STANFORD, Calif. – Head coach Kevin Hambly has announced the five incoming freshman and a graduate transfer who will join the Stanford women's volleyball team this fall.
The class consists of Line Andersson (Jonkoping, Sweden), Christina Armoni (Chalkida, Greece), Kelly Belardi (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), Anna Pringle (La Jolla, Calif.), Elia Rubin (Brentwood, Calif.) and graduate transfer from Columbia, Emily Teehan (Toronto, Canada).
"We are excited to welcome the 2026 class to The Farm," said Hambly, who enters his sixth season at the helm of the program. "Adding six athletes to the roster provides tremendous ability and depth to an already talented group. Initially, it was just going to be a class of three, but we were pleasantly surprised to add three more as the year progressed."
Rubin, the California State Gatorade Player of the Year, was a standout at Marymount High School in Los Angeles, where her team was CIF Southern Section champions, state champions and national champions in 2021. The outside hitter was named the VolleyballMag.com High School Player of the Year, Max Prep Player of the Year and was an Under Armor All-American. Rubin plays for Sunshine Volleyball Club, winning junior national championships in 2021 and 2022.
"Elia brings a high level of skill and athleticism to the outside position. She is one of the best pass-hitters in her class and is a potent attacker who possesses an elite arm," said Hambly. "Elia is also a proven winner at both the club and high school levels, playing together with Kelly Belardi in high school and for the past two years at the club level."
Belardi also starred at Marymount High School and plays for Sunshine Volleyball Club with Rubin. The setter guided their high school team to an undefeated record (35-0) and a No. 1 national ranking in 2021. Belardi was a PrepVolleyball and MaxPreps First Team All-American in high school and helped Sunshine Volleyball win back-to-back open national championships for the first time in club history.
"Kelly will bring depth to the setting position as she is a natural leader who knows how to guide her team. She is undoubtedly a skilled setter, but her tenacity and cunning play stand out," added Hambly.
Pringle helped lead Cathedral Catholic High School to the 2021 CIF San Diego Section championship after a pair of runner-up finishes in 2018 and 2019. Located in Del Mar, California, her school was the state runner-up in the Southern California Region in 2021. The All-San Diego Section CIF Libero of the Year (2021), Pringle has appeared on the AVCA Phenom list and Max Preps watch list.
"Anna is a highly skilled defensive specialist with excellent athleticism and size. She is a proven passer and defender, and will compete immediately in our gym," said Hambly.
With the initial group in place, Stanford bolstered its class with three additional signees – Teehan, Andersson and Armoni.
"The great surprises were Emily Teehan, Line Andersson, and Christina Armoni," explained Hambly. "Emily is a grad transfer who will bring experience to a young team on the outside. Line is also a very accomplished beach and indoor player who will bring more depth to the outside position. Both are pass-hitters that have proven they can handle the load required for the outside position. Christina will compete to be a defensive specialist."
Teehan, who hails from Toronto and has experience in Canada's national team and junior national team training programs, played three years at Columbia (2018, 2019, 2020 – Ivy League teams did not compete in 2020). An All-Ivy League second team selection, Teehan led the conference in total aces and aces per set in 2018. She will pursue her master of science in community health and prevention research at Stanford.
Andersson has spent time competing for Sweden's North European Volleyball Zonal Association (NEVZA) U17 team (2019) and was selected to the U19 squad in 2021, but was unable to compete. A team MVP, Armoni helped lead her team to runner-up finishes in the Greek High School League in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. She also competed for Greece's U18 Hellas Volleyball Team and U18 Hellas Beach Volleyball Team.
"All in all, we feel that this class has filled both our needs and wants for the upcoming year, and we are looking forward to integrating them into our group that has been making tremendous gains this spring," added Hambly.
