Williamsville North enters 2026 with senior presence and a full September test

Overview

• Williamsville North enters 2026 after winning 12 matches in 2025-26 under head coach Keith Hopkins.
• Seniors Elena Flowers, Ava Schmidt and Olivia Schwartz return with varsity experience at middle, setter/outside and outside, respectively.
• Junior outside hitter Alana Anzalone and defensive specialist Brooke Minnuto also return, along with sophomore outside Choe Mantharam and freshman outside Kiera Prescott.
• Williamsville North opens Sept. 10 against Sweet Home and hosts Orchard Park on Sept. 15; Frontier follows at home Sept. 25 and away Sept. 28.

Williamsville North heads into the 2026 girls volleyball season with a roster that stretches across all four high-school classes and a schedule that should reveal plenty about the group before October.

The senior class includes Lily Bauer, Elena Flowers, Gabriella Rivera, Ava Schmidt and Olivia Schwartz. That group gives the lineup several upperclassmen to build around, with Schmidt at setter/outside hitter, Flowers at middle hitter, Bauer in the middle and Schwartz on the outside.

The junior class adds Alana Anzalone, Nicole Busch, Savannah Markins and Brooke Minnuto, while sophomores Choe Mantharam and Lindsey Kajdas and freshmen Malak Kadhum, Kiera Prescott and Lilliana Schwimmer round out the roster. Kadhum, Minnuto and Rivera are defensive specialists, and Markins joins Schmidt among the setters.

Keith Hopkins leads Williamsville North after a 12-win season in 2025-26, with Jocelyn Swierski and Mike Minnuto serving as assistant coaches.

The schedule does not ease in slowly. Williamsville North begins Sept. 10 against Sweet Home, followed by Orchard Park on Sept. 15 and Clarence on Sept. 23. Williamsville North then sees Frontier twice in four days, with matches on Sept. 25 and Sept. 28, before trips to Lancaster and North Tonawanda close a busy September stretch.

October brings Starpoint, another Orchard Park date, another Clarence date and a closing run that includes Williamsville South, Lancaster, Grand Island and Williamsville East.