With at least 10 players departing, what’s next for Syracuse volleyball?
After losing at least 10 players, Syracuse is looking to the transfer portal to synthesize a roster with seven returners and five freshmen. Tara Deluca | Staff Photographer
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Following Syracuse volleyball’s 3-1 loss to NC State on Nov. 16, five players were expected to have their SU careers honored. Accompanied by their families, they gathered at midcourt as “Hall of Fame” by The Script blared throughout the Women’s Building.
Graduate students Soana Lea’ea, Oreva Evivie and Marisse Turner received framed photos before seniors Gabriella McLaughlin and Piper Willinger got framed jerseys.
Surprisingly, juniors Zharia Harris-Waddy, Veronica Sierzant and Sydnie Waller — SU’s longest-tenured players — joined them at midcourt.
“This is the great thing about being a student-athlete,” Syracuse head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam said on Nov. 18. “A lot of our student-athletes graduate with their bachelor’s degree in three years, and that’s the case with all three of them.”
On top of that, Harris-Waddy and Sierzant confirmed their transfer portal entries on Instagram Thursday. The transfer portal closes on Jan. 5, 2026.
The decisions come after another subpar year for SU. Ganesharatnam trusted the process in Year 4, but Syracuse (13-17, 5-15 Atlantic Coast) ended the year dropping 11 straight matches. With the team losing 957 kills worth of production, the Orange have more questions than answers.
Here’s everything to know about SU’s offseason and what its roster could look like in 2026:
Confirmed departures
McLaughlin’s 418 kills — seventh-best in the ACC — was the highest single-season total in Ganesharatnam’s tenure. The outside hitter’s 1,317 attempts were the most ever in an SU campaign, and she notched five 20-plus-kill matches. The Temecula, California, native’s 311 digs also eclipsed every Orange player from the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
Harris-Waddy, Sierzant and Waller all stayed with the program through their disastrous 2-26 freshman campaign in 2023. After Sierzant’s shin fracture on Oct. 8, the Orange have sorely missed her versatility in the 6-2 formation.
Lea’ea appeared in every set this campaign, finishing with a career-high 14 kills in a 3-1 loss to Virginia Tech on Nov. 28. Her, Harris-Waddy and Evivie’s departures leave SU’s middle blocker spots vacant. Sophomore defensive specialists Emma Ortiz and Ashlee Gnau also announced their departures on Instagram Friday. Ortiz finished her SU career with 80 digs, while Gnau added 53.
Finally, Willinger cameoed at setter the past two seasons and entered the transfer portal as a graduate student, per College VBall Transfers.
Katie Crews | Design Editor
Portal additions
Ganesharatnam has proved he can navigate the transfer portal, which opened on Sunday. He snagged both of his captains from Nevada last offseason in Tehya Maeva and McLaughlin and nabbed SU’s 2024 kill leaders Skylar George and Ava Palm through the portal as well.
With Syracuse coming off a season where it reached its highest conference win total in three years, it could be a desirable landing spot. The Orange could look to poach players from teams like No. 18 Tennessee, whose roster was dismantled after an upset loss to Utah State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Seven Volunteers announced their departures. Outside hitter Starr Williams and middle blocker Zoë Humphrey headline the group and would fill SU’s positions of need.
No. 25 Penn State, the reigning national champions, are also losing Izzy Starck — the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class. Last year’s American Volleyball Coaches Association Freshman of the Year made national news when she left the sport in September to focus on her mental health. Now, the setter is in the transfer portal. The Orange could take a stab at Starck against a horde of competing schools.
“We’re going to take full advantage of the opportunity the portal gives us,” Ganesharatnam said. “So we try to recruit some quality players there and implement them into our process.”
Likely Returners
As of Tuesday evening, Maeva and George are returning in 2026, and Syracuse will bank on it. Maeva posted 1,004 assists this season, seventh-most in the ACC and most in a campaign under Ganesharatnam. George leads SU over the past two seasons with 554 kills, although her attack rate dipped to 11.7% this year.
Rana Yamada went from a near-liability to impossible to bench. She contributed 28 of SU’s season-high 91 digs against NC State. Marie Laurio was often pulled for George early, but in the Orange’s win over Boston College on Oct. 22, she showcased defensive versatility in her new role as a right-side hitter.
Reese Teves and Elizabeth Turner are SU’s biggest wild cards. Teves led the Orange with 22 aces through as many games but wasn’t with the team in their final eight contests.
“She won’t be with the team for the remainder of the season,” Ganesharatnam said on Nov. 18. “We’re gonna get together and then see what we’re gonna do in the spring.”
Teves transferred from Long Island because her sister, Shaye Teves, committed to Syracuse. There’s no guarantee they’ll share the court.
Elizabeth posted 11 digs in a win over Niagara on Aug. 30 but hasn’t been with SU since early September. Ganesharatnam said she had the flu on Sept. 23, but she never returned to the lineup. Freshman Kaliya Ndiaye will also return, despite never seeing the floor this year. At 6-foot-4, Ndiaye is the tallest player on SU’s roster, and she’s eligible for a redshirt.
Recruits
Shaye recorded 986 assists as a setter at Kamehameha Kapalama High School (Hawaii). Six-hundred seventy-one of them came in her junior year. Shaye also won Women’s A Division MVP at the Haili Tournament.
Although Charis Burge began as a pin hitter at Urbana High School (Maryland), she flashed setter potential with 154 assists as a freshman. Burge made the All-County First Team in both upperclassmen seasons.
Aileen McAllister has the most robust experience of any incoming freshman, helping Japan win the U16 Asian Championship in July 2023. The outside hitter was the Most Outstanding Player of the Inter High National Championships.
Middle blocker Kiera Hagler could see the court immediately. She may not be as tall as Ndiaye at 5-foot-11, but Hagler’s shined at Calera High School (Alabama) and with Alabama Performance Volleyball Club.
With its departures, Syracuse was left with no defensive specialist to complement Yamada. That’s where Queen Howse, from Brentwood High School (Tennessee), comes in. Despite her 6.7% senior-season hitting percentage, she paced the Bruins with 371 digs.
