MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – The SUNY Morrisville women's volleyball team will open the 2026 campaign Tuesday night, hosting nearby Utica University, before hosting a five team tournament across opening weekend.
 
The Mustangs finished the '25 season slate with a 14-13 overall record, putting together a 4-5 league stance and appearing for a second straight season in the SUNYAC playoffs. They enter the 2026 season tied for fourth overall in the preseason coaches poll in the league, behind preseason favored SUNY Cortland. Oswego and Buffalo State earned the second and third overall selections after last year's post-season push, followed by Fredonia and Morrisville tied for fourth overall.
 
"We are starting to find our footing in the SUNYAC," head coach Fred Wallace said, "we have very high hopes for another run at both playoffs and a title.
 
"With three new teams, the landscape of the SUNYAC has changed, but we feel like we've put a solid team together and are looking forward to the challenges of conference play."
 
With nine returning faces to the Mustangs lineup this season and the addition of three newcomers to the squad, Morrisville is dedicated and determined to continue the excellence of previous teams.
 
"We know we will be challenged, pushed and tested," Wallace said. "But we continue tow ork on parts of the game that will help us take the next step and there's no doubt we can be a force to reckon with."
 
Morrisville will get help from their returning top offensive threat in first team All-Conference honoree, Isabelle Eskierka (Amery, Wisc.) who paved the way with 464 points, an average of 5.10 per set, including 395 total kills a year ago. Eskierka, an all-around player, also served up 43 aces, adding 213 digs to her totals and 47 blocks at the net.
 
Wallace also pointed to the play of setter Keely Shearer who led the SUNYAC in service aces (68) while ranking in the top 25 across all of Division III. Shearer also put up a team best 426 assists, averaging 4.44 per set.
 
Once again Morrisville will be looking to Samantha Siedlecki (Thornton, Colo.) to be a key contributor from the middle hitter/blocker position after a breakout year as a sophomore. Siedlecki threw down 161 kills, while amassing 68 blocks at the net.
 
Cassandra Bellmore (Windsor, N.Y.) will be another dual threat for the Mustangs, not only in the offensive game as a setter and right-side hitter that saw her accumulate 361 assists and 107 kills, but defensively as well, after blocking 31 at the net a year ago.
 
Wallace will look to newcomer Alexa Warner (Draper, Utah) on the outside to bring top level play to the offensive game. Warner was a second team All-Region honoree and starter for the Elevate Club Team that won a national title this past season.
 
Morrisville gets the season underway Tuesday, hosting nearby Utica University in a season opening battle, before hosting a five-team tournament on the opening weekend that sees St. Francis, Alfred State, Alfred University and SUNY Poly in court action.
 
"We will have a very difficult non-conference schedule playing several teams that went to the NCAA tournament in 2025 or finished in the top three of their respective conferences," Wallace said. "By the time SUNYAC play rolls around, we will be prepared for the level our league offers."
 
Following the Mustangs home tournament, they will be on the road for 13 straight matches, heading to Muhlenberg for two-days of play on Sept. 11 and 12, before meeting Empire 8's SUNY Geneseo on the 15^th.
 
Play will take them to the Nazareth Tournament on the 18^th and 19^th, hitting Hartwick on the 23^rd for a single match and Houghton on the 26^th to wrap up a busy September schedule.
 
A final non-league road battle at Sarah Lawrence kicks off October's slate on the 3^rd, with the Mustangs opening SUNYAC play the following Saturday at Alfred State.
 
Morrisville will head to Oswego on the 14^th, before returning home on the 17^th to host Buffalo State in a mid-afternoon weekend battle. The Mustangs will head to Oneonta on the 23^rd and Delhi on the 24^th.
 
Cobleskill and Plattsburgh roll into town on the 30^th and 31^st, and the Mustangs will wrap up the regular season with a final league road outing at Cortland on November 4^th, followed by the home finale on the 7^th as they take on Fredonia.
 
A complete roster and schedule with links for live coverage is available on the college's athletics website.
 
SUNY Morrisville's curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. The college is positioning itself to offer expanded graduate offerings, workforce programming and microcredentials. Future development of industry and educational partnerships will increase student success and response to student demand and market. For more information about SUNY Morrisville, visit www.morrisville.edu.
 
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