Iowa volleyball sophomores-to-be Bethany Yeager and Rachael Bedell have been selected to play for divisions of the U.S. Women’s National Team after successful tryouts in Colorado Springs, Colo., in February.

Yeager, a libero, and Bedell, an outside hitter, will compete for different teams under the U.S. National name this summer, with Yeager one of 12 women selected for the Junior A2 squad that will play at the USA High Performance Championships in Tucson, Ariz., from July 26-29. Bedell will compete with the Junior A2-Europe squad; she will train in London starting in mid-July. Bedell’s team will compete against the Great Britain National Team as well as compete in the European Global Challenge tournament in Croatia.

Hawkeye head coach Sharon Dingman was proud of the two not just for their personal accomplishments but for giving another positive boost to the rebuilding Iowa volleyball team.

"They both had outstanding tryouts and did a tremendous job representing themselves and the Hawkeyes," she said in a release. "They will be great representatives of our university."

— by Ian Martin