Women’s Volleyball looks to turn early-season lessons into momentum

By  Paige Apps, Sports Reporter

The Canisius women’s volleyball team is still searching for its first win of the 2026 season, but despite a 0–4 start, the team has already shown signs of the fight and potential it will need as the season moves forward.

The Griffs opened the year at the YSU Invitational in Youngstown, Ohio, where they faced Duquesne, Mercyhurst and Youngstown State. The tournament provided an early test for a team looking to find its rhythm with Canisius ultimately coming away without a victory.

The opening day featured two very different matches. Canisius fell to Duquesne in straight sets before putting together a strong comeback against Mercyhurst. After dropping the first two sets, the Griffs battled back to win the third and fourth sets to force a deciding fifth set, but fell 15–12 in the last moments.

The loss to the Lakers showed some of the resilience that could become an important part of the Griffs’ season. After trailing 24–22 in the fourth set, the Blue and Gold fought back to take the set 27–25 and extend the match. While unable to complete the comeback, the ability to respond after falling behind offered an encouraging sign early in the season.

Canisius closed the invitational with another straight-set loss, this time against Youngstown State. The Griffs struggled to find their footing early, but they showed flashes of improvement as the match progressed, including taking an 8–7 lead in the third set before the Penguins closed out the contest.

Despite the three losses at the invitational, junior Emma Isroff earned All-Tournament honors after leading the Griffs with 32.5 points and averaging 2.82 kills per set. She also finished the tournament with a team-best .358 attack percentage among Canisius starters.

Freshman setter Kenslie Warmbrodt has also made an immediate impact in her first collegiate season. She led the Griffs in assists in each of their first three matches and entered the season with 53 assists through the opening weekend.

The Griffs returned to Buffalo for their first matchup against crosstown rival University of Buffalo, but the Bulls handed Canisius a 3–0 defeat at the Canisius/UB tournament. Despite the result, Canisius showed stretches of strong play, particularly in the second set. After Buffalo pulled ahead, the Griffs responded with a 7–1 run to cut the deficit to 23–21 before the Bulls closed out the set.

With the non-conference portion of the season still in its early stages, the 0–4 record does not tell the entire story of the Griffs’ start. Canisius has already demonstrated its ability to battle back from deficits, push opponents deep into sets and compete through difficult stretches.

While there are five new faces on the volleyball roster, there are still 11 returning faces, including redshirt-freshman McKenna Corcoran, who made her collegiate debut at the YSU Invitational after missing the 2025 season due to a knee injury. Standout players returning from last year include sophomore Madi Cowan, redshirt-junior Julia Lenik and senior Brenda Reynaga, all of whom had standout performances in the 2025 season.

There is still plenty of volleyball left to be played, and the early challenges have given Canisius an opportunity to identify what needs to improve before conference play arrives. As the Griffs continue to develop their chemistry and consistency, the goal will be to turn the flashes they’ve shown through the opening four matches into sustained success.

The Blue and Gold will open their home schedule against Dartmouth on Friday, Sept. 4 with the opportunity to put their early-season lessons to work in front of their home crowd.