SAN FRANCISCO -- Moving into its 2017 campaign, Academy of Art University volleyball and head coach Ray Batalon have officially announced four new additions to the team including Sadie Emery (Long Beach, Calif./Long Beach Wilson HS), Ashley Pawlak (Aiea, Hawaii/Mililani HS), Kimiah Johnson (Fresno, Calif./Bullard HS), and Michaela Charrette (Martinez, Calif./Berean Christian HS).

"Overall, we are very excited about our 2017 class," said Batalon. "They all bring with them a wealth of experience from some of the best clubs in the country as well as a passion for our school."

Emery, a 6-0 middle blocker from Long Beach Wilson High School, spent four years on varsity with the Bruins, but her most significant honor came with her club team, Mizuno Long Beach. In 2016, Mizuno Long Beach won a Gold Medal in the Southern California Volleyball Association 18 American Junior National Qualifier and, in 2017, she helped her T-street team earn a bronze medal at the 18 Open National Championships. Long Beach Wilson's Most Valuable Player in 2016, Emery was a two-time All-League honoree (2015, 2016), the USA Division Wilson Most Improved Player in 2015, and High Academic Honor recipient all four years from 2013-17. She enter the School of Illustration at Academy of Art this fall.
 
"Sadie comes to us after having played with a couple of the top clubs in Southern California, garnering a medal at the Junior National Championships this past spring," said Batalon. "She will come in with a good set of fundamentals skills in her position. We are very fortunate to have a player like Sadie who has championship experience at the national level."

Pawlak, a 5-7 outside hitter/defensive specialist, played a key role in Mililani High School going 21-0 in the Oahu II Volleyball League over the past two seasons. After two years on varsity at Maryknoll High, she transferred to Mililani and was the Trojans' team captain as well as All-State First Team in 2016 and 2017. A five-time OC-16 Impact Player of the Game, Pawlak was an Oahu Interscholastic Association Division Champion in 2015 and 2016. She would win an open bid to the 2017 Girls Junior National Championship Open Division. Pawlak begins her ART U career in the School of Communications & Media Technologies.

"Ashley is an experienced outside hitter and her strength will be her ball control," said Batalon. "She will help bolster our serve receive and back row defense; areas that haven't always been our strong suit. During the recruitment process, we felt that, despite being an undersized outside hitter, the most impressive aspect of Ashley's skillset was her ability to find a variety of ways to score particularly in out of system situations."

Johnson, a 5-7 outside hitter, was a four-year varsity letterwinner at Bullard High School and collected a variety of honors while there. She was All-League twice, earned the Coach's Award, served as captain, and finished as Co-Most Valuable Player after averaging 3.2 kills per set as an upperclassman. A Fresno Bee Girls Volleyball All-Star, Johnson also spent time with various club teams including Rage VBC, Tsunami, Central VBC, and Pacific Premier. In pursuit of her career goal to work as a user interface designer, she will start with the School of Web Design & New Media.
 
"Kimiah is an athletic outside hitter who is very quick off the ground," said Batalon. "She started as a middle hitter and, during her senior year, she made the transition to the outside hitting position. She will add depth to our outside attack and think she will fit in well to our offensive system."

Charrette, a 5-8 libero/outside hitter, served as a two-sport athlete at Berean Christian High School, spending four years on the varsity volleyball squad and two years with track & field (400m, 4x400m). After earning Second Team All-League and being named MaxPreps Player of the Match five times in 2015, Charrette's senior year saw her break out for First Team All-League, team Most Valuable Player, and East Bay Times Player of the Week while averaging 3.0 kills per set. Outside of her athletic accomplishments at Berean Christian, she was a North Coast Section Scholar-Athlete and spent time with her club, Xceleration. At Academy of Art, she will study to become an interior designer in the School of Interior Architecture & Design.
 
"Michaela comes to us from across the bay where she was an outside hitter on her club and high school team," said Batalon. "We plan on taking advantage of her strength as a passer and back row defender. I think what stood out most about Michaela during the recruiting process was her athleticism as well as her dedication and commitment to her team."

These four freshmen will commence their collegiate careers this fall with the ART U program moving into its 10th year of competition.