Tar Heels Host ACC/Big Ten Challenge In Season Opener

CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina begins its 49th season in program history with the ACC/Big Ten Challenge for the second consecutive year Friday and Saturday in Carmichael Arena. The Tar Heels are hosting the inter-conference tournament for the third time since 2013.

Admission is free to Carmichael Arena. Doors open one hour prior to the match. Parking is available in the Raleigh Road Visitors Lot, Stadium Drive and the Bell Tower Deck.
Fans unable to attend can watch each match of the tournament on ACC Network Extra.

Tournament Schedule
Friday at 3:30 p.m.: Florida State vs. Wisconsin
Friday at 6:30 p.m.: North Carolina vs. Minnesota
Saturday at 3:30 p.m.: Florida State vs. Minnesota
Saturday at 6:30 p.m.: North Carolina vs. Wisconsin

About No. 3 Minnesota (27-4)
Series: Minnesota leads, 1-10
Picked to finish third in the Big Ten, Minnesota travels to Chapel Hill ranked as No. 3 in the AVCA preseason poll. Seniors Alexis Hart and Taylor Morgan, and junior Stephanie Samedy were selected to the All-Big Ten Preseason team, marking the third honor for Hart, the second of Samedy and the first for Morgan. Minnesota wrapped up 2018 in the third round with a four-set loss vs. Oregon.

About No. 5 Wisconsin (25-7)
Series: Wisconsin leads, 2-7
Coming into the season as No. 5 in the AVCA preseason poll, Wisconsin is selected as the Big Ten favorite heading into the 2019 season. Juniors Dana Rettke and captain Sydney Hilley were both selected to the All- Big Ten preseason team and recognized as All-Big Ten and AVCA All-Americans in 2018. The Badgers finished 2018 in the quarterfinal with a 3-1 loss at Illinois.

Preseason Notes
With four returning starters from 2018, the Tar Heels were selected fifth in the preseason ACC coaches poll. UNC wrapped up the season winning three of the last five matches, including a five-set win at Duke.
The Tar Heels return four starters plus libero to the 2019 squad, while welcoming five freshmen, redshirt-freshman, Lauren Harrison and a sophomore transfer, Ryan Shannon, to the court for the first time.
UNC is led by a trio of seniors in libero Mia Fradenburg, outside Skylar Wine and defensive specialist Greer Moseman who each saw significant time on the court in 2018.
Despite a 10-match skid during the 2018 season, the Tar Heels wrapped up the year winning three of their last five matches, including a five-set comeback win at Duke on Nov. 17. Carolina also swept Wake Forest and defeated Miami, 3-1, at home in November.
Adding depth to the Tar Heels' young roster consisting of only three seniors, Carolina's class of incoming freshmen includes a pair of defensive specialists in Karenna Wurl and Olivia Diaz, two outsides in Parker Austin and Carly Peck, and a middle blocker Skyy Howard.

Making an Impact
North Carolina head volleyball coach Joe Sagula signed 8-year-old Kelsie Houston through Team Impact to the Tar Heel volleyball team on August 17, 2019 at Carmichael Arena before the team's annual Blue/White Scrimmage.
A native of Pittsboro, N.C., Houston is one of 30,000 patients in the United States living courageously with cystic fibrosis (CF), a disease predominantly diagnosed in children at a young age. Houston was diagnosed at birth with CT which a is a chronic, progressive, and incurable disease that primarily affects the lungs and digestive system.
Through Team IMPACT's program at North Carolina, Houston will become an official member of the volleyball team. As a team member, she will attend Tar Heel practices, games, team dinners, events and more.

Upcoming Milestones for Coach Sagula
In his 30th season at Carolina, Sagula owns a 599-342 record - one away from 600. Sagula earned his 800th career win vs. Wake Forest on Nov. 4, 2018.
Sagula is the sixth winningest active Division I coach (11th in all divisions) and is the 16th winningest coach of all-time by victories.

Tar Heel Born, Tar Heel Bred
Carolina's roster consists of three Tar Heel legacies who each had family members attend UNC.

Erin Boone: parents, John & Kelly, and brother, Michael
Destiny Cox: mom, Crystal, competed in track & field from 1997-2001 and set UNC record in 60-meter dash
Hadden LaGarde: dad, Tom, played basketball from 1973-77 and won a gold medal at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal

Up Next
The Tar Heels travel to Irvine, California for the UC Irvine/Adidas Invite September 6-7.

Stay up to date with Carolina Volleyball by following the Tar Heels on Twitter and Instagram.

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Players Mentioned

Parker Austin

Erin Boone

Destiny Cox

Olivia Diaz

Mia Fradenburg

Lauren Harrison

Skyy Howard

Hadden LaGarde

Greer Moseman

Carly Peck

Ryan Shannon

Skylar Wine

Karenna Wurl