Volleyball Opens Season at Charlotte Invitational

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The Syracuse volleyball team is set to open the season on the road at the Charlotte Invitational, partaking in three matches over the weekend.

'Cuse will face three opponents from the Carolinas on opening weekend, starting with Campell on Friday, Aug. 26, at noon. The Orange will play a double header on Saturday, Aug. 27, against Wofford at 10 a.m. and Charlotte at 7 p.m.

Saturday night's 7:00 p.m. contest against Charlotte will be streamed live on ESPN+. Live stats will be available for all three matches.

Syracuse has met both Campbell and Charlotte just once before, and it will be the second meeting in 20 years for each squad. Saturday's match against Wofford will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

The Orange lead the series over the Camels with a 1-0 edge, their first meeting was on September 7th, 2002 and the 49ers own the 1-0 series over the Orange, their first encounter was on September 8th, 2001.

Syracuse posted a 17-13 overall record (6-12 ACC) last season, the Orange return six players from last season's squad and added five new faces to the crowd including transfers Alyssa Bert (Gr., Colorado State), Didar Ozcan (Jr. Southern Idaho NJCAA), and Bre Walp (Gr., North Florida).

On June 27th, 2022, Bakeer Ganesharatnam was named the seventh head coach of the volleyball program. The veteran head coach came to the Orange with over a decade of experience from Temple, where he led the Owls to 173 wins over the course of 11 seasons, including four 20-win campaigns.

Polina Shemanova represented the Orange on the 2022 ACC Preseason Volleyball Team coming off an All-ACC Second-Team selection last year. As a senior in 2021, Shemanova was fourth in the ACC in kills (3.86 avg/s, 421 total), and points (4.40 avg/s, 480 total), while she was sixth in service aces (0.33 avg/s, 36 total).

Shemanova has earned a plethora of honors and awards during her SU career including 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District honors, 2021 AVCA East Region accolades, 2021 All-ACC Second Team, and All-ACC Academic Team. The three-time All-ACC Standout was also the 2018 ACC Freshman of the Year. In 2022, Shemanova graduated with a dual major in communications & rhetorical studies and linguistics from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. She is continuing her education and pursuing a master's degree in Broadcast and Digital Journalism from Newhouse.

For all the latest information on Syracuse volleyball, follow the team on Facebook (/CuseVB), Instagram and Twitter (@CuseVB).

Syracuse University Athletics

Volleyball Opens Season at Charlotte Invitational

Players Mentioned

Alyssa Bert

Didar Ozcan

Polina Shemanova

Bre Walp

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