UCI’s Pelzel a candidate

UC Irvine men’s volleyball All-American Jimmy Pelzel is among 24

players invited by USA Volleyball to try out for the 2003 World

University Games.

The players begin training June 27 at the United States Olympic

Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Once a team of 12 players and alternates is selected, it will

compete in the Japan-USA Men’s Challenge Cup, a series of six matches

in Japan from July 26 through Aug. 3. The team will then return to

Colorado Springs to begin final preparations for the World University

Games, scheduled Aug. 21-31 in Daegu, Korea.

Pelzel, a first-team American Volleyball Coaches Association

All-American as a junior in 2003, was also a first-team All-Mountain

Pacific Sports Federation honoree. He ranked second nationally in

points per game (6.37) and fourth in kills per game (5.16), while

setting the UCI single-season school record for kills with 593. He

helped the Anteaters earn the No. 1 national ranking early in the

season, a first for the program.

UCI Coach John Speraw will also be in Colorado Springs this summer

as the head coach for the 2003 national boys youth training team.

UCI finished the season with a 20-11 record and the No. 5 national

ranking.