Joining the coaching staff for her first season is Sasha Karelov, who was a decorated volleyball player at Duke University. In her senior season with the Blue Devils, Karelov was an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American as a libero, while also being named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year after compiling 634 digs (5.42 per set) on the season, which also led the conference. Karelov was also a three-time AVCA All-Region and All-ACC selection and finished her Duke career with 2,023 digs, which ranks third on the school’s all-time list and ninth in the ACC.

Karelov received AVCA All-East Coast Region honorable mention recognition as a junior and sophomore and ranked second in the ACC in digs per set her junior campaign after leading the conference as a sophomore. Along with her success on the court, Karelov was named to the All-ACC Academic Team and ACC Academic Honor Roll three seasons in a row.

After completing her four seasons playing volleyball at Duke, Karelov transferred to Cal State Long Beach to play beach volleyball for the 2017 season. She helped the 49ers to an NCAA Beach Volleyball Championships berth, where they were defeated by both Pepperdine University and Louisiana State University and were eliminated. They concluded the season with a 26-10 record, while it was the program’s first NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship bid in school history.

Karelov went 22-13 in singles play on the year and competed primarily as the #2 pair, while teaming with Kobi Pekich. She also led the team with 371 digs and finished third with 468 kills. Karelov was named 1st Team All-Big West Conference and has one more season of eligibility in beach volleyball.

Karelov started her coaching career when she was 15 years old and worked with the Triangle Volleyball Club in North Carolina, as well as serving as the head coach for the Youth Volleyball Program from 2009-13. She spent each summer while at Duke University coaching in their summer camps, while she was an assistant coach in 2017 for the Orange County Volleyball Club.

Karelov attended Leesville Road (NC) High, where she was the #1 recruit out of North Carolina as a libero/defensive specialist after her senior season. During her time in high school, Karelov led her team to the Cap 8 Conference championship and were the runner-up in the 4A State Tournament. She was named the Cap 8 Conference Player of the Year as a junior.

Karelov, 22, earned her Bachelor’s degree from Duke University in Public Policy Studies with a minor in Russian Language and Culture, while she is on track to finish her Master’s degree in Kinesiology from Cal State Long Beach in 2018.