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Vikings’ Watson showcases her game in Europe

Tribune staff report
South Tahoe libero Kaitlynn Watson passes a ball during a match last season.
Anthony Gentile / Tahoe Daily Tribune |

South Tahoe volleyball standout Kaitlynn Watson took a summer trip to Europe earlier this month — but it wasn’t for vacation. The Vikings libero started on the U.S. Westside California U-17 team that played in the 11th-annual European Global Challenge volleyball tournament in Pula, Croatia July 12-16.

“It was an honor to be selected for the team, and then participate against some of the best teams in Europe,” said Watson, an incoming senior at STHS. “To be able to represent not only South Tahoe, but the United States, is mind-blowing.”

Watson’s team, made up of under-17 players from California, finished seventh in the tournament. The all-California squad played several European teams, including the national champions from Italy and Croatia — a second team from California along with squads from the Midwest and South rounded out the U.S. contingent at the tournament.



The tournament also featured under-22 teams, including the U.S. Junior National team and the Mountain West All-Star team highlighted by Nevada setter Lyndsey Anderson. The Junior National team won the U-22 division, defeating the Italian Junior National team 3-2 for the championship.

“To be able to represent not only South Tahoe, but the United States, is mind-blowing.”Kaitlynn WatsonSouth Tahoe volleyball player

As a junior in her first year at South Tahoe, Watson was a defensive standout for the Vikings. She finished the season with 264 digs and 30 aces.


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