Volleyball Opens 2026 Season With Two In-State Matchups

Saturday, August 29

Davidson, N.C.

2:00 PM

North Carolina

Davidson

Photo by: DALTON WAINSCOTT

August 27, 2026 | Volleyball

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Carolina volleyball is set to open the 2026 campaign with two in-state showdowns. The season will open on Saturday with a road trip to Davidson and followed by the home opener on Sunday against UNCW.

It marks the Tar Heels first trip to Davidson since 2003. Carolina is 9-0 all-time against Davidson including seven consecutive sweeps.

UNC squares off with UNCW for the first time since 2015 and holds a 5-1 all-time record against the Seahawks.

UNC at Davidson | Saturday, Aug. 29 | 2 PM
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UNC vs. UNCW | Sunday, Aug. 30 | 4 PM
WATCH | LIVE STATS

NEWS & NOTES

A WIN/WINS WOULD...
- Be better than a loss
- Be the tenth consecutive win over Davidson
- Mark the second win over UNCW in a row
- Be the fourth consecutive season opening win and the fourth consecutive 2-0 start
RETURNING FIREPOWER
- Carolina didn't lose anyone to the transfer portal for the second consecutive year and it's allowing a lot of production to return
- Out of the 1536 kills last season, 1535 (99.9%) of those are back on the 2026 roster, 100% of the 342 blocks are back, 90.2% of aces are returning, and 69.7% of digs
- Safi Hampton and Chelsea Thorpe were both named to the Preseason All-ACC Team ahead of the 2026 season
BEHIND THE SCHEDULE
- The Tar Heels will square off with eight different teams who made the NCAA Tournament last season
- They will face National Runner-Up Kentucky, National Semi-Finalist Pitt, and 2025 overall No. 1 seed Nebraska all on the road this season.
- UNC will also travel to SMU, host Stanford and Georgia Tech, and play Louisville and Miami both home and away.
- Carolina will square off against six teams in the AVCA Preseason Top-11 over the course of seven matches throughout the season, five on the road and two at home
O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
- The 2026 leadership team consists of Zoe Behrendt, Chelsea Thrope, and Sadie Swift
THE CLUB CONNECTION
- Incoming transfers Laynie Smith and Emily Bobbitt will have a connection before they ever play in Carolina blue together
- The two played together at Triangle Volleyball Club
- Triangle is also where Erin Curtis, Lindley Miller, and Carly Markham played club prior to college
- Erin Curtis' father, Jason, co-founded the club
- Head coach Mike Schall served as an associate director at Triangle before arriving in Chapel Hill
YEAR FOUR OF THE SCHALL ERA
- Entering year four, Coach Schall looks to build off the momentum of the first three seasons
- Carolina is ranked in the preseason AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll for the first time since 2017 and was picked fifth in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll
- In year one he went 13-14 and turned that around with a 23-8 record in 2024 with the first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2021, followed by a 22-9 campaign in 2025 with another first round victory in the NCAA Tournament
- UNC is now chasing three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since it went to seven in a row between 2010-16
ATHLETIC PEDIGREE
- Jackie Taylor's father, Sean, played football for the University of Miami from 2001-2003 and was a member of the 2001 BCS National Championship team. He was the No. 5 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft to the Washington Redskins where he was a two-time Pro-Bowl Selection (2006, 2007)
-Her mom, Jackie García, was a midfielder on the women's soccer team at the University of Miami
- Erin Curtis', father Jason was a captain on the Santa Clara men's volleyball team, sister Emily was a setter at Villanova and sister Maggie was a defensive specialist at Santa Clara
- Julia Bohlinger: Father Rob played football at the University of Wyoming (1993-98) and professionally in the NFL for the Carolina Panthers as a left tackle
- Carson Overbeck's mom, Carla, was a three-time All-America and four-time NCAA Champion on the UNC soccer team from 1986-89. She captained the 1995 U.S. World Cup squad that advanced to the semifinals and also served as captain of the 1996 U.S. Women's Soccer Olympic Team that won the gold medal. She is currently an assistant coach for the Duke women's soccer team