By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — The agonizing wait for five-star stretch-four Ciera Toomey is nearly over.

No. 15 Carolina’s Nov. 4 opener against Charleston Southern will come 592 days after Toomey led Dunmore High School to the 2023 Class 3A Pennsylvania state title. In between, there has been plenty of rehab, work and patience as the 6–4 former Miss Pennsylvania Basketball worked toward that day.

“It’s been tough,” Toomey said Friday in Carolina’s beautiful new practice gym on media day. “Basketball is a sport where there’s really nothing that compares to an actual game. So, it’s been definitely a waiting game, but it’s been a blessing. Being around these people makes it a lot easier. This team is wonderful. The coaching staff here, everyone’s made those days a lot easier. It’s been a good time, but safe to say, I’m very excited to actually play again.”

Her college debut will come 938 days after Toomey committed to UNC because of her love of Carolina. UNC coach Courtney Banghart says the coaches are doing everything they can to make that first college season go smoothly.

“We are going to ensure that her journey is one of great success, and you’ve got to hit some singles before you hit home runs,” Banghart said. “So, we’re going to hit some singles with her to start.”

UNC is getting a redshirt freshman with skills comparable to New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart. Banghart says that Toomey allows her team to stretch the floor and is a great passer and shooter who can play inside.

“She just gives you a true three-level scorer who can pass along with it, and she’s big,” Banghart said. “She’s hard to move. Everything creates more space for our team, which lets us play out of closeouts and [get] better ball movement, which makes everybody better. “

Toomey, who was the No. 4-ranked player in the Class of 2023, redshirted last season and worked out with the team the last few weeks, but said there was no talk of playing and using a year of eligibility for just a few games.

“Having all this time off allowed me to work on my shot, work on the perimeter game. So, it’s been a lot of fun to see that come through in my game again,” said Toomey, crediting the UNC staff for helping her along the way. “They helped me put myself in a position where I am able to feel really confident in my body again, really confident in everything that I’m doing, not give that second thought that comes with any recovery you do.”

It also helped that fellow teammate Laila Hull was going through the same frustration of having to redshirt as a freshman after suffering a shoulder injury.

That state title came 10 months after right ACL surgery, and she redshirted last season after summer 2023 surgery to repair cartilage in the same knee. She also suffered a significant wrist injury in a scooter accident on the day of the final “Live Action with Carolina Basketball” on Oct. 13.

The men’s basketball coaches found her after the accident, which all but ended her hopes of playing last season. Banghart, who has banned players from using scooters, admits that she wouldn’t have dealt with all of Toomey’s adversity nearly as well.

“I think she comes at it pretty balanced,” Banghart said, praising the support from Toomey’s parents. “Small town kid from Scranton, Pa., and really has bought into the journey here. Our job is to get her really, really good, game by game, year by year, and so I know that, I’ve been waiting a long time, too. But I’ve got to be disciplined with that as well.”

Toomey finally got a taste of game conditions when UNC hosted Charlotte in a closed scrimmage. Toomey admitted that it felt crazy before that scrimmage and that there were a lot of emotions — but good ones.

“It was a lot of fun,” Toomey said. “It’s been a long time coming. To actually play against people that weren’t in the same jersey as me or our practice players, it was really fun.”

Toomey can handle the ball, mix it up inside and is a dangerous perimeter shooter. Some of those skill sets come from being a point guard when she was growing up. But she made it clear that she won’t be running the point for Carolina.

“I’ve definitely worked on low post and posting up a little bit more than I ever had to,” said Toomey, comparing that to her high school career when she always had a height advantage. “You don’t really need to focus on the specifics of footwork or anything [in high school]. So, I would say I’ve spent time sharpening that aspect of my game.”

Banghart said that Toomey is much stronger and agile than in high school and credited a huge part of Toomey’s development to having to guard fifth-year wing Alyssa Ustby in practice. Banghart went as far as to suggest that Toomey should buy dinner for Ustby every night because of how much that has helped Toomey’s game.

“Alyssa has gotten her a lot better,” Banghart said. “Imagine dealing with Alyssa on both ends every single day. I think that’s helped too, with her speed and her reaction and her anticipation.”

All the rehabilitation and work in the last nearly 600 days is about to start paying off for Toomey. The team and UNC fans can’t wait to watch.

UNC schedule

Date	Day/month	Time	Opponent/event (current rank)	TV
	November
4	Monday	11 a.m.	vs. Charleston Southern	ESPN3
7	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. UNCW	ESPN3
12	Sunday	7 p.m.	at N.C. A&T	ESPN3
15	Friday	6 p.m.	vs. No. 2 UConn in Greensboro	ESPN2
			Battle 4 Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas
23	Saturday	4 p.m.	Ball State	FloHoops
24	Sunday	1:30 or 6:30	Texas A&M or Villanova	FloHoops
25	Monday	Noon, 2:30, 5 p.m. or 7:30	No. 12 Baylor, No. 25 Indiana, Columbia or S. Miss	ESPN2, ESPNU or FloHoops
			———————————
29	Friday	TBA	vs. N.C. Central	ESPN3
	December
			ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge
5	Thursday	5 p.m.	vs. No. 22 Kentucky	ESPN2
			———————————
8	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Coppin State	ESPN3
11	Wednesday	7 p.m.	vs. UNCG	ESPN3
15	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Georgia Tech	ACCN
			Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte
18	Wednesday	6:30	vs. Florida	ESPNU
			———————————
21	Saturday	Noon	vs. Norfolk State	ESPN3
			ACC season
29	Sunday	4 p.m.	at Miami	ACCN
	January
5	Sunday	1 p.m.	vs. No. 6 Notre Dame	ESPN
9	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. No. 11 Duke	TBA
12	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Boston College	ACCN
16	Thursday	8 p.m. ET	at SMU	ESPN3
19	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Pitt	ACCN
23	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Wake Forest	ESPN3
26	Sunday	Noon	vs. No. 19 Florida State	ACCN
30	Thursday	TBA	at Cal	ESPN3
	February
2	Sunday	3 p.m. ET	at Stanford	The CW
9	Sunday	2 p.m.	at Clemson	ESPN3
13	Thursday	7 p.m.	vs. Virginia Tech	ESPN3
16	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. No. 9 N.C. State	ESPN
20	Thursday	6 p.m.	at Syracuse	ACCN
23	Sunday	2 p.m.	at No. 17 Louisville	ESPN
27	Thursday	7 p.m.	at No. 11 Duke	ESPN
	March
2	Sunday	2 p.m.	vs. Virginia	The CW
5–9	Wed.–Sun.		ACC tournament Greensboro Coliseum

UNC roster

Year	No.	Players	Pos.	Height
Freshman	0	Lanie Grant (5 star)	PG	5–10
Freshman	34	Blanca Thomas (5 star)	C	6–5
Freshman	3	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
Junior	14	Trayanna Crisp	G	5–8
Senior	5	Maria Gakdeng	C	6–3
Graduate	2	Grace Townsend	G	5–5
Graduate	20	Lexi Donarski	G	6–0
Graduate	1	Alyssa Ustby	F	6–1

Class of 2025 commitments

Player	Rating	ESPN rank	Position	Height	Hometown
Nyla Brooks	Five star	No. 17	Wing	6–1	Alexandria, Va.
Taliyah Henderson	Five star	No. 21	Wing	6–1	Tucson, Ariz.
Taissa Queiroz	Four star	No. 76	Forward	6–1	Santa Rosa, Calif.

Players transferring in offseason

Class	Player	Pos.	Height	School
Sophomore	RyLee Grays	F	6–3	Virginia
Junior	Paulina Paris	G	5–9	Arizona
RS junior	Teonni Key	F	6–4	Kentucky
Graduate	Deja Kelly	G	5–8	Oregon
Graduate	Ali Zelaya	F	6–4	UNCW
Graduate	Anya Poole	F	6–2	Clemson