By R.L. Bynum
Ali Zelaya will play her fifth season at UNCW.
The 6–4 Zelaya, who entered the transfer portal on April 1, is the third of the six Carolina players to enter the portal to commit to a school after commitments by Paulina Paris to Arizona and Teonni Key to Kentucky.
Three others — guard Deja Kelly, center Anya Poole and forward RyLee Grays — still haven’t announced their plans.
Her commitment became official with a UNCW release on Wednesday morning, and Zelaya also posted about her commitment on Instagram, saying “Next stop … Wilmington.”
“Ali is one of the best human beings you will ever meet. She is just as good as a basketball player,” UNCW coach Nicole Woods said. “She will anchor the middle defensively as well as be a threat inside and out at 6-4. Today is a huge step for our program!”
Woods just completed her first season as the coach for the Seahawks, who went 5–25 and lost their last eight games.
Zelaya, who also considered Oregon and Arizona State, is passionate about the environment and will earn her master’s in marine sciences at UNCW. Her UNC degree will be in environmental sciences.
Tiffany Tucker, UNCW’s deputy athletic director and senior women’s administrator, played basketball at Carolina from 2001 to 2005.
Zelaya is the fourth transfer to commit to UNCW after former Belmont guard Kate Holifield, former Bradley forward Isis Fitch and former Richmond forward Torin Rogers. In addition, UNCW added Ofir Parpara, who has played in the Israel Premier League and the Israel National League.
A four-star recruit out of Goodyear, Ariz., she led Millennium High School to back-to-back Arizona 5A state titles before playing 88 games over four years for UNC.
Zelaya scored 159 points and pulled down 135 rebounds in her career for the Tar Heels, scoring a career-high 12 points on Feb. 22 with four 3-pointers in Carolina’s 80–70 home win over N.C. State.
Potential UNC 2024–25 roster
| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | — | Lanie Grant (5 star) | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | — | Blanca Thomas (5 star) | C | 6–5 | |
| Freshman | — | Jordan Zubich (4 star) | G | 5–11 | |
| RS Freshman | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| RS Freshman | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 10 | Reniya Kelly | PG | 5–7 | |
| Sophomore | 15 | Sydney Barker | PG | 5–6 | |
| RS Junior | 11 | Kayla McPherson | PG | 5–8 | |
| Junior | 24 | Indya Nivar | G | 5–10 | |
| Senior | 5 | Maria Gakdeng | C | 6–3 | |
| Graduate | — | Grace Townsend | G | 5–5 | |
| Graduate | 20 | Lexi Donarski | G | 6–0 | |
| Graduate | 1 | Alyssa Ustby | F | 6–1 | |
| Graduate | 25 | Deja Kelly | G | 5–8 |
2023–24 UNC players to enter transfer portal
| Class | Player | Date entered | Pos. | Hgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Junior | Paulina Paris | March 26 | G | 5–9 | Arizona |
| Graduate | Ali Zelaya | April 1 | F | 6–4 | UNCW |
| Graduate | Anya Poole | April 1 | F | 6–2 | Clemson |
| RS junior | Teonni Key | April 2 | F | 6–4 | Kentucky |
| Sophomore | RyLee Grays | April 5 | F | 6–3 | Virginia |
| Graduate | Deja Kelly | G | 5–8 | TBA |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics Communications
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