Petritias Named an AVCA All-American

By Jimmy Friery

The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced its inaugural Two-Year College Men's Volleyball All-Americans on Wednesday, with Vaquero pin hitter Mykolas Petritias one of the 12 student-athletes selected.

The standout from Ventura ended the year with 308 kills (3.54 per set—fifth in the state), blowing away the program's previous single-season record of 275. A strong server, he also notched 45 aces (0.52 per set—second in the state), eight shy of the program record.

Defensively, his 135 digs were good for second on the team, only behind libero Luke Steinert (177). At the net, Petritias' 65 total blocks were third behind middle blockers Nick Schultz (83) and Keegan Hubbard (90) who each broke the previous program record of 78.

Naturally, Petritias was named to the 3C2A Northern Division's First Team and earned Player of the Week honors for the week of March 16. His efforts contributed to the Vaqueros' first conference title since 2005 and most wins in a season since 1990 on the way to a second-consecutive State semifinal appearance.

Now, he joins a group of 12 student-athletes—six from the 3C2A and six from the NJCAA—as an AVCA All-American. See the full list on the AVCA website.