More evidence proving that Nebraska is a volleyball hotbed at all levels of the sport: Shayla Rautenberg, rising sophomore at Milford, has been selected to the roster of the USA Volleyball Under 19 Team that will be competing at the Pan American Cup in Canada later this month.

Nineteen girls from across the country competed for spots on the squad at the Olympic training center in Colorado, USA Volleyball’s headquarters, at the start of this month, and USA VB released the final 12-girl roster last week, with Milford’s multi-sport standout among the final 12 primaries.

A 6'3 middle from Pleasant Dale, Rautenberg will join a squad of athletes from across the country - from California and Hawaii to Georgia and North Carolina - who will represent the United States in the NORCECA Pan American Cup at the end of the month. This year's U19 squad is coached by Jamie Morrison, head coach at Texas A&M, along with assistants from some of the country's professional leagues.

Rautenberg's Eagles went 24-10 this past fall, with the freshman middle blocker pacing the squad in kills (4.1/set), hit percentage (.305) and blocks (1.1/set) and ranking third in aces (27). Among schools with stats on MaxPreps, Rautenberg's 118 total blocks ranked second in Class C1 and fifth in the entire state. As a freshman, Rautenberg was also a starter on the Milford basketball team that made the state championship game this spring as well as a member of the track team.

And athletic ability clearly runs in the family: Shayla’s mother is Lisa Reitsma, a former Nebraska volleyball great who was just announced as a member of the school's upcoming hall of fame class. 

Rautenberg and the rest of the USA U19 squad will train in Chicago from June 20-22 before heading off to Ontario for the tournament, which begins on June 24. The final matches, including a potential medal match, are on June 28.

Team USA is in a pool that also includes Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela. The American U19s previously won gold at this event, the Pan Am Cup, in both 2022 and 2023 and won gold again last year at the NORCECA Continental Championship. 

For more information on the team including a schedule for the event, check out USA Volleyball's full release.