Navarre's Haun signs with Air Force

By WILL PARCHMAN

Northwest Florida Daily News

315-4484 | willp@nwfdailynews.com

NAVARRE - The Air Force Academy may run through the Haun family veins, but the newest member of the Falcon family is still trying to get a handle on things.

Still, life is good for Julianne Haun.

Haun put pen to paper for the Air Force volleyball team on Friday at Navarre High, ceremonially signing her letter of intent with the Falcons as their newest outside hitter.

"I think it's just a good opportunity," said Haun, whose parents are both in the Air Force. "It's a nice fit, and I love Colorado Springs."

But unlike just about anywhere else she could've committed, the Navarre senior will have to check in somewhere else before she hits the volleyball court for the first time.

Basic training.

"I don't know a lot about it yet," Haun said. "Because right now it's like, you go to basic once you get there, then volleyball."

Haun will start the six-week intensive basic training on June 25, and only after that will she get a chance to breathe and step into the challenge of competing in the tough Mountain West Conference.

The outside hitter starred as the lone returning varsity player on a Navarre squad that had lost nine seniors from the year before, leading the team's charge all season long.

"She did a great job with really making the younger girls feel welcome and helping them pull together," Raiders coach Liz Pardue said. "She got out there in some games and she just knew how to put the ball away."

She also played with the West Florida club volleyball team, which she said provided the ultimate preparation for Division I volleyball, a significant jump from what she's seen thus far.

Haun said that academics played an undoubtedly large role in her ultimate decision, no surprise considering her dual enrollment at Navarre and Pensacola Junior College last year.

"They play Mountain West and academics are so big there," Haun said. "On the talent side they perform well, but it's always more about academics for them."

So while Haun is in the midst dealing with the relative uncertainty of a college jump and the inevitable basic training experience, she's already enjoying the ride.

"All I really know is that I'm going to play outside, but then again, when I get there they could tell me totally different stuff," Haun said. "I'm just going to do whatever they want me to do."