 2026 season.
The junior has also shown her defensive prowess, ranking fourth on the team in digs (126) and third in blocks (31.0)

DIG THIS

Syracuse builds its libero and defensive specialist room around freshman Queen Howse and sophomore Yuka Urano.
Howse, a freshman from Brentwood, Tenn., joins the Orange after a standout career at Brentwood High School, being named to the TSSAA First Team All-District and All-Region while adding AVCA All-Region awards as a senior.
Urano, a sophomore from Tokyo, Japan, recorded 502 digs and 142 assists in the 2025 season playing for Navarro College.

MEET THEM IN THE MIDDLE

The Orange have new faces at the middle blocker position with Kiera Hagler, Emma Faerber, Bo Nijenhuis and Abby Nicholson joining the fold.
Hagler, a freshman from Calera, Ala., competed at Calera High School and Alabama Performance Volleyball Club before joining the Orange.
Faerber, a freshman from Wiesbaden, Germany, played for VC Wiesbaden and competed in the German National Championship in each year from 2023-26.
Nijenhuis brings experience from Rivo Rijssen, a championship-winning team in the Netherlands.
Nicholson, a graduate from Savannah, Ga., competed for Lafayette, tallying 43 matches played, appearing in 98 sets while notching 37 starts.

SCOUTING NORTH CAROLINA

North Carolina's offense is led by Safi Hampton, who has notched 210 kills and 3.23 kills per set this season.
Zoe Behrendt and Sienna Cozza facilitate the offense for the Tar Heels, tallying 346 and 261 assists respectively.
The Tar Heels are 9-1 in conference play, with their lone loss coming to #3 ranked Louisville.

SCOUTING DUKE

Nataly Moravec and Ashby Zubchevich lead the attack for the Blue Devils, notching 314 and 310 kills respectively.
Mailinh Godschall anchors Duke's defense, tallying 257 digs. Nataly Moravec trails close behind with 167 digs.
The Blue Devils are 14-6 overall and 6-4 in conference play, winning five of the last seven matches they have played.

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