Ciera Toomey Succeeding Early Under Banghart’s Tar Heels Program

Ciera Toomey's role last season was nowhere near the kind of duties she has to do on the court now for head coach Courtney Banghart. Toomey, a redshirt sophomore from Dunmore, Pennsylvania, who attended Dunmore High School, played in 32 games as a redshirt freshman, where she averaged 10 minutes per game and scored three points and pulled down two rebounds.

Now, everything has changed; her role has increased and there are more things on her plate that need to be done so that UNC can be as successful as possible. Through five games, the 6-foot-4 forward has averaged 25 minutes of play and has recorded 11 points, seven rebounds, one assist and one block. She is shooting 60 percent from the field and 35 percent from three.

UNC — North Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart at the 2025 ACC Tipoff | Nell Redmond/theACC.com

North Carolina now relies on Toomey's efforts, as she provides an interior presence that needed to be filled, considering the departures from last year's roster. No more Alyssa Ustby, Lexi Donarski or Maria Gakdeng. The Tar Heels are going to need No. 21 to step up in a big way — crashing the glass, spacing the floor and being an anchor on the defensive end.

Toomey's frontcourt mate, Nyla Harris, who has also started all five games so far, is averaging eight points, six rebounds and one assist. Harris is shooting 48 percent from the field and 83 percent from the charity stripe. She has yet to convert from beyond the arc, shooting 0-5 so far. The two have been doing their job within a guard-heavy offense and provide a much-needed presence in the paint.

Three-Pointers by Toomey

The importance of Toomey's ability to make threes can not be stressed enough. Banghart wants to play in space, and her ability to space the floor will come in handy as it will allow for the guards to create and drive downhill, penetrating the defense and causing havoc. UNC's offensive scheme is fitting for its personnel, similar to how head coach Hubert Davis does it with the men's team.

North Carolina will need Toomey to continue producing, as her numbers will be a big indicator as to whether or not wins be achieved — it's hard to win when a team's center is not a factor throughout the game — the guards can't do it all.

Head coach Courtney Banghart at the 2025 ACC Tipoff | Nell Redmond/theACC.com

Toomey has a lot of time left in Chapel Hill (unless something drastic happens in the future), but she is slowly but surely developing into a key piece of the program that Banghart will need down the line.

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