Anna Unke was hired in June as the new head coach of the women's indoor volleyball team.

She is no stranger to Irvine Valley and volleyball.

Unke takes over for Ryan Windisch, who moved on to become a top assistant coach at NCAA Division I University of Arizona.

Unke was a two-sport, all-Orange Empire Conference player in indoor and beach volleyball at IVC before completing her Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology with a focus on exercise science at Cal State Bakersfield in 2022, where she was again a two-year starter for the Roadrunner squads with indoor and beach. 

Unke has been the coach at JSerra Catholic High School for both indoor and beach and helped lead the beach squad to the semifinals of the recent CIF event this past spring.

She also has coached with the San Clemente Volleyball Club.

The former Crean Lutheran High standout is excited to get to work with the Lasers.

"I love to coach and want to create a family among our team," Unke said. "And I want the players to reach their full potential. The grinding mindset of working hard and taking care of each other on and off the court is so important."

Unke knows what it takes to play at a high level at Irvine Valley and beyond.

Under IVC legendary coach Tom Pestolesi, Unke shined both on the sand and indoors for the Lasers.

She helped lead the IVC beach team to an unblemished Orange Empire Conference record and a third-place finish at the California Community College Athletic Association State Championship in Chula Vista in 2019.

The Lasers ended the year ranked No. 3 in the state in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) final poll. The Laser beach squad was named the team of the year as part of the IVC athletic department's 19^th Annual Awards.

Irvine Valley ended with a record of 17-8 overall and won a conference title with a mark of 10-0. IVC ended up going 15-1 against community college opponents in 2019.

Unke teamed with fellow freshman Gabriela Griego on the sand last season. Unke and Griego finished fifth at the conference pairs championships last April. The duo was even better at the South Region pairs championship, taking fourth to move on to the state event individually.

And Unke and Griego went undefeated and captured their pool on the first day of the state pairs event before being knocked out the next day by IVC teammates Lea Kruse and Renata Bath 21-16, 21-18, in the round of 16.

Unke and the IVC beach team were ranked No. 2 in the AVCA preseason poll in 2020 before the season was halted due to COVID.

Indoors, she helped IVC to the CCCAA State Championship both her freshman and sophomore seasons. IVC had a record of 48-3 over the two years.

After playing primarily as a defensive specialist her freshman year (2018), Unke was the starting libero for IVC in 2019.

Irvine Valley went 27-1 in 2018 and its only loss was in five sets to Feather River in five dramatic sets in the state title match in Chula Vista in 2019. Unke finished with 18 digs in that contest and over the three matches and 15 sets that IVC played at state, Unke totaled 59 digs.

Unke's goal is to carry on what she has learned from coaches like Pestolesi and then Windisch, who led the Lasers to a conference title last fall.

"Playing at IVC was the best thing that happened to me as not only an athlete, but also learning from the best," she said. "I was coached by Pesto and he is a legend in the volleyball community. His incredible coaching staffs also taught me so much while I was here not only on the court, but about working hard and developing relationships.

"They helped me live my dreams and I am so happy to be back at IVC to help student-athletes achieve, shine and move on."

Irvine Valley will start its 2023 fall season on Aug. 17 with a scrimmage at Pasadena City and will play its first official match at Canyons on Aug. 25.

The full IVC women's volleyball schedule can be viewed here