Lancer volleyball great Leah Meyer ’15 is back home, and The Buffalo News has taken notice. A recent News feature spotlights Meyer and fellow Western New York standout Julia Kurowski, now both assistant coaches for University at Buffalo women’s volleyball. The story calls Meyer one of the region’s all-time best players.
Our own head coach Don Pieczynski, who coached Meyer at St. Mary’s, was quoted in the piece. Asked where she ranks among WNY’s best, he didn’t hesitate: “I would start with her at the top.”
Built at St. Mary’s
As a Lancer, Meyer was a four-time All-WNY first-team pick and the 2014–15 New York Gatorade Player of the Year. She helped Coach Pieczynski’s teams win three Catholic state championships. With Niagara Frontier Volleyball Club, she caught the eye of legendary Penn State coach Russ Rose, who, Pieczynski recalled, called her the best middle at a national club tournament.
She first picked up the sport at 12 as an outside hitter, following her older sister Kristin into the game. An eight-inch growth spurt in a single year moved her to middle blocker, the position that would define her career (Major League Volleyball).
Scholar and athlete at Duke and Kentucky
Meyer excelled in the classroom as much as on the court. At Duke (2015–18), she was a two-time First-Team All-ACC pick, made the All-ACC Freshman Team and earned AVCA All-America honorable mention as a senior. She graduated in 2019 with a degree in evolutionary anthropology and served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (UB Athletics).
She spent a graduate season at Kentucky in 2019 while earning her MBA. There she carried a 4.0 GPA, was named a First Team Academic All-American and helped the Wildcats reach the NCAA Sweet 16 (UK Now). Across five college seasons she totaled 1,153 kills and 574 blocks.
A professional career across the world
Meyer turned pro after college and spent two seasons in Romania with CSM Târgoviște, reaching the podium in both the league and cup. She then moved to France, finishing runner-up in the French Supercup with RC Cannes in 2023–24. In 2024–25 she won the French league title with Levallois Paris Saint-Cloud (Major League Volleyball).
In 2026 she brought her game home to the United States with the Grand Rapids Rise of Major League Volleyball. A knee injury cut her season short, but she plans to return to the court.
Coming home to coach
Meyer volunteered with UB in 2023 and joined the staff in 2025 as assistant coach and director of volleyball operations. Her specialty is blocking, fitting for a player whose 1.44 blocks per set at Duke ranked 14th in the nation in 2018. UB junior middle blocker Ava Kanj told the News she has become a much better blocker since Meyer arrived.
Head coach Scott Smith said he wanted Buffalo players to come back and be Buffalo coaches, and the Bulls opened this season 9-4. For Meyer, home is the right place to pass on what she learned. “Buffalo is such a great place,” she said.
Meyer’s journey reflects what we hope for every Lancer: excellence pursued with humility, a love of learning and a desire to give back. Now she is passing her gifts on to the next generation of Western New York athletes. Congratulations, Leah, from your St. Mary’s family. Go Lancers!