HEAT WAVE VOLLEYBALL

Jace Pardon grew up in the middle of five children in Manhattan Beach, California, and has a Bachelor of Science in international relations and a master’s degree in sport management from Florida State University (FSU). Currently, Pardon is a professional beach volleyball player with AVP and Team USA. Pardon and her partner Karissa Cook were the women’s champions at the 2019 AVP Austin Open, defeating Sarah Schermerhorn and Kimberly Hildreth. Pardon was a member of the first-ever American duo to win a gold medal at the Pan American Games in 2019. She ranked third for digs and fourth for aces on the 2019 AVP Tour. She was the 2018 Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) silver medalist and a North, Central America, and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) gold medalist and two-time silver medalist in 2017. A three-time All-American at Florida State University, Pardon is the All-Time Wins leader at FSU. She was the 2016 FSU preseason player of the year and a 2014 and 2016 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Collegiate National Championship semifinalist. Pardon and her partner were also three-time Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA) Pair of the Week and Pair of the Tournament/Year awardees. Pardon was a conference champion and a World University Games gold medalist in 2014. Pardon was the 2014 Under 23 World Championship silver medalist, a two-time USA High Performance National Champion, and a member of the USA Junior National Team from 2011–15.

Raffe Paulis is a professional beach volleyball player from Chicago, Illinois. His parents, immigrants from Baghdad, Iraq, spoke exclusively Arabic at home, and he learned English through interactions with peers. At 17, he discovered a passion for volleyball, and started competing competitively in 2009. Competing in several tournaments from 2009 to 2011, Raffe turned professional in 2012, where he would place 3rd in the USA Volleyball IDQ.

Paulis has partnered with Jeff Samuels, Marty Lorenz, Ian Satterfield, and Bill Kolinske. Throughout his long career, Paulis has several top 10 finishes on the AVP Tour and NORCECA, numerous top 20 finishes, and has played in 79 professional tournaments during his 16 year career.  From 2019 to 2024, Paulis has played in 30 professional tournaments and remains a fan favorite.

Brittany Tiegs played on the FSU beach volleyball team and was named to the All-American team in 2012. She transferred to the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in food science and human nutrition and was a two-time All-American. Representing the United States, Tiegs won the gold medal at the World University Championships in Porto, Portugal, in 2014. After graduation, she played one season of professional indoor volleyball in the Maldives. In 2016, Tiegs began playing professionally on the Australia National Beach Tour; she remains a playing professional with AVP.

Tramblie began his collegiate volleyball career as a setter at California State University, Northridge. He recorded the fourth-most assists in school history, which earned him All-Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) honors for three seasons. As a senior, he was a Second Team All-American after guiding the matadors to victories over 13 ranked teams in 2004. In 2003, Tramblie began playing in AVP qualifiers. In 2006, Tramblie joined Tyler Hildebrand and advanced to the main draw. In 2008, Tramblie teamed with Mike Morrison and achieved best of fifth on the AVP circuit—a career best for both at the time. The year 2011 proved to be a great year for Tramblie, playing eight domestic events on three different tours, with a best of second. After the 2014 season and seven AVP events, he ended the season ranked eighth in kills per set and 10th in digs. In 2016, Tramblie advanced to his first two career AVP semifinals, winning once in Chicago.