May 19, 2008

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Chelsea Pavlik, a transfer from Irvine Valley College, signed a National Letter of Intent with the UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team it was announced recently by head coach Kathy Gregory. Pavlik, a 2007 All-American and the Orange Empire Conference Most Valuable Player, will join the Gauchos for the fall 2008 season.

An outside hitter, Pavlik spent the 2007 season at Irvine Valley College where she posted 412 kills during the regular season with an average of 5.8 kills per game, while leading the Lasers to a 14-0 conference record and Orange Empire Conference title.

At Irvine Valley, she broke the school record for single season kills with 463. She averaged 5.86 kills per game while also averaging 3.57 digs and .67 aces per game, leading her team in both those categories. For the season, she accumulated a .342 hitting percentage. Pavlik was also named Irvine Valley College's Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Prior to attending Irvine Valley College, Pavlik played for Division II Regis University in 2006. At Regis, Pavlik led her team with 4.51 kills per game and was second with 4.34 digs per game. She tallied double-digit kills in every contest she played in and had five matches with 20 or more kills. For her efforts, Pavlik earned First Team All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference honors and was also named RMAC Freshman of the Year.

A Laguna Beach, Calif. native, she attended Mater Dei High School where she was a First Team All-Serra League Selection.

"I am very excited to add Chelsea to our roster this fall. She is an experienced player out of a top-level junior college. She is a go-to hitter that is used to seeing 80 or more sets per game and she is also a talented passer. I am glad we were able to bring in an outside hitter with her skill level and maturity. We are looking for her to be an important part of the team this fall," commented Gregory.

Pavlik rounds out the 2008 UCSB signing class, which included the fall signings of incoming freshmen Nikki Doyle (Santa Maria, Calif./Pioneer Valley HS), Lily Lopez (Santa Ana, Calif./Mater Dei HS), and Whittany Radcliffe (La Habra, Calif./La Habra HS).

The UC Santa Barbara women's volleyball team ended the 2007-08 season last November with a 14-18 overall record. The Gauchos graduated just two seniors: Brett Quirarte and Lauren Smith.