CHARLOTTE, NC — Asked about the lone freshman on her roster this season, North Carolina women's basketball coach Courtney Banghart lit up at ACC Tip-Off, the conference’s annual media days.
Her name is Kate Harpring, a 5-foot-11 guard from Atlanta.
A head coach for nearly two decades with a previous stop at Princeton before taking the reins of the Tar Heels, Banghart has coached dozens of talented players, including All-Americans and WNBA draft picks – players like Blake Dietrick, Bella Alarie, Deja Kelly, Alyssa Ustby and Indya Nivar.
But Harpring is different.
“Kate is special. She really is, and I think what headlines that is her relentlessness and her competitiveness. That's not cliche, that's real. I mean, this is a kid that – a sprint in practice?
She’s going to win it,” Banghart told USA TODAY Sports. “She's very dialed into competing on both ends. She's a 94-feet pickup, she can score in a variety of ways, her speed and quickness is hard to guard. She's got a maturity that a non-freshman would have.”
On Saturday, Oct. 24, the rest of the world got to see a sampling of what Harpring is capable of against elite competition in women’s basketball. In an exhibition in College Park, Maryland against the Tar Heels’ old ACC rivals, Harpring piled up 29 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block in 37 minutes on the Terrapins.
North Carolina lost, but it was a preseason game where the numbers at the top of the scoreboard didn’t really matter. The takeaway many fans had is that Harpring is legit and is a player who could have a big impact right away.
One clip of Harpring’s highlights against Maryland circulated on X had more than 415,000 views as of Sunday afternoon. Fans watched her sink left-handed layups with ease, pick off passes and take the ball to the bucket on a fast break, create her own shot off-the-dribble from mid-range, swish step-back 3-pointers, and drop fantastic dimes to her teammates.
🗣️ She’s just a killer. pic.twitter.com/PFkkQ4x9iM
— Carolina Women's Basketball (@uncwbb) October 25, 2026
Even former LSU star and WNBA All-Rookie selection Flau’Jae Johnson weighed in on Harpring’s highlights, saying on X, “She a real dawg. ACC in trouble.”
While this was an exhibition, Harpring did this against a Maryland team that is expected to be a contender in the Big Ten this year. If the freshman’s potential comes to fruition, it could vault North Carolina to the top of the ACC.
“She's one of the most dynamic players I've ever seen, and to be able to see it every day and to coach her has been such a joy,” Banghart said. “I think she has a chance to be really special, not only at Carolina and in the ACC, but nationally.”
Depending on which recruiting service is referenced, Harpring was ranked anywhere from the best to fourth-best recruit in the class of 2026. 247sports had her first, Rivals and On3 ranked her second, while ESPN pegged her as the fourth prospect in the nation.
A product of the Marist School in Atlanta, Harpring was the Naismith High School Player of the Year last season, as well as the Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year. She was also named a McDonald’s All-American and invited to the Jordan Brand Classic. Harpring also won a gold medal playing for Team USA at the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup.
In that McDonald’s All-American game in Glendale, Arizona, Harpring battled an injury to her left shoulder and still finished with 14 points in a victory. She dealt with a shoulder injury in her state championship game in Georgia too, but had a trainer pop it back into place and went on to score 40 points.
The nagging issues with her shoulders didn’t stop the best-of-the-best programs in women’s college basketball from recruiting her. Harpring held offers from South Carolina, UConn, Iowa, LSU, Maryland, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Duke, UCLA and Texas before ultimately signing with the Tar Heels.
All signs point to Harpring having a clean bill of health for the upcoming season.
“She’s probably the fastest on the team. She’s very twitchy, she can change directions, she can stop on a dime. She’s also very fast east-west or north-south,” Banghart said. “She’s a shot-maker. I mean, it’s really fun to watch her shoot. She’s as good as advertised. You hope that’s the case when you’re recruiting them, that she matches what the world thinks of her. We’ve been really pleased.”
Harpring comes from a family of athletes. Her grandfather played football at Michigan, her brother Luke is a tight end on Florida’s football team, her mother Amanda swam at Cornell, and her father Matt was an All-American basketball player at Georgia Tech who went on to play 11 seasons in the NBA.
That speaks to where Harpring’s competitiveness comes from. And for an 18-year-old, Banghart has also been impressed with her maturity.
North Carolina won’t shy away from handing Harpring the keys to the team and leaning on her in crucial moments.
“The fact that Kate Harpring is a freshman doesn't really matter,” Banghart said. “Can she help you win right away? If so, your age doesn't matter, right?”
For a team that has been to three Sweet 16s in the last five years, Harpring could be the player that gets the Tar Heels over the hump.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: UNC recruit already looks like the best freshman in women’s college basketball
