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Pitt Volleyball OH Torrey Stafford Enters Transfer Portal

Pitt Panthers volleyball star Torrey Stafford entered the transfer portal

Dominic Campbell

Pitt Volleyball Outside Hitter Torrey Stafford Enters the Transfer Portal
Pitt Volleyball Outside Hitter Torrey Stafford Enters the Transfer Portal / Courtesy of Pitt Athlteics

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers have lost one of their top players heading into next season, as sophomore outside hitter Torrey Stafford entered the transfer portal.

Talia Goodman of On3 first reported that Stafford entered the portal and then Abby Schnable of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette confirmed with a Pitt Athletics spokesperson.

Stafford hails from Torrance, Calif, near Los Angeles, and played for Marymount High School. She was the MaxPreps Junior of the Year in 2021, leading Marymount to a 35-0 record and a California State Championship, losing just eight sets all season.

She was also first Pitt signee to earn a position on the Team USA youth national team, serving as a member of the 2022 USA U-19 team that won the gold medal at the Pan American Cup.

Prepvolleyball ranked Stafford No. 12 overall and No. 4 outside hitter in the Class of 2023, the highest ranked player for Pitt.

She had an excellent freshman season, finisihing second on the team with 372 kills, 3.26 kills per set, and 425.5 points, 3.73 points per set. She also hit .273, made double-digit kills in 22 matches and ranked fourth on the team with 1.77 digs per set.

Stafford also had an excellent NCAA Tournament, leading Pitt to their third straight Final Four. She made at least 10 kills in each match and hit .371 over the postseason.

She led Pitt to a 29-5 record, 16-2 in the ACC, giving them their fifth ACC title and second straight. She earned AVCA Third Team All-American, AVCA All-East Coast Region Team, All-ACC First Team and All-ACC Freshman Team honors for her play.

Stafford played even better as a sophomore this past season, finishing second on the Panthers with 400 kills, 3.70 kills per set, 457.5 points, 4.24 points per set and 252 digs, 2.33 digs per set. She also hit .358, leading all Power 4 outside hitters.

She had one of her best games in the sweep of then ranked No. 3 Penn State on Sept. 18, with 17 kills, eight digs and two blocks, while hitting .571.

Stafford had double-digit kills in 25 of the 35 games the Panthers played in and also had seven double-doubles in 2024.

Her play led Pitt to a 33-2 overall record and 19-1 in the ACC, their third straight ACC Title and sixth in the past eight years. It also got Pitt volleyball the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament and they held the No. 1 ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll for the final 13 weeks.

She also helped Pitt make it to the Final Four for the fourth straight season and had double-digit kills in four of the five matches. She made 18 kills and 15 digs, both season-highs, in the four-set loss to Louisville in the Final Four.

Her play garnered AVCA First Team All-American, AVCA National Player of the Year Semfinalist, AVCA East Coast Region Team and All-ACC First Team honors.

Stafford is the third outside hitter that has left Pitt volleyball at the end of the season, with sixth year Valeria Vazquez Gomez and graduate student Cat Flood both graduating.

She is also one of six players that departed the program, with seniors in AVCA First Team All-American setter Rachel Fairbanks, All-ACC libero/defensive specialist Emmy Klika and setter Nisa Buzletepe, who all graduated.

Pitt has one returning outside hitter in rising junior Blaire Bayless and will have one incoming outside hitter in Samara Coleman, who earned 2024 AVCA Girls High School First Team All-American honors with Grand Oaks High School in Spring, Texas.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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